23 Actors Who Turned Down Huge Movie Roles

Michael Keaton may be best known for his 1989 role as Batman, but he's revealed that he turned down another huge role as the lead in "Groundhog Day" because he simply "didn't get it."

Keaton's not alone.

Harrison Ford wasn't originally sought out to play Han Solo, nor was Scarlett Johansson the original choice for Marvel's Black Widow.

And we might have seen Brad Pitt in a very different role if it wasn't for his kids. 

We rounded up 23 actors and actresses who turned down possible career-changing roles.

Michael Keaton regrets passing on the chance to star in "Groundhog Day."

Role was played by: Bill Murray

Michael Keaton told Entertainment Weekly he turned down the lead in 1993's "Groundhog Day" because he simply "didn't get it."

"This guy sounds like the kind of wry, sardonic, glib young man I've played — and it ended up being so great," Keaton tells EW. "But you can't do it better than Bill Murray did it."

Bill Murray declined to play the lead in "Forrest Gump."

Role was played by: Tom Hanks

Murray told Howard Stern on his SiriusXM program the part didn’t interest him.

“I did have ‘Forrest Gump’ conversations,” Murray said. “I think I had the original book and all that sort of stuff.”

Murray says he never saw the script for the film. When Stern asked Murray if he regretted passing on the film, he said he never saw it.

Matt Damon turned down the role of Harvey Dent in "The Dark Knight."

Role was played by: Aaron Eckhart

Damon told MTV he had to turn down the iconic role of Harvey "Two-Face" Dent because of filming conflicts.

I couldn't [appear in The Dark Knight]. It was a scheduling thing. But I never spoke to Chris Nolan.

He had no qualms regarding Nolan's final choice for the villain.

Look, Aaron is a great actor, so the movie didn't suffer for it. Every once in a while you get [an acting opportunity] and you can't do it.