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Alan Ritchson had to learn the hard way that having superhero looks isn’t the only prerequisite required when being cast as the lead of a comic book movie.
In a recent interview with Men’s Health, Ritchson revealed that he auditioned to play Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but that he lost out on the role, which was “his to lose”, because he didn’t take “the craft” of acting seriously.
“I didn’t take it [the Thor audition] seriously,” Ritchson said. “I was like, ‘They’ll throw me the part if I look like the guy; nobody really cares about acting.’ ” After the audition, the casting cabal told his team the role had been his to lose but he hadn’t shown that he had “the craft.”
Ultimately, Chris Hemsworth was cast as Thor and has played the character for over a decade, most recently appearing in 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder.
While Ritchson has yet to be cast in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he’s still had chances to play superheroes.
His first-ever acting role, in fact, was as Aquaman in the hit CW series Smallville. He also appeared as Hank Hall/Hawk in DC series such as Titans, Supergirl, and Legends of Tomorrow.
Ritchson’s biggest-ever superhero role could still be ahead of him, though, as the 41-year-old Reacher star has become a popular choice to star as Batman in James Gunn’s DCU.
Speaking to BroBible earlier this year, Ritchson said he would “absolutely love” to play the iconic Caped Crusader.
“The fact that people are interested in me playing Batman is a real honor and privilege. It’s one of the first characters I fell in love with as a child: I still remember the big, long pistol coming out of Joker’s pants as he goes to shoot down the Batplane,” Ritchson told BroBible’s Post Credit Podcast.
“I would love to [play Batman]. I would absolutely love to. It’s one of the coolest characters of all time,” he said.
Ritchson was most recently seen in the drama Ordinary Angels, which hit theaters in February. Next up, he’ll be seen starring alongside Henry Cavill and Eiza Gonzalez in Guy Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which will be released in April.
You can check out BroBible’s full interview with Ritchson below.