What Happened To Josh Hartnett?
Josh Hartnett, who rose to fame in the late 1990s, recently revealed why he turned his back on Hollywood.
With blockbuster films under his belt like Pearl Harbor and Black Hawk Down, it was kind of bizarre why he suddenly started turning down roles and stayed away from the limelight.
Hartnett, 44, said in an interview “I was on the cover of every magazine. I couldn’t really go anywhere. I didn’t feel comfortable in my own skin. I was alone. I didn’t trust anyone. So I went back to Minnesota and got back together with my old friends – ended up getting back together with my high school girlfriend for a while.”
Although he had stated that he chose to leave Tinseltown for a much simpler life, Hartnett did express his regret for turning down his role in Ang Lee’s “Broke Back Mountain”, which later on was starred by Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger and became one of the most acclaimed movies of all time.
“Unfortunately, I was going to do Brokeback Mountain. And I had a contract with the (2006 film) Black Dahlia that I had to film, so I had to drop out of it.”
The Pearl Harbor star also declined roles on popular offers like a three-picture deal for Superman and Christopher Nolan’s Batman. In an interview with Playboy magazine, Hartnett expressed his regret and spoke about what had happened when he turned down those major deals.
"That's frowned upon in this industry. People don't like being told no. I learned my lesson when Christopher Nolan and I talked about Batman. I decided it wasn’t for me. Then he didn’t want to put me in The Prestige. They hired their Batman [Christian Bale] for it."
Although he stated that he did regret his career decisions, the Minnesota native told Sunrise that the choice he made was good for his mental health.
“It was the best thing for my mental health and my career to keep Hollywood at bay. Luckily I think I hit onto it early on in my life: it’s about creating a good home life and being able to do things that are wild and wonderful like making films, which is such a privilege.”
Hartnett now lives in Surrey, England with his wife actress Tamsin Egerton and their three children.
The story does not end there though, years after turning down Batman, Hartnett is the latest recruit for the drama “Oppenheimer” written and directed by Christopher Nolan set for release on July 21, 2023. It is a biopic of the father of the “Atomic Bomb”.
We sure will be watching out for his upcoming projects.
Did Josh Hartnett do the right thing in turning down those roles? What do you think?
