The actress shared the story on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, confirming that she did say no to the part. Looking back, Hudson admitted the decision still gives her mixed feelings.
“It’s one of those things where I look back and think, ‘That would have been nice to be in a Spider-Man movie,’” Hudson said. “But at the same time, I did a movie called Four Feathers.”
Instead of suiting up for a superhero blockbuster, Hudson chose the historical war drama Four Feathers, where she starred alongside Heath Ledger, Djimon Hounsou and Wes Bentley. While the film received mixed reviews and struggled at the box office, Hudson says the experience changed her life.
“I got to meet Heath Ledger, who became a very good friend,” she explained. “I got an experience that I would have never had.”
The Spider-Man role she passed on went to Kirsten Dunst, who starred opposite Tobey Maguire under director Sam Raimi. The film became a massive hit, earning more than $800 million worldwide and launching a hugely successful trilogy. Hudson acknowledged that success, but said she’s made peace with her choice.
“A part of me is like, ‘Life happens exactly the way it’s supposed to,’” she said. “I’m grateful for it. But I do look at it and think, ‘Aw, it would have been fun to be Mary Jane.’”
Hudson also stressed that she believes the movie was perfectly cast. “It doesn’t feel good to talk about it, because the people who are in the movie are the right people,” she said. “Your circumstances in life happen the way they happen.”
During the same appearance, Hudson revealed she has also turned down movie offers that would have paired her on screen with her mother, actress Goldie Hawn. According to Hudson, the bar is set high if they’re ever going to work together.
“It’s gotta be really funny,” she said. “It’s gotta hit in a different way. We think about it — we just haven’t figured that one out yet.”
While Hudson may never have swung through New York City as Mary Jane Watson, she seems comfortable knowing that one decision led her down a path filled with meaningful relationships and experiences she wouldn’t trade.
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