Paul Walker he was in the running for the role of Clart Kent/Superman in the early 2000s, during one of Warner Bros.’ many attempts to reboot the franchise. In fact, at one point he was the studio’s first choice and they offered him $10 million to take on the role, but in the end he turned it down.

I am Paul walkerrecently aired on The CW, the late actor’s manager, Matt Luber, and stunt double, Oakley Lehman, shared the story of Walker being up for the role and why the actor ended up abandoning the ‘opportunity.

Luber explained that Walker “was auditioning for Superman” and shared that “I think it was a $10 million deal, and he was the favorite.”

Lehman, who was also Walker’s childhood friend, added that at one point Walker was actually “ready to do it” and that he was “thinking about doing it.” He added: “I knew he didn’t want to do three or four Supermans [films] and be Superman for the rest of his life.

Luber then shared that it was in the middle of the casting process that Walker decided that playing Superman and wearing the suit wasn’t for him. Luber said Walker told him, “’I have an ‘S,’ I have a cape, boots, tights… that’s not me. I’m getting the fuck out of here. I have to go. F*** you.’ And he was gone.”

In 2003, Walker also explained why he turned down the role of Superman by telling the Chicago Sun-Times: “Yes, I could have made tons of dollars with that franchise. I probably could have bought my own fleet of jets or my own island. You know what? I don’t need it. My favorite brand of running shoes costs $23. I rarely pay more than $40 for my jeans. Put a t-shirt on it and it costs me $20 or $10 if I buy it at the beach. I don’t need a trillion dollars to run this kind of lifestyle.

And this is one of the reasons why I liked Paul Walker. He kept it real and down to earth. Walker died on November 30, 2013, aged 40, in a tragic car accident.

Walker would have been an interesting and different choice for Superman. He’s one of those “what if…?” things in movies we will never see.