10 Actors Who Must Regret Turning Down Major Movie Roles
9. Tom Selleck - Indiana Jones (Raiders Of The Lost Ark)
Before Harrison Ford made the part undeniably his own, Tom Selleck was George Lucas' first pick for Indiana Jones, but he turned it down due to scoring the Magnum P.I. gig and CBS subsequently refusing to release him to star in the movie.
Ironically, shooting on the Magnum pilot was delayed by six months, so Selleck would've actually had plenty of time to shoot Raiders, which must make it that much more agonising for him.
In Ford's hands, Indy became a pop-culture icon who spawned four movies (with a fifth on the way), endless amounts of merchandise and made Ford over $25 million in salaries alone (not counting his inevitably huge payday for Indy 5).
Selleck certainly wasn't taking a bath on Magnum, though, where he made millions per season, but he failed to follow up with a successful transition to movies, mostly starring in critical and commercial duds before returning to the TV world for most of the last two decades.
Would It Have Worked?: 100%. Selleck's got the charm and the looks, so he can curse CBS for this one, and perhaps himself for not having a better lawyer.