10 Movie Roles Harrison Ford Turned Down

6. Bob Barnes (Syriana)

Politically-charged thriller Syriana is apparently one of Harrison Ford's biggest career regrets, and it's easy to see why. Having been offered the lead role of Bob Barnes in Stephen Gaghan's 2005 effort, Ford decided against taking the part and instead watched George Clooney again step in to fill his shoes (much like Clooney had replaced Ford years prior on The Perfect Storm). The reasoning for Ford's decision was because he spent large parts of 2004, 2005 and 2006 acting as the Chairman of the Young Eagles program of Experimental Aircraft Association, although his absence didn't really do the film any harm. Sure, Ford could've ticked off some of the complex boxes that Clooney brought to the role, but smooth-talking George excelled as the CIA operative could in the middle of the politics involved in the petrol and oil industry. Clooney would go on to wow audiences as Gaghan's movie drew praise from all corners, with Ford having since openly talked about his regret at deciding against the picture.
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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.