20 Actors You Didn't Know Almost Played X-Men

6. ...And So Were Mel Gibson, Aaron Eckhart And Viggo Mortensen

If all of the rumoured casting alternatives for Wolverine were laid out end to end around the world, the line of actors would stretch right to the Badlands.

Among the assorted options for actors who were considered for the role, before Bryan Singer made his final (wrong) choice - and then was forced to change his mind again - a cavalcade of gruff talent was apparently considered for the role, including Russell Crowe, Mel Gibson, Aaron Eckhart, Keanu Reeves and possibly Ed Norton (though he might have been considered for Cyclops.)

By far the most intriguing of the lot is Viggo Mortensen, who would have made an incredibly memorable Wolverine, since he is already well-versed in playing slightly miserable characters with a haunted, regret-filled past (a mantle he seems to be wearing in real life at the minute, given his complaints about the LOTR.)