It’s tough to imagine Joaquin Phoenix in any sort of superhero franchise. His resume just doesn’t lend itself to those kinds of roles, which made it all the more surprising to hear that he was attached to two superhero films this year. The first was for the role of Lex Luthor in Zack Snyder’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, which eventually went to Jesse Eisenberg. The next was the titular role in Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange.

Considering the field was already rumored to be narrowed down to Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Jared Leto, we kind of got the idea what Marvel and Disney were going for. But it seems that Phoenix doesn’t want to be a part of a big superhero franchise, as he is now out of the running. Hit the jump for more.

Deadline was the first to confirm the report.

Phoenix getting the role was always going to be a long shot. Not that he isn’t capable of acting or he hasn’t earned it, it’s just that he doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would enjoy going on worldwide press tours and junkets to push a film that has a huge fanbase like Marvel Studios.

So who else is up for the role. Well Leto and Cumberbatch are still some of the names that are floating around. Marvel hasn’t revealed who they are looking at to take the role, but the latest rumored name to be put in the hat is Boyhood‘s Ethan Hawke.

Scott Derrickson will direct, using a script written by Prometheus scribe Jon Spaihts. And with a director and writer already in place, expect Marvel to make a casting decision soon, hopefully by the end of the year at least.

[Source: Deadline]