The superhero genre continues to be wildly popular, and is showing no signs of slowing. But before shared universes helped the genre become commonplace the X-Men movies brought mutants to life in live-action. Aside from the main installments, we also got two solo movies for Hugh Jackman's Logan, starting with X-Men Origins: Wolverine (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription). And actor Josh Holloway's story about losing the role of Gambit revealed how brutal the film industry can be.
While Channing Tatum played Gambit in Deadpool & Wolverine (and will reprise his role as part of the Avengers: Doomsday cast), the fan-favorite mutant got his live-action debut in the first Wolverine movie. Actor Taylor Kitsch played the Ragin' Cajun, but it turns out that role very nearly went to Holloway. The Lost star recently appeared at Fan Expo Portal, via Collider, and shared the wild story about being cast as Gambit, and then having the role taken away from him. In his words:
Well Gambit was one. As a matter of fact, I read with Hugh Jackman and got the part. They hugged me, said, 'You're it! I'll see you on set.' By the end of that evening, the studio head had called and said, 'We want someone 10 years younger.' So they got Taylor Kitsch. Which, I wonder if he could come back? Who knows, but thank you. I learned the card tricks and everything.
Ouch. While auditioning and not booking roles is hard enough, the idea of being congratulated for landing a major gig like X-Men Origins: Wolverine and then the studio changing their mind is on another level. Add in the fact that Holloway seemingly lost his chance at playing Gambit due to his age adds extra salt to the wound.
Gambit is a beloved member of the X-Men, so the hype was real around his first live-action adaptation in Origins: Wolverine. It no doubt would have been a big gig for Holloway, who was nearing the end of his tenure as Sawyer in Lost at the time. Alas, he got aged out... despite already getting a verbal job offer after his audition.
While Taylor Kitsch admitted he hadn't seen Channing Tatum's version of Gambit in Deadpool 3, I have to wonder if Josh Holloway ended up ever watching X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I wouldn't blame him if he avoided it after landing the role and having it taken away. And I can only imagine how cool he would have looked suited up in the hero's costume from the blockbuster spinoff.
As previously mentioned, Tatum got to debut as Gambit in Deadpool & Wolverine, and will already have the chance to reprise his role in Avengers: Doomsday. The character also recently appeared in animation during X-Men '97, and in video games via the online title Marvel Rivals.
Josh Holloway continues to work consistently, including a hilarious cameo in The Paper. X-Men Origins: Wolverine is streaming on Disney+, while Tatum's take on Gambit will return to theaters when Avengers: Doomsday is released December 18th as part of the 2026 movie release list.
