Kevin Feige Says Adam Driver Keeps Turning Down Marvel Roles

Social media is currently inundated with rumors that Adam Driver is being courted to play an unspecified character in Marvel’s “X-Men” reboot. I never believed them. Driver likes his auteur-driven movies, and it would likely take a massive paycheck for him to hop aboard the MCU.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has essentially now nixed these rumors on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast. In fact, Feige admitted that Driver has repeatedly turned down offers to join the MCU over the years.

“It’s no secret we’d like to [work with Adam],” Feige replied. “But it’s a tradition to Zoom with him and then he passes. That’s a long-lived tradition. He couldn’t be more cordial. He is usually upfront about how he is feeling.”

Driver has already starred in a massive franchise, Star Wars, playing Kylo Ren/Ben Solo in three films — why would he want to do that again? The only possible reason would be an offer that is too good to refuse, and Marvel rarely, if ever, scratches that itch.

Feige said on the podcast that no “X-Men” casting has been finalized at this time, nor did he reveal which roles Driver has passed on. One of them, however, is known to have been for “The Fantastic Four,” potentially as Reed Richards, a role that ultimately went to Pedro Pascal.

Driver has built one of the most auteur-driven careers of his generation, repeatedly choosing to work with acclaimed filmmakers. His collaborators include Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Noah Baumbach, Jim Jarmusch, Steven Soderbergh, Michael Mann, Francis Ford Coppola, Ridley Scott, Leos Carax, and the Coen brothers.

Driver has said he has always wanted to work with great directors and sees filmmaking as a director-driven medium, which is why he has often gravitated toward that kind of environment. Unless he is motivated purely by a massive financial offer, it is difficult to see him making his way into the MCU.

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August 19, 2019

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