Kate Hudson says she nearly played Mary Jane Watson in Sony’s original Spider-Man film in 2002 but turned down the role, which later went to Kirsten Dunst.
The Almost Famous star discussed the decision on Monday’s episode of Watch What Happens Live with host Andy Cohen, confirming that she had said “no” to the role.
“It’s one of those things where I look back like, ‘That would have been nice to be in a “Spider-Man” movie,’” Hudson said. “But at the same time, I did a movie called ‘Four Feathers.’ I got to meet Heath Ledger who became a very good friend and I got an experience that I would have never had.”
Four Feathers, a war drama released a few months after Spider-Man, starred Hudson alongside Heath Ledger, Djimon Hounsou and Wes Bentley.
Hudson said she believes events unfold as they are meant to. “A part of me is like, ‘Life happens exactly the way it’s supposed to,’” she said. “And so, I’m grateful for it. But I do look at it and I’m like, ‘Aw, it would have been fun to be [Mary Jane].’”
Spider-Man went on to gross USD 826 million worldwide and spawned a trilogy starring Tobey Maguire and Dunst, with all three films directed by Sam Raimi.
Maguire last played the superhero in Spider-Man 3 in 2007 before returning for the multiverse crossover Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021. Dunst has not reprised the role of Mary Jane since Spider-Man 3.
Hudson said discussing roles she passed on can be uncomfortable. “It doesn’t feel good to talk about it ’cause the people who are in the movie are the right people and your circumstances in life happen the way they happen,” she said.
During the show, Hudson also revealed that she has turned down film offers that would have paired her with her mother, actor Goldie Hawn.
“It’s gotta be really funny,” she said. “It’s gotta hit in a different way. We think about it, it’s just we haven’t read it yet. We haven’t figured that one out.”