Tom Ellis , the devilishly charming star of Lucifer , came close to joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Reed Richards, a.k.a. Mister Fantastic, in The Fantastic Four: First Steps . While Pedro Pascal ultimately snagged the role, Ellis has revealed he was one of a select few actors asked to submit audition tapes for the legendary superhero.

“I had been waiting for the right thing, timing-wise and character-wise, to come along,” Ellis told Square Mile . “And I remember looking at the photo of Richards in the comics and going, ‘this could be the one.’ We look quite similar.”

Despite losing the role, Ellis has nothing but praise for Pascal, but slid in a joke about his busy year, saying, “I mean to be fair, he’s not in much.”

Ellis himself has stayed busy. He recently appeared

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