Josh Hartnett regrets not playing Batman in 'The Dark Knight'

LOS ANGELES, April 17 (UPI) -- Josh Hartnett regrets not playing Batman in The Dark Knight trilogy of films.

The 36-year-old actor said as much in an interview with Playboy published Thursday. Director Christopher Nolan offered Hartnett the iconic superhero role, but the star turned the opportunity down to spend time with his friends and family.

"I've definitely said no to some of the wrong people," he confessed. "That's frowned upon in this industry. People don't like being told no. I don't like it. I learned my lesson when Christopher Nolan and I talked about Batman. I decided it wasn't for me. Then he didn't want to put me in The Prestige."

Christian Bale was cast as Batman in Batman Begins (2005), and went on to star in sequels The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises and The Prestige. Hartnett, meanwhile, took on such projects as Sin City with Jessica Alba and Lucky Number Slevin with Lucy Liu.

Hartnett currently stars as Ethan Chandler on Showtime series Penny Dreadful, which will premiere a second season May 3. The actor is also scheduled for drama film Wild Horses, with Robert Duvall as writer, director and co-star.