Most Indiana Jones fans can imagine no-one other than Harrison Ford playing the intrepid archaeologist. But in 1980, just before filming began on Raiders of the Lost Ark, soon-to-be TV legend Tom Selleck was offered the role first.
Selleck is of course best known for smash-hit Hawaiian detective drama Magnum P.I., which ran for eight seasons. His audition for Indy went great and he was offered the part. But Magnum producers at CBS refused to let him out of his contract to go to England and shoot the movie. Rather than try to wriggle out of it, Selleck felt duty-bound to continue working on Magnum.
But it turned out that a Hollywood actors’ strike unexpectedly halted filming on Magnum, meaning that Selleck would have have time to go to London, film Raiders, and still meet his CBS obligations. Nevertheless, Selleck had no regrets. Later on he revealed that sticking with Magnum “was the best thing that ever happened to me… I’m proud that I lived up to my contract.”
It had been suggested to producer George Lucas that he give Harrison Ford a call, but the Star Wars director was reluctant to work with him again, saying that he didn’t want to have to rely too much on one actor in his movies. But it was Steven Spielberg who finally talked Lucas into it.
Ford became much more than just a star – he also took a keen interest in re-writing the original script with Spielberg. During their 10-hour flight from L.A. to London, the pair went over it line by line, and by the time they touched down at Heathrow they had it ready to film.
Selleck remained Magnum for eight years between 1980 and 1988, and thoroughly made the character his own. While he would never get to play Indy on screen, all that Hawaiian sunshine surely made up for it.