Bowie – who appears on the cover of the Hot Press Annual 2017, along with Prince and Leonard Cohen in a brilliant illustration by acclaimed artist David Rooney – was offered the key role of Gandalf, made famous by thespian Ian McKellen.
Top casting director Amy Hubbard has only now revealed that the film’s director, Peter Jackson was keen to talk to Bowie about playing the role but the musician was “unavailable”.
“We approached him. I’m pretty sure it was Peter Jackson’s idea in the first few weeks that we got going. It was one that he’d always wondered about, and we rang Chris [Andrews, Bowie’s agent], and [Bowie] was far too busy,” she told The Huffington Post.

It wasn’t the first time David Bowie turned down a role: he was offered the chance to play a baddie in a James Bond movie, but rejected the opportunity because he found it a boring idea.
"I didn’t want to spend five months watching my stunt double fall off cliffs," Bowie said about turning down the offer.
Instead, the part went to Christopher Walken in the Roger Moore movie, ‘A View to a Kill’.
Bowie starred in many critically acclaimed movies, such as 'Labyrinth', 'The Last Temptation of Christ', 'Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me', 'Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence' and 'The Hunger'.
Here’s the 1985 James Bond movie’s theme tune 'A View to a Kill' by Duran Duran: