Elton John considered Justin Timberlake to star in 'Rocketman'

Los Angeles: Actor Taron Egerton may have drawn raves in Cannes Film Festival for his portrayal of legendary singer Elton John in "Rocketman" but the legend's first choice was actor-singer Justin Timberlake.

The former boybander-turned-hitmaker and actor Timberlake had once starred in the David LaChapelle-helmed video of John's 2001 song "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore".

"But we never formerly approached Justin because we weren't ever at a stage where it was the right time to approach him," John's husband and "Rocketman" producer David Furnish told hollywoodreporter.com 

Furnish added: "But he did an amazing job in the video. He put on a prosthetic nose, and it turned out to have been some really interesting acting work as well."

As for Tom Hardy, John appeared to throw a little shade on the "Venom" star.

"Taron Egerton came onboard this film because somebody else dropped out," he told the crowd at the film's Cannes afterparty. He quickly added: "His performance in this film is scary brilliant… When I watch the movie, I don't see an actor, I see myself."