Actor/singer Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs revealed he was, at one point, on a shortlist to play the role of Robin in a live-action Batman film.
During an interview with Black Hollywood Live, Diggs was asked if there was ever a role he was close to getting, but ultimately did not get. "I don't know... you know, agents these days," he replied. "Because sometimes they do say, 'It's a shortlist. You're on a shortlist.'"
"I remember there was a minute when, um... oh, I wanted this so bad; when they were considering Batman, in Batman, the Robin being Black," Diggs revealed. "I know Marlon Wayans was right there... and you know, this is just what they tell you. But I feel like I might have been on that. That would have been great. That would have been awesome."
"I'm still waiting to be a superhero," he continued. "I gotta figure that out... I still wanna do that. So, we'll see."
Diggs did not reveal when exactly this role was on the table, nor which incarnation of Robin he would have played. However, he did mention Marlon Wayans by name. This is of note because Wayans was actually cast as Robin early in the development of director Tim Burton's Batman Returns. The Boy Wonder was cut from the 1992 film due to screenwriter Daniel Waters feeling there were too many characters.
Wayans then signed on for Burton's Batman Forever. However, Burton was soon replaced as director by Joel Schumacher, which resulted in many of the main roles being recast, including Batman himself, Two-Face, Chase Meridian and Robin, who was ultimately played by Chris O'Donnell in the 1995 film.
Diggs went on to make his Broadway debut in 1994, his television debut in 1996 and his cinematic debut in 1998, which means the timeline of events is still a bit unclear (especially considering the apparent secrecy involved in the casting process.) Still, he is perhaps best known for his roles in such films as Rent, How Stella Got Her Groove Back and The Best Man. More recently, he has been seen seen on The CW's sports drama series All American.