Pierce Brosnan has revealed he turned down the chance to play Batman - admitting it was "foolish".

The Irish actor spilled the beans in a Reddit Q and A, explaining he had the opportunity to play the caped crusader in Tim Burton's 1989 film but passed, with the part eventually going to Michael Keaton.

He said: "I went and met with Tim Burton for the role of Batman. But I just couldn't really take it seriously, any man who wears his underpants outside his pants just cannot be taken seriously.

"That was my foolish take on it. It was a joke, I thought. But how wrong was I?

"Don't get me wrong, because I love Batman, and I grew up on Batman. As a kid in Ireland, we used to get our raincoats and tie them round our neck and swing through the bicycle shed."

Pierce also talked about his time as James Bond and how he chatted about the role with Daniel Craig when the British actor was getting ready to take over as 007.

"Daniel and I, you know, there was a time in our lives when I was moving on from Bond and he was moving in, and we discussed just the sheer amount of work that was at hand and the joy of playing this role, and I always wished him good fortune and wanted the best for this man because he's such a fantastic actor, Daniel," he said.

"And he is a Bond for his time, and will be remembered with such strength of will and charisma."

The 61-year-old played the suave spy in four movies and revealed that he only kept one piece of memorabilia.

"It's a credit card that also doubles as a lock pick. And that's it, really," he said.