The 52-year-old actor said he would have accepted the project if he did not have the compulsion of shooting the show in Cardiff, reported The Huffington Post.
"I said, 'Sure, I still have a flat in London, it'd be perfect'. Then he said, 'It's eight months of the year in Cardiff...' And I said, 'What?' And I think that might have been what blew it. Nothing against Cardiff, but..." Cumming said.
But this did not end here and "The Good Wife" actor was approached again for the part, this time by writer of the show Mark Gatiss tried to convince him but failed.
The role finally went to actor Peter Capaldi.