BRIT superstar Tom Hardy lost a staggering $3.2 million making his new BBC1 drama Taboo.

The actor, 39, who devised the show and plays the lead role, set up a firm Taboo Productions Ltd to handle the finances for the eight-part series.

But new accounts show he was left with a hefty shortfall as an income of $13.7 million was unable to match the $17 million racked up in outgoing costs, The Sun reports.

A source said: “These new figures will make stark reading for Tom.

“No matter who you are or how much money you’re worth, $3.2 million is a lot of money to simply throw away.

“This is the first major TV drama Tom has overseen himself. He has written it, produced it and starred in it, so he was always going to come up against some difficulties.”

Tom came up with the idea for Taboo with his dad Edward “Chips” Hardy and got movie veteran Sir Ridley Scott to direct.

The Batman star plays a man called James Delaney returning to the UK after 12 years in Africa to avenge his father’s death.

The series has suffered low ratings on TV, with a peak of just 3.9 million tuning in to Saturday’s third episode, but is one of the most-watched shows on (BBC streaming service) iPlayer.

Insiders believe that Tom, who is reported to be worth an estimated $19.6 million, will hope to recoup his losses through DVD and digital sales as well as flogging the series around the world.

A source added: “Tom will hope to eventually make the money back through DVD sales, downloads, streaming and syndication rights.

“As well as being aired in the UK and in the US, Taboo has already been sold around the world in the likes of Spain, Portugal and Russia.”

This article first appeared on The Sun.