While the chances of Marvel Studios ever getting its hands on the X-Men appeared to look very slim in the wake of Fox’s ongoing success with the franchise, it now appears to be a very real possibility, with Disney said to be closing in on a deal to purchase 20th Century Fox’s movie assets.
Of course, this opens up the door for Marvel Studios to bring the X-Men and the Fantastic Four into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and if -and it’s a big if – Aint It Cool News is to be believed, Disney and Marvel are keen on having Hugh Jackman reprise his role as Wolverine.
Now, while the rumour is certainly sketchy (if I was a betting man, I’d say it was pure speculation), it would certainly be a huge box office draw to see Jackman’s Wolverine alongside the Avengers, and the actor has already said that opportunity could tempt him to come out of retirement. However, it would also essentially tie the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Fox’s X-Men continuity (and given how messy that is, it’s surely something Marvel would want to avoid), as well as leaving Marvel facing the prospect of having to recast Wolverine once Jackman’s Logan has already been established in the MCU.
UPDATE: Well, no sooner had we posted the rumour, than Collider posted the following comments from Jackman, who ruled out the possibility by stating that “the ship has sailed”:
“It’s interesting because for the whole 17 years I kept thinking that would be so great, like I would love to see, particularly, Iron Man and the Hulk and Wolverine together. And every time I saw an Avengers movie I could just see Wolverine in the middle of all of them like punching them all on the head. But it was like, “Oh well, that’s not gonna happen,” and it was interesting just when I first saw that headline — it was just the possibility of it and who knows what’s gonna happen, obviously — I was like, ‘Hang on!’ But I think, unfortunately, the ship has sailed for me, but for someone else I would like to see Wolverine in there.”
What are your thoughts on this rumour? Would you like to see Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine alongside Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, or would Marvel be better served rebooting the X-Men characters entirely. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
Originally published December 11, 2017. Updated January 25, 2020.
