It’s hard to imagine anyone else but Hugh Jackman bringing out the claws and leaping across our screens as the X-Men’s resident savage, Logan. However, it turns out that the Wolverine actor was warned, before the first X-Men was released, to quickly call time on the role in order to move past what was expected to be a box office bomb.
Speaking with Variety Jackman said that: “I remember finishing the first movie, and a mate of mine who was in Hollywood, he goes, ‘Dude, I’ve heard not very good things about the movie. You really should book something else before it comes out.’ So, there was about a four-month gap, he goes, ‘Just make sure you got something else, because when it comes out you’re back down at the bottom of the pile again, you know?’ Happily, he was wrong, but no one really knew, there was no comic book genre. Comic book movies were really not around at the time.”
It’s safe to say that many fans are no doubt relieved that the Wolverine actor ignored this terrible advise and continued to pave the way for 21st Century superhero films.
After giving us many long years of service, Jackman finally decided to leave the role this year with the release of Logan, and with Disney buying out Fox, it’s now only a matter of time before a new actor takes on the iconic character. One can only imagine that the advice this new actor gets will be a far cry from the advice that Jackman was given, especially when, as Jackman says, in 2000 there wasn’t really precedent for the success that comic book movies now have.
Originally published December 27, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
