The 90s were a time of glitz, glamour, rock, and fashion. In relation to the state of the movie industry, the genre of horror movies and thrillers was on the rise along with family-friendly and happy-ending romance movies. It was around this time that Hugh Jackman got the role of Wolverine, a character from Marvel’s X-Men Universe, and it wasn’t that easy.
He was an unknown actor at the time, and there were already more well-reputed actors wishing to star in the role- X-Men director Bryan Singer already had Daylight star Viggo Mortensen and Ever After star Dougray Scott lined up for the role. It eventually went to Jackman in the end, but it was surrounded by ambiguity about the role’s potential from his camp too.
Hugh Jackman Was Told Off On Wolverine Role When He Took It
Viggo Mortensen and Dougray Scott pulled out of the role of Wolverine due to commitment issues to multiple movies and scheduling conflicts, respectively. It was only fair because trying to revive the superhero genre in an era booming with romance and thrillers seemed like it was never going to work out.
In fact, this is what they told the man who eventually got the role, Hugh Jackman before he signed up for what would now be considered THE major boost for his acting career. Speaking with Jimmy Fallon while celebrating the 20-year-anniversary of his time as Wolverine, Jackman noted that he was actually told to forget about the script of X-Men.
No names were taken, but the Logan star specifies that it was a friend from the higher-ups in Hollywood. He revealed to Fallon-
“A mate of mine said to me, who’s quite high up, he said the word on the street is not good about the movie. Nobody watches comic book movies, they’re dead forever.
The friend ended up asking him to book another role instead-
“Book another movie before it comes out. Like say you’re a lead in a big movie and try to book another movie.”
However, the 54-year-old actor who was just beginning to set his foot into the industry was adamant about working on the movie and taking the role, and boy did it pay off!
As History Tells Us, Hugh Jackman Made The Right Choice
You never what the future holds, and neither did Hugh Jackman when he pushed his way to the very end for X-Men to secure that role as Wolverine.
Starting off with $75 million as the movie’s budget, X-Men ended up turning those numbers around and getting a huge profit as it became a box-office success- it earned $296 million and was also approved by critics and fans alike.
Hugh Jackman had now cemented his role in a franchise that is now reputed and well-known for having created successive movies in the same X-Men universe that eventually led to the resurgence of superhero movies. Definitely no regret from his side now!
X-Men is currently available for streaming on Disney+.
Source: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
