I was too young to remember it, but when Hugh Jackman was first announced to play Wolverine for the 2000 X-Men movie, fans weren’t too happy about it. In fact, director Bryan Singer’s first choice for the character was actually Russell Crowe. Can anyone actually see Russell Crowe as Wolverine? It’s pretty hard to now, considering that it’s actually nearly impossible to picture anyone other than Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. Needless to say, I’m glad Russell Crowe turned down the role and recommended Hugh Jackman. At the time, our man Hugh was an unknown actor, but thanks to Russell Crowe, the role of everyone’s favorite mutant catapulted him into stardom. He gave us seventeen years of Wolverine and it was beyond heartbreaking to see him go. Call me overdramatic, but that’s the very young comic book fanatic in me. Believe me, he’s not going away anytime soon.
I bring this topic up because just like other avid fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I’m super anxious to see how Wolverine and the X-Men will make their big debut. Some recent rumors have been popping on the internet and claiming that Marvel is negotiating with Hugh Jackman to return to the role. Rumors like these have been booming on the internet for a while now, but Jackman himself has made it clear that he’s done with Wolverine. Recently, however, he has been toying with the idea of reprising the role. Whether he’s trolling us or being serious, I can imagine few fans who wouldn’t want to see him return.
Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine was been a huge part of my childhood, so when he was killed off, it really hit me. As much as I’d love to see him come back, I do believe including him in the MCU would slightly negate his perfect conclusion in Logan. When I say “slightly”, I really do mean they could kill him off twice. I mean, the did it before with Professor X and it was actually way sadder the second time. I’ve made the case before that Jackman’s Wolverine could pop out of a portal during the was with the Sentinels. He was a little older, but his body was still infused with the adamantium. If the Avengers met that Wolverine, he could’ve sliced and diced a lot of bad guys for them.
The other option is a Deadpool 3. Ryan Reynolds has toyed with the idea and something tells me he’s not joking. I’ll take a movie where it’s his Deadpool and Jackman’s Wolverine fighting together. Honestly, who wouldn’t? There’s a lot they can do with that concept, but it would probably work better as a standalone film.
Let’s just say, for arguments sake, that Marvel will find a new actor to play Wolverine for the MCU. I’d be okay with that, but if they go that route, they’ll have one particular problem: how do they make their new Wolverine different from Hugh Jackman’s? With Jackman’s long and stellar performance as the character, he certainly left some big shoes to fill. Jackman just set the standards for playing Wolverine so high that it seems impossible for another actor to top him. Can another actor actually play Wolverine better than Hugh Jackman? It’s a snowball’s chance, but I believe it is possible. The first place to start wouldn’t be who to cast, but how Marvel decides to develop Wolverine for the MCU.
Hugh Jackman nailed pretty much every key characteristic of Wolverine. He portrayed the attitude, the rage, and even the humor of Logan. Even in his last movie, he portrayed him in his most animalistic and violent manner. Marvel most likely won’t be showing him spilling buckets of blood. Even in the movies before Logan, they weren’t allowed to show him spilling the blood. The MCU Wolverine can’t shed as much blood, but he’ll still be the gruff and abrasive member of the X-Men. All of those qualities were seen in Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, so there has to be something about the MCU’s Wolverine that makes him different.
I have a few ideas. Since this Wolverine will be under Disney’s banner, he’ll have to be more “kid-friendly”. He can’t shed blood, he can’t swear, but he’ll have those adamantium claws. What if he doesn’t actually use them as much? I know how weird that sounds, but hear me out. I remember reading the Days of Future Past comic for the first time and the final battle stood out to me. Wolverine was quick to use his claws and willing to kill with them, but Storm urged him to fight another way. Naturally, Wolverine protested, but Storm managed to convince him to sheathe his claws and use his invincible skeleton to overpower his enemies in a non-lethal manner. Of course, this didn’t last, but Wolverine did try it her for a while.
Imagine if the MCU’s Wolverine had a much cooler head than Hugh Jackman’s. He’d still have to be the ill-tempered most violent of the X-Men, but his teammates could try to get him to become less violent. What if they actually succeeded? Wolverine can be effective using just his enhanced strength and agility in combat without killing his enemies. He’ll struggle, because using his claws was an instinct, but spending time with the X-Men can soften him. Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine wasn’t the best team player and didn’t follow orders well. In fact, those movies were basically Wolverine and the X-Men. He was the central character of each movie and he carried the franchise.
The MCU’s Wolverine needs to be different. He’s Wolverine, we’re going to pay attention to him, but he can’t always be the center of attention. He can be a better team player and just imagine seeing him fighting without his claws because he doesn’t want to kill. It won’t last, but if he fights without the claws, he’ll have to rely on his hand-to-hand skills. Wolverine is a master combatant but he rarely fights without the claws. Having him fight without the claws will show us how good of a martial artist he really is. The more he does it, the less violent he’ll become and he can spend more time mentoring the students at Xavier’s school. That’s something we didn’t see a lot in Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine and it’s something that can be improved on in the MCU.
It won’t last, of course, because Wolverine always gets violent eventually. However, seeing him interact with the X-Men more and slowly work to becoming a team leader would be critical to his development. They can spend more time on that and less on him figuring out who he is. That was a recurring arc for Jackman’s Wolverine. The MCU Wolverine doesn’t have to leave the X-Men to go on those self-discovery missions. Members like Cyclops can do that, but Wolverine should stay. He can set an example for the younger X-Men. He’s capable of it, but he needs to work on it himself. The more experienced X-Men can help steer him in that direction, but he needs to walk that path. Those mutant kids can’t look up to another mutant who turns people into kabobs, right?
Wolverine can be that example, but he needs to learn to control himself and just be more heroic. Not that Jackman’s Wolverine wasn’t heroic, but he just didn’t spend a lot of time with the X-Men. At least not as much as he should’ve. Not as much center stage, but still being a vital member of the X-Men. That’s how he can be different. If Hugh Jackman comes back, great. If not, I really hope Marvel finds a way to step it up. Still waiting for that X-Men announcement.
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