Marvel boss Kevin Feige reveals Hugh Jackman almost was not the clawed mutant Logan in the X-Men movie. Hugh is set to return as the Marvel character in Deadpool & Wolverine alongside his buddy Ryan Reynolds. While people adore him in the role, many fans are unaware that the Mission: Impossible 2 star was hired for the iconic role, and things would have been a lot different if he had not quit the part at the last moment. Scroll below for the deets.
Hugh appeared in the role for the first time in 2000’s X-Men; the rest is history after that. A few days back, the Australian actor revealed how he thought he would not get the part, and Feige was super kind to him. Hugh recalled Kevin treating him to a steak dinner and called Feige’s gesture one of the sweetest things ever. This actor was selected for the part, but he was also hired as the villain in Tom Cruise-led Mission: Impossible 2.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Kevin Feige recalled that Hugh Jackman was initially rejected for the part, and it went to Dougray Scott to prove Hugh’s fears right. However, Tom Cruise did not want Scott to play a villain in his Mission: Impossible 2 and Wolverine; hence, he chose Cruise over Marvel. Feige was an assistant to producer Lauren Shuler Donner, and he recalled, “There was a scramble to get our Wolverine. Lauren was very excited about this Australian guy, who had been rejected initially.”
Feige continued, “In my memory, one of the main reasons was that he was too tall. Wolverine in the comics is called ‘Lil’ Fireplugs’ sometimes. He’s a short guy. But they were desperate.” Meanwhile, the Deadpool & Wolverine star told EW that Kevin bought him dinner because Hugh Jackman thought he blew the audition.
Jackman said, “I said, ‘Kevin, we all know I’m not getting the part. You don’t have to do dinner.” He continued, “But no, he sat in there and had a steak dinner with me and then drove me to the airport. I’ll never forget it. That was the nicest thing. I thought, I’ll never see him again.”
Meanwhile, Kevin Feige revealed that with Deadpool & Wolverine, the X-Men characters will be under the same roof as the other Marvel characters. He calls it “a pretty amazing quarter-of-a-century experience.” The film, starring Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds, will be released in theatres on July 26.
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