With Hugh Jackman about to hit the big screens for a fifth time as Wolverine, it is hard to imagine anyone else playing the role of the superhero. However, it almost never came to pass. Jackman met his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, when they both starred in the Australian TV show Corelli, and she has played a key role in helping him choose all his acting roles ever since.
In a recent profile of Jackman on 60 Minutes, it was revealed that Furness originally did not want her husband to take on the role, but Jackman overruled his better half and decided to go for it. She has since relented, but that decision has paid off handsomely for Jackman, as his starring role in X-Men catapulted him on to the A-List, where he has resided ever since.
To celebrate the cinematic release of The Wolverine – check out the awesome trailer above – we are going to take a look at the other movies where Jackman clawed up to kick ass and take names.
Jackman went a little method when making his debut in the iconic role in X-Men. As he told the New York Times back in 2000, getting used to wearing Wolverine’s adamantium claws on his hands was a challenge in itself.
”Every day in my living room, I’d just walk around with those claws, to get used to them,” he explained. ”I’ve got scars on one leg, punctures straight through the cheek, on my forehead. I’m a bit clumsy. I’m lucky I didn’t tell them that when I auditioned.”
Jackman went on to explain in the same interview that to play this character, he had to study the behavior of some of the most scariest people around to channel the fury needed for the role. “We worked a lot on the movement style of Wolverine, and I studied some martial arts. I watched a lot of Mike Tyson fights, especially his early fights. There’s something about his style, the animal rage, that seemed right for Wolverine.”
https://youtube.com/watch?v=kw2arrhghwE
X2
Box Office Numbers: $214,949,694
Do you know that there might never have been a Hugh Jackman as Wolverine but for a good reference provided by Russell Crowe? In an EW interview to promote Les Miserables, Jackman spoke of the The Gladiator’s stars important intervention in his career:
“We were good friends before. We knew each other a lot. And Russell has given me advice several times at key moments in my life that helped with my career. I also owe him because two of the biggest roles I’ve ever had in my life, he turned down – and suggested me for them.”
Jackman went on to name the roles that he got after Crowe’s good words. “On X-Men, he was Bryan Singer’s first choice for Wolverine, and he mentioned me also for [Baz Luhrmann’s] Australia. He really is incredibly smart, and generous. It was a joy to work with him.”
X-Men: The Last Stand
Box Office Numbers: $234,362,462
Jackman has always had a healthy respect for his fans, both on the Great White Way on Broadway and on the silver screen. He recently spoke about meeting some at Comic-Con, and how seeing a few die-hard Wolverine fanatics inspired him to prepare even harder for the role.
“You can never be ready for Comic-Con, ever, there is nothing like it on the planet. If that becomes normal then everything is wrong. It is the most wonderful, amazing, freaky, slightly frightening experience you can go on,” he told Hollywood Outbreak recently.
“I remember being there announcing Van Helsing and I looked down and there were 12 Wolverine guys that ran up to the front and were posing down. Trust me, every one of them looked like the comic book version, they were stacked these guys. I was like, woah, I better get back in the gym!”
https://youtube.com/watch?v=LPmbGzQaOCs
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Box Office Numbers: $179,883,157
So guys, the big questions for us are, how does Hugh Jackman get into Wolverine shape and what does he eat to fuel the program? Our friends at Men’s Fitness lay out, in extensive detail, the workout routine that Hugh followed to “Get Jacked Like Wolverine.”
As for the diet the 44-year-old followed, well let him tell you that in his own words. In an interview with Sirius FM, Jackman outlined the challenges going from playing Jean Valjean in Les Miserables (he had to fast and dry out to play an emaciated version of the character during the movie) to bulking up to playing the lead in “The Wolverine.” Check it out:
