‘Logan’ Producers On The Future Of Wolverine In Film Without Hugh Jackman

Logan Hugh Jackman Wolverine James Mangold

Logan will be Hugh Jackman’s final appearance as Wolverine after debuting in the role for Bryan Singer’s first X-Men film in 2000. Having made appearances in every X-Men film for nearly two decades, Jackman’s portrayal of Wolverine has become the definitive version of the character for many fans. However, the character has a rich comic book history and his popularity is not linkely to diminish following Jackman’s retirement, prompting fans to question what’s in store for Wolverine’s cinematic future. In an interview with JoBlo, producers Simon Kinberg and Hutch Parker discussed the future of Wolverine without the actor who has come to embody the role for a generation of fans.

Parker discussed the decision to bring Wolverine’s cinematic story to an end.

“It’s been percolating going back to THE WOLVERINE, with Jim and Hugh, and certainly with the studio. Each time we do one of these, there’s inevitably a natural conversation about what may be next. Pretty early on it was the identification of roughly this target. Not necessarily the dramatic specifics yet, some ideas about that. And Hugh was almost leading the conversation, it was really Hugh and Jim together, but all the way through development at every stage Hugh has been at the forefront at driving it toward this kind of grounded, gritty, real, dramatic, emotional endpoint.”

Hugh Jackman is not the first actor to retire from an iconic superhero role, but with his run as the character lasting longer than most, fans have wondered if another actor could assume the Wolverine mantle. Kinberg discussed this possibility.

“We haven’t started talking about that. The truth is, we really approached this as, this is really the end of Hugh Jackman playing Wolverine and it very well be the end of Wolverine in the movies. Beyond that, we’ll figure out if there is some other version of him. We haven’t gone down that road. We really approached this as if it were the end.”

With X-23 set to make her debut in Logan, fans have speculated that the character could be given her own spin-off film series, a prospect Parker did not discount.

“We have been talking a little bit about that and the possibility certainly exists. She’s a remarkable actress, I think she did an amazing job, and a lot of the credit for that goes to Jim [Mangold]. It’s certainly a rich opportunity, we haven’t gotten specific in any way, but I’d love to see more with that character.”

Though Wolverine remains one of, if the most, popular characters in the X-Men franchise, many would consider Jackman’s portrayal to be a standard to difficult to meet for any potential successors. While actors such as Christopher Reeve and Michael Keaton have retired from their roles as Superman and Batman, repetitively, fans continue to debate over whether or not the new talent who succeeded them as the iconic heroes have measured up.

Do you think anyone can match Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of Wolverine or should the character retire from film along with the actor? Share your thoughts below!

Logan will be released in theaters on March 3, 2017.

Source: JoBlo

Sebastian Peris

Sebastian Peris

Canadian film buff, political junkie, comic book geek, and board game enthusiast.