Wolverine Probably Won’t Be Recast in the ‘X-Men’ Universe When Hugh Jackman Leaves
Britt Hayes

Hugh Jackman has been playing Wolverine for over 15 years. He’s appeared on screen as the iconic X-Men character in seven films, including his uncredited cameo in X-Men: First Class, and by the time The Wolverine 2 rolls around, we can round that number up to eight (and that’s not including the potential for cameos in X-Men: Apocalypse — which he’s denied — and the Gambit movie). Fans have been wondering if Wolverine will be recast once Jackman exits the franchise, but according to Bryan Singer and producer Simon Kinberg, that’s not likely to happen.

Jackman has promised that The Wolverine 2 will mark his final time portraying the character, and while we certainly believe him, anything is possible down the line. In an interview with Digital Spy, Singer and Kinberg said they couldn’t imagine recasting Jackman’s role, though they do want to figure out how to keep the character going in the X-Men universe. Kinberg says:

I do think you would want to figure out how to tell more Wolverine stories. So either we would try to entice Hugh to come back and eat more chicken and work out for a few months, or we would have to figure out a creative way to move forward. Honestly, I can’t imagine anybody else playing the part, and there’s not too many characters I can say that for.

So basically at this point, they either have to convince Jackman to stick around past The Wolverine 2, or…that’s it. Singer and Kinberg’s options are limited. If they do recast Wolverine, it would likely be years from now, probably in a new cycle of X-Men movies with an all-new cast. Replacing Jackman so soon after his exit just isn’t happening.

The Wolverine 2 is set to hit theaters in 2017. Meanwhile, we’ll see the next installment of the X-Men franchise when X-Men: Apocalypse hits theaters on May 27.

20th Century Fox revealed at Toy Fair 2016 that they would be targeting an R-rating for Hugh Jackman's final run as Wolverine next year.

This news follows the massive success of Fox's first R-rated standalone super hero movie, as Deadpool absolutely killed the box office this weekend. They previously dabbled with R-rated comic book movies earlier in 2015 with Kingsman: The Secret Service, which also turned out to be a surprise hit, though not as big a success as the world's new favorite merc.

The news comes from a pamphlet or catalog Fox handed out to guests at their Toy Fair presentation. The logo for Wolverine 3 is featured above the theatrical release date, home entertainment release date, and anticipated MPAA rating. See it below.



The move is an interesting one by 20th Century Fox. There was no doubt they would pursue R-rated movies in the future as they explored the Deadpool and X-Force corners of their X-Men universe but to take a character who has been established as PG-13 for over 15 years now is bold. That said, they could be banking on telling an accurate representation of the Old Man Logan story and Wolverine fans having grown past the age of R-rating admittance.

One has to wonder if these plans were made and revealed today following the success this weekend or if the R-rating was already planned prior to Deadpool's box office explosion. Let's bet on the former. In any case, what are your thoughts on an R-rated finale to Hugh Jackman's run as Wolverine?

We have reached out to FOX for comment, and will let you know as soon as we hear back.

The Wolverine sequel, which will be Hugh Jackman's last, is set for release March 3, 2017.