Nothing is sacred in Hollywood when there’s money to be made. It has scarcely been six months since Hugh Jackman officially hung up the claws and retired as Wolverine in the best way possible withLogan. The man went out on top and gave fans a very proper goodbye. But Wolverine is one of themost popular comic book characterson the planet (in no small part thanks to Jackman). As such, Fox isn’t going to rule out a reboot of the character with a new actor.
Fox CEO Stacey Snider recently sat down for a chat withVarietyabout the overall outlook for the studio that covered a wide range of topics. At one point, Snider was asked point blank about the possibility of rebooting the character of Wolverine in theX-Men franchise. While she didn’t give a timeline on the matter, she certainly wasn’t willing to rule it out. Snider made it clear that a new actor playing Wolverine is most definitely something we could see in the future.
“Anything’s possible.”
It is important to note that Stacey Snider, as the head of Fox, would probably be foolish to have said any version of “no” to this question. Wolverine is a tremendously popular character and plenty of other comic book characters have been rebooted on the big screen with a lot of success. Just look atSpider-Man: Homecomingand what Tom Holland has been able to do as the new Peter Parker. But no comic book character has ever been rebooted after having someone play them for nearly two decades. Quite frankly, because nobody else has ever done what Hugh Jackman did with Wolverine. It’s uncharted territory in that respect.
As mentioned,LoganwasHugh Jackman’s swan songand it did not disappoint. The movie wasn’t only a massive box office success, bringing in $616.8 million worldwide, but it was a resounding critical success as well. The movie currently holds a 93 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and Fox has already sent screeners of the movie to Academy Awards voters.Loganis a legitimate Oscar contender this year. Despite her thoughts on a possible reboot, she feelsLogandeserves to be in the Academy Awards conversation this year.
“Absolutely. The way it combinesclassic storytellingwith superhero lore is brilliant.”
Hugh Jackman first portrayed Wolverine in 2000 in the firstX-Menmovie and went on to reprise the role 7 more times, in addition to a very brief cameo inX-Men: First Class. Even in the lesser entries, Jackman always shined and made the character what it is in the eyes of the masses today. Even if Fox is willing to reboot the character of Wolverine, what actor would be brave enough to take up that mantle?
Whoever it is, it has been said that Jackman will be consulted when the time comes to cast a new Wolverine. That speaks to the level of respect everyone has for the legacy being left behind. These aren’t just big shoes to fill. They’re massive. And maybe they don’t need to be filled at all.
