Hugh Jackman opened up about his audition to play Wolverine in 2000′s X-Men.
The 55-year-old actor landed the role as the iconic clawed mutant, and he became a breakout star in the franchise. Hugh played Wolverine multiple times over the years and suited up again most recently for Deadpool & Wolverine, which premieres on July 26.
However, you might be surprised to learn that Hugh wasn’t the first choice for the role. In fact, Dougray Scott had already been cast but had to depart the franchise due to filming conflicts.
That led to Hugh‘s audition. However, during a recent interview, he explained that it did not go according to plan.
Keep reading to find out more…
Speaking to EW, Hugh recalled coming in to read lines for director Bryan Singer and screenwriter Tom DeSanto after the movie had already begun filming.
“He’s just going, ‘Quiet… Quieter… Quieter.’ By the end, I couldn’t even hear myself,” he said about Tom. “I could tell he was like, Why on my lunch hour am I auditioning some guy for a part that I’ve already cast? He was pissed off.”
The actor said that he believed he had lost the role and was feeling defeated when Kevin Feige, who now runs Marvel Studios but worked on the movie as a producer’s assistant, took him out to dinner with Tom.
“I said, ‘Kevin, we all know I’m not getting the part. You don’t have to do dinner,’” he said. “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.”
Kevin also chimed in, recalling “a scramble to get our Wolverine” and excitement about Hugh.
Of course, we now know how it all came together!
Did you know that Hugh turned down another iconic role?
