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Before Tim Burton’sBatmanlegitimized the big-screen superhero experience, the reception to Michael Keaton’s casting was less than thrilling, as initially, fans didn’t see him fit for the part. Nothing much has changed since, as not only do fans expect actors to capture the spirit of their comic book counterparts, but also resemble them physically.
Fortunately, Hugh Jackman was immune to this backlash after being initially cast in Bryan Singer’sX-Men, and he has his obscurity as an actor at the time to thank for it.
Hugh Jackman’s Obscurity Ensured He Was Immune To Fan Backlash
In comics, Wolverine stands at 5.5 ft, which is a far cry fromHugh Jackman‘s 6.2 ft stature. But considering he had just made his big-screen debut just a year prior withErskineville Kings, not many bore much knowledge about the Aussie bloke, who wasrecommended for the rolebyRussell Crowe.
TheDeadpool 3star’s obscurity at the time ensured he wasn’t public enemy no. 1 in the eyes of Marvel fans, following the huge departure from comic Wolverine in regards to his height. Hesaid:
I certainly think Wolverine was a risk for me when I first got it. Thankfully, nobody really knew who I was. I mean in the comic book, he was five foot five and not really the kind of personality that I am. So no one really knew that so I got to thankfully just go in and audition.
Moreover, Jackman’s performance in the role ensured fans didn’t take the height difference into account, as the actor perfectly captured the spirit of his comic book counterpart.
TheX-MenCrew Went to Great Lengths To Ensure Wolverine Was Comic Accurate
When the production initially began, the creators went to great lengths to make Jackman’s Wolverine more in line with the source material. TheLoganstar recalled that he wasn’t allowed to wear shoes on set, and apart from kids, everyone had to be taller than him onscreen, which led to Jackman“literally crouching”, while the others“were on planks and boxes all around me”.
“Something his healing factor could not handle”: Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine Variant From Deadpool 3 Who Lost His One Arm is Way More Savage Than the One Who Fought Cassandra Nova
He toldCNN:
I never had my shoes on. … The rule was, unless they were a kid, they had to be taller than me. I was literally crouching like that, shoes off, people were on planks and boxes all around me.
But despite giving it all to stay true to the comics, after a point, the actor recalled they just gave up.
So they went to a great effort, and I think after a while they just gave up on that.
In the end, the major height difference did little to hinder fans’ experience, and it’s now hard to imagine anyone else in the part opposed to Jackman, who has made around$100Mfrom this stint so far.
“F**k a recast. Let them be the MCU Wolverines”: Marvel Doesn’t Need to Replace Hugh Jackman With Dafne Keen If MCU Uses the Same Formula They Did With Robert Downey Jr and Tom Holland
X-Menis available to stream on Disney Plus.
Santanu Roy
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2539
Santanu Roy is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on movies, with over 2,000 articles under his belt. He has been pursuing a degree in Animation and possesses a deep love for the medium of animation. Having spent the better part of the last two years pumping out articles for FW, Santanu excels at covering movie analysis and news surrounding Pixar, DCU, DreamWorks, and Batman’s cinematic legacy.With psychological thrillers and intimate slice-of-life dramas ranking among his favorite genres, Santanu is a big admirer of Luca Guadagnino, Shane Black, Park Chan-wook, and Brad Bird.
