Earlier this year, Marvel Studios announced the cast of Avengers: Doomsday, confirming 27 actors for the upcoming epic crossover. And though the ensemble already includes multiple superhero teams from different parts of the multiverse, the expectation is that Doomsday will feature even more characters. Kevin Feige stated additional casting announcements are to come, but no one else has been revealed yet, leading fans to speculate amongst themselves. One name who frequently pops up in Avengers theories is Hugh Jackman, as many would be interested in seeing him reprise Wolverine in the Multiverse Saga finale. Now, Jackman addresses the possibility.
During an appearance on The Graham Norton Show (via Digital Spy), Jackman discussed coming back as Wolverine for an Avengers movie. “Maybe. I’m never saying ‘never’ ever again,” he said. “I did mean it until the day I changed my mind. I did mean it for quite a few years. I have done ten films now, so I think they have enough for an AI version of me!”
Hugh Jackman Is Rumored to Have a Big MCU Role Moving Forward
Following Jackman’s performance in last year’s record-breaking Deadpool & Wolverine, nothing has been officially confirmed about the actor’s future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. All Feige has said on that front is that Marvel has been in “discussions” with Jackman and Ryan Reynolds about a return. In lieu of anything straight from Marvel, the rumor mill has churned up fascinating nuggets about Jackman, purporting that he’ll be sticking around in the MCU beyond Avengers: Secret Wars, possibly playing a role in the upcoming X-Men reboot. Whether or not that’s actually for the best is a debate for another day, but it seems likely audiences haven’t seen the last of Jackman.
Even if Jackman doesn’t appear in an X-Men reboot, an appearance in either Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars seems plausible. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo are pulling from all corners of the multiverse, incorporating several characters from Marvel’s rich film history. For a while now, rumors have been circulating that everyone from Deadpool to Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man to a version of Ghost Rider will show up for the fight against Doctor Doom, potentially giving some of these legacy actors one last hurrah before Secret Wars does a soft reset of the MCU to streamline the continuity. With multiple X-Men characters already confirmed for Doomsday, there would seemingly be a place for Wolverine. It would be fun for fans to see Jackman with James Marsden and Patrick Stewart one last time.
Of course, the main issue with Jackman or any of the other rumored Avengers actors is what kind of role they’d play in the film. Doomsday already has a lot on its plate, balancing the New Avengers, Sam Wilson’s Avengers, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and other heroes while at the same time introducing Doctor Doom. Even with a protracted run time a la Avengers: Endgame, there’s only so much screen time to go around, and there will be some characters who unfortunately get short-changed. It would be a shame if Jackman suffered that fate. It was risky bringing the actor back after Logan, but his performance made it worthwhile. He had a meaty role to explore, portraying a different variant of Wolverine who was overwhelmed with guilt.
If Jackman comes back for an Avengers film, it would be for the best if he had a similarly meaningful part to play, but there may not be a real opportunity to give Wolverine a substantial arc. As Marvel has discussions about where Jackman and Reynolds could fit in, it’ll be important to weigh the pros and cons of inserting either of them into the massive ensemble of Doomsday or Secret Wars. If an appearance from Jackman would just come across as fan service and not add anything of note to the film, it’d be for the best if he just wasn’t featured at all. It may seem odd if a character as notable as Wolverine isn’t around for the big Doctor Doom showdown, but in a film, sometimes there just isn’t a spot for someone.
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