Almost 25 years after his first appearance as Wolverine in X-Men (2000), Australian actor Hugh Jackman declares the latest version of his character is the best yet.
Playing the clawed mutant superhero for the 10th time in the superhero sequel Deadpool & Wolverine, he stars alongside Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds, who portrays Deadpool/Wade Wilson.
In the new movie, Wade has retired from the mercenary life – until the Time Variance Authority pulls him into a new mission that requires him to team up with the equally reluctant Wolverine.
Wolverine was killed off at the end of the film Logan (2017), but is brought back thanks to the multi-timeline universe – known to fans as the multiverse – employed by Marvel Studios.
“I have never been happier playing the role, and I have never been prouder of a Wolverine movie, or a movie in which Wolverine is in it, than this one,” Jackman, 55, says during a virtual press conference in Seoul on July 4.
He was joined by Reynolds and Deadpool & Wolverine’s Canadian director Shawn Levy, 55.
“I have never felt someone care as much about my character as me before than these two. They have given me a version of Wolverine that is so exciting, different and satisfying.”
The secret to their close partnership? Jackman calls Reynolds and Levy two of his best friends in the world.
Reynolds, 47, says: “We hang out every single day, we live just blocks away from one another in New York City. I love these guys the way I would love my own brothers, probably more.”
The film is the third instalment in the Deadpool franchise, after Deadpool (2016) and Deadpool 2 (2018), and will mark Deadpool and Wolverine’s official induction into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
The pairing, however, may be familiar for long-time Marvel fans. Deadpool and Wolverine appeared on screen together in X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), with both characters being recruited into mutant hero team, Team X.
“This is not something just fans have wanted for more than a decade. It’s something we have wanted to do for equally long,” Reynolds says.
The trio made their way to Seoul after a fan event to promote the movie in Shanghai, China, on July 3. That same night, they attended a baseball game between South Korean baseball teams Kiwoom Heroes and LG Twins at the Gocheok Sky Dome.
Reynolds says attending the baseball game was unexpected for himself and Jackman.
It was part of an agreement, aptly named “Can’t Say No”, between the three. In every city they visit, each of them will suggest an activity to do that the other two cannot decline.
Reynolds says: “It was Shawn’s surprise to us and boy, were we surprised. Not only to walk into that stadium and see baseball being played at the highest possible level, but also to be immersed in something genuinely culturally significant to this region and Seoul.”
Surrounding Deadpool & Wolverine’s release, fans have also speculated that the film could save the flagging MCU franchise.
Yet, Reynolds says it was not meant to be a commentary on the film industry or Marvel.
He adds: “Marvel hit a bit of a rougher patch than normal and required a bit of a reset, and suddenly that storyline became more relevant, more externally than for us.
“Our North Star was to deliver unbridled joy and audacity to audiences.”
With Deadpool’s raunchy, dark comedic style, the film will also be Marvel Studios’ first R-rated film, which means a moviegoer under the age of 17 in the United States requires an accompanying parent or adult guardian. The earlier Deadpool movies were released by 20th Century Fox, and the character was acquired by Disney upon its purchase of the entertainment conglomerate in 2019.
However, Levy – who helmed the action comedy Free Guy (2021) and science-fiction film Real Steel (2011) headlined by Reynolds and Jackman respectively – says he “never was under any pressure to dilute Deadpool”.
Levy adds: “Marvel and Disney understood from the beginning that this was going to be something different. This was going to be the first R-rated, audacious MCU movie, and they supported that unique Deadpool tone every step of the way.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
