Hugh Jackman owes his success as a Hollywood A-lister to his breakout role as Wolverine in Bryan Singer‘s first two “X-Men” films in 2000 and 2003. But while Jackman recognizes the debt he owes those films, he doesn’t think Singer’s on-set behavior would fly in moviemaking today. IndieWire reports (via an interview with The Guardian) that Jackman also didn’t know how to stand up to Singer at the time. After all, “X-Men” was the actor’s first foray into American films.
“This was my first movie in America, you gotta understand; it was all so new to me,” Jackman said in the interview. “I think it’s fair to say that … there are some stories, you know … I think there are some ways of being on set that would not happen now. And I think that things have changed for the better.” Jackman didn’t cite any incident with Singer in particular but instead referenced the broader shift in the industry for less patience for that kind of behavior. “There’s way less tolerance for disrespectful, marginalizing, bullying, any oppressive behavior,” Jackman continued. “There’s zero tolerance for it now and people will speak out, and I think that’s great.”
But the misconduct allegations against Singer, including sexual misconduct, certainly tinge the legacy of the “X-Men” films for the worse. So how does Jackman feel about that? “That’s a really, really complicated question,” replied the actor. “There’s a lot of things at stake there. ‘X-Men’ was the turning point, I believe, in terms of comic-book movies and I think there’s a lot to be proud of. And there’s certainly questions to be asked and I think they should be asked. But I guess I don’t know how to elegantly answer that. I think it’s complex and ultimately I look back with pride at what we’ve achieved and what momentum that started.”
While Jackman elided any specific examples of Singer’s bad behavior on set, some of his former “X-Men” co-stars choose to be more vocal. Back in 2020, Halle Berry, who played Storm alongside Jackman’s Wolverine in the film franchise, spoke to Variety about several altercations with Singer while shooting “X-Men: Days Of Future Past.” “Everybody’s heard the stories,” Berry said, “I don’t have to repeat them — and heard of [Singer’s] challenges, and what he struggles with.”
More recently, Jennifer Lawrence, who plays Mystique in “Future Past” and “X-Men: Apocalypse,” referenced Singer’s behavior in an actress roundtable for The Hollywood Reporter last month. “It did always just make us laugh about how we ended up with, ‘Women shouldn’t be in roles like this because we’re so emotional,’” Lawrence said. “I mean, I’ve worked with Bryan Singer. I’ve seen emotional men. I’ve seen the biggest hissy fits thrown on set.” Singer hasn’t worked in Hollywood since he was booted from the production of “Dark Phoenix” following sexual assault allegations against him went public.
As for Jackman, he returns to play Wolverine in “Deadpool 3” for the first time since 2017’s “Logan.” The upcoming film sees Wolverine team up, reluctantly, with Ryan Reynolds‘ merc with a mouth. On the HBO Max talk show “Who’s Talking To Chris Wallace?,” Jackson talked a little bit about the upcoming MCU vehicle, which enters production this year. “When I keep thinking of me and Ryan, of Deadpool and Wolverine, which are classic comic-book rivals, there’s also a dynamic that I’ve never really got to do before as Wolverine,” said Jackman. “I just thought, ‘This is gonna be fun. Something I’ve never done before. I can’t wait.'”
Marvel Studios currently has “Deadpool 3” slated for a November 8, 2024 release. As for Mr. Singer, expect him to be persona non grata in Hollywood indefinitely.
