Hugh Jackman won't be tempted to play Wolverine in the MCU

Hugh Jackman still has no plans to return as Wolverine, despite the fact that, after Disney’s purchase of 20th Century Fox, the X-Men are set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the very near future

Because of this, many X-Men fans have pleaded with Jackman, who played the beloved mutant nine times before retiring as the character in 2017’s Logan, to reprise the role.

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The Daily Beast recently asked Jackman whether he’d be tempted to do just that. “If seven years ago that had happened I’d be like, ‘Oh yeah,’” responded Jackman, who then added, “But I knew it was the right time for me to leave the party. Not just for me, but for the character.”

Jackman seems just as excited as every other comic-book fan about the return of the X-Men to the big-screen, and is very excited to see what a new actor will do with Wolverine.

“Somebody else will pick it up and run with it. It’s too good of a character not to. It’s kind of like, you’re on your way home and your friend rings you and goes, ‘Oh, dude, a new DJ just came on and the music is awesome, are you going to come back?’ And you say, ‘Sounds good but… no.’ They’re fine with someone else.”

Jackman also opened up about the 20-year anniversary of X-Men’s release this July, detailing the long and winding journey to his casting as Wolverine, which saw Dougray Scott originally hired, only to leave for Mission: Impossible 2, and then Russell Crowe turn it down.

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“I actually got the part nine months after I’d first auditioned for it,” Jackman recalled. “I only went back and auditioned again after Dougray got caught up on Mission: Impossible 2, so I had no idea who was going for it nor did I expect to get it.”

“My final screen test, I remember going and my agent going, Hey, this is going to be great because the head of the studio is going to see it. That’s why I thought I was doing it! I never thought I was getting the part. I had no idea it was going to happen.”