Hugh Jackman Says He Would Have Been Wolverine In The MCU If The Timing Worked Out

Few actors have become as synonymous with their film characters like Hugh Jackman, who many will always see as the one true Wolverine. Jackman played the role for so long and so well that it's hard to see someone else in the role, though it seems that is what fans will have to do once Disney recasts the role whenever they decide to bring Wolverine into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Whenever Wolvie does show up In the MCU it won't be Jackman popping those claws, and in a new interview with Daily Beast he explained that while he would've been up for playing the character in the MCU if the timing had worked out, it's time to let someone else put their stamp on the character.

"If seven years ago that had happened I'd be like, 'Oh yeah!' but I knew it was the right time for me to leave the party—not just for me, but for the character," Jackman said. "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."

The X-Men will be introduced into the MCU at some point, though we're not sure when that will be. The seeds for mutants needs to be planted first, and we imagine that will start to show up during Phase 4, so that in Phase 5 and 6 we can really see those characters and concepts start to manifest and show up in bigger ways.

Speaking of X-Men, it's the 20th anniversary of Jackman's first run as the character, a character he almost didn't get a chance to play.

"You know what, it is! That's absolutely right, this July will be the 20th year in release," Jackman said. "That's crazy. But I had no idea about any of that. I did a casting call that thousands of people did around the world, and believe I was put in the mix early on. Dougray Scott got the part, Russell turned it down—that's the second role I've gotten that Russell's turned down. He's been very good to me, Russ. The other one was Australia. But I actually got the part nine months after I'd first auditioned for it. 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."

Who do you want to see take on Wolverine in the MCU? Let us know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MattAguilarCB for all things Marvel!