Even for those who weren’t in love with “Deadpool & Wolverine,” it would be hard to say that Hugh Jackman was anything but fully committed to his return as the fan-favorite mutant. The actor hung up the claws after 2017’s “Logan” but returned seven years later for a trip through the Marvel multiverse with Ryan Reynolds’ Wade Wilson that now ranks as one of the biggest movies of 2024. When all’s said and done, it may be one of the biggest Marvel Cinematic Universe movies ever. Jackman is owed a fair share of credit for that, and director Shawn Levy has offered a tiny window into the actor’s commitment.
Like the rest of us, I’ve been addicted to @RealHughJackman‘s “Logan” ADR video for years. Today I proudly submit the next installment of this legend at work. Sound UP! pic.twitter.com/m4V0hhAyyU
— Shawn Levy (@ShawnLevyDirect) August 6, 2024
The above video was shared by Levy on Twitter, which reveals Jackman doing some ADR work behind the scenes for the climactic battle that takes place during the ending of “Deadpool & Wolverine.” Jackman is in full beast mode as he grunts, f-bombs, and even shadow boxes his way through the fight scene to get the vocals just right for the final audio mix. It’s pretty entertaining on its own, for my money.
This also serves as something of a throwback. For those who may not recall (or perhaps didn’t see it at the time) the video Levy references in his post was shared to help promote “Logan” in 2017, which you can watch here. That video similarly showed Jackman doing some intense ADR work for that film’s climax. It appears the actor hasn’t lost a step in the seven years between that film and his latest appearance as Wolverine.
Different Wolverine, same level of commitment from Hugh Jackman
Though he’s had some breaks along the way, Jackman has been playing Wolverine for nearly 25 years, dating back to the original “X-Men” in 2000. That film helped kick off the era of superhero movie dominance as we know it. Since then, we’ve had several Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, and even multiple versions of other heroes and mutants. Here we are, all these years later, and Wolverine is one of very few A-list comic book heroes who has yet to be recast in that time.
Without giving away too much for those who haven’t seen it, part of what makes Jackman’s turn in “Deadpool & Wolverine” so unique is that he’s actually playing a different version of the character than the one we knew. The man he played for all those years truly died in “Logan.” This is not the same Wolverine, which offered Jackman the chance to do something distinctive from what he had done before. Not for nothing, Jackman was the one who saved “Deadpool 3” with a phone call when he decided he wanted to pick the claws back up.
That decision was a good one all around. Surely the actor earned himself a damn fine payday, but beyond that, “Deadpool & Wolverine” is now the biggest “X-Men” movie in history, accomplishing that after just two weekends in theaters. That’s mighty impressive for a franchise that has been alive for over two decades. For better or worse, there’s now 24 years’ worth of Jackman grunting in a recording booth for the benefit of audiences around the world.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” is in theaters now.
