‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Director Told Hugh Jackman Not to Come Back

Kevin Feige revealed in a new interview with Empire that he initially didn’t want Hugh Jackman to reprise his role as Wolverine in Deadpool & Wolverine.

The Ryan Reynolds trilogy capper marks Jackman’s ninth time playing Wolverine, aka Logan, in a feature film, not including some cheeky photo cameos in the first two Deadpool movies. He last played the superhero in 2017’s Logan. James Mangold’s grim revisionist western, a significant departure from the earlier X-Men movies, ends with Wolverine’s definitive death.

Speaking to Empire, Feige admitted he warned Jackman against reprising the role for this summer’s action-comedy.

“I said, ‘Let me give you a piece of advice, Hugh: ‘Don’t come back. You had the greatest ending in history with Logan,’” Feige recalled. “That’s not something we should undo.”

Jackman also revealed to Empire that he was nervous about returning as Wolverine for the same reason. Logan was celebrated upon its release, and is still considered a top-shelf installment in the X-Men franchise. It currently holds a 93 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Ultimately, Jackman and Feige were comforted by the knowledge that the character’s Deadpool & Wolverine return doesn’t undo anything in Logan. Due to the MCU’s time-bending shenanigans, the Logan we meet in Deadpool & Wolverine isn’t precisely the same one from the previous X-Men movies.

“It’s all because of this device they have in the Marvel world of moving around timelines,” Jackman explained in an interview with SiriusXM last year. “Now we can go back because, you know, it’s science. So, I don’t have to screw with the Logan timeline, which was important to me. And I think probably to the fans too.”

Speaking to Empire, Jackman admitted he was thrilled to jump back into the character without the baggage of previous films. “That question came into my head, ‘What do I want to do?’” Jackman said of receiving the offer. “And as soon as I asked the question, I wanted to do Deadpool & Wolverine. I just knew it,” he continued. “Couldn’t stop thinking about it. And I…called Ryan, and said, ‘Ryan, if you’ll have me, I’m in.’”

Logan is currently streaming on Disney+.

Deadpool and Wolverine arrives in theaters on July 26. You can check out the trailer below.