While the solo outings may not have been to everyone’s liking – as producer Lauren Shuler Donner even says to forget it, Hugh Jackman knows that the light at the end of the tunnel that he’s seeing is his time coming to a close as the character. He’s been synonymous with the role since he took it on in X-Men back in 2000 and he’s had multiple movies playing it so far and he has two more roles coming for it after X-Men: Days of Future Past with X-Men: Apocalypse and The Wolverine 2. Jackman has long loved the role and what opportunities it’s provided to him both in other films and interactions with fans around the world that it’s been great to see him coming back for it over and over. But when asked what he thinks is coming down the road after the next two outings with how to handle it, he says:
“Oh that’s interesting. I just presume, in a way, that if it happens they will reboot. I don’t know why I thought that. I think you could replace him because he’s older, but it would be interesting—because I was 30 when I got the role, it’d be interesting to follow that character from 20, or even 18, because we haven’t seen it. So that’s just what I assumed it would be.”
“Well you’re spot on in that it will be some form of replacement that we know (laughs). So I don’t know how long to do it. And personally, I was always really inspired by Jerry Seinfeld, how he left that show at its height on his own terms. I think that’s a really smart way to do it. It’d be great to leave people wanting more, rather than the other way around. It’d also be great to make the decision rather than getting that phone call, ‘Now listen Hugh, I know you thought you were going to [keep going], and thank you so much for all you’ve done, but…’ I think it would be much better to be making that decision together.”
“Right now I don’t [want to let it go], and as long as it keeps going this direction I probably won’t (smiles). But I’ve made that promise to you, it’s not something I will stick around at and stay at if I feel it’s dropping off or if I don’t feel that urge to go and do it, because I know there’s 10 million actors out there who would kill themselves to play the part. They should, it’s a great part.”
That means we’re probably five years or so away from a potential reboot/recast of the character, which means there’s more than enough time for a new actor to become the ideal successor.
[Source: Collider]