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| Image courtesy of www.comicsuniverse.it |
Hello you, the name is Luca but you can call me Luca. So I've seen Logan now and I will be doing so the day after I begin to write this, and I can safely say, this is an immense send off to both Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart's time as both Wolverine and Professor X. The film is incredibly emotional and truly is one of the best comic book movies of all time, it doesn't even feel like a typical comic book movie and more like a action heavy drama with comic book characters.
I highly recommend Logan to everyone who can see it, hopefully through legal methods. Anyway onto the point at hand today, whilst Jackman was filming Eddie The Eagle, he announced that Logan would be his final time portraying this character and of course, everyone including myself was gutted but I knew it was inevitable. He has earned the right though, Jackman has served this character so brilliantly and embraced the passion that surrounds the comic book and movie fan base, 17 years and all but one X-Men movie with varying levels of involvement, whether it is a major part or even a cameo, like that brilliant one in X-Men: First Class.
Hugh Jackman is not however the first actor to be known synonymously with a character and he won't be the last, like Heath Ledger with the Joker, Robert Downey, Jr. with Iron Man, Ryan Reynolds with Deadpool etc. you get the point. But there's a sad stigma in today's world, that since Hugh Jackman will no longer be portraying Wolverine after Logan, everyone is now assuming that Wolverine as a character should also be done, and to that I say, never.
It was the same when the Joker was reintroduced in the form of Jared Leto's portrayal in last year's Suicide Squad, everyone was up in arms! How dare they get a beloved character in the DC and Batman world after Heath Ledger died after putting in the performance of a lifetime? These people by the way, probably ignored the fact that we have had Cesar Romero, Mark Hamill, Jack Nicholson and so many other people playing the character. Now, you can have your opinion about Jared Leto as the Joker, I for one didn't really like him or at least if I did initially, have changed my mind.
I know I'll get some hate for this, but Heath Ledger's performance and untimely passing should not dictate that this character should never be used anymore. These characters are immortalised and beloved, unfortunately actors are only human and can't do this forever, so I think of it as a passing of the torch, for many different generations to experience these amazing characters.
All of you, think about it. After Adam West's Batman had stopped, by this pathetic logic, we would never have got another Batman ever and well, whilst the Schumacher versions would have been happily spared, no Keaton, no Bale, no Affleck! The actors are here to service the characters, the characters are here to service the story, and the story is here to service us, the audience.
So with Hugh Jackman no longer portraying Wolverine, I for one am intrigued to see who will be the next person to portray this amazing character, and I would hope that the next person to play Wolverine does the character justice. I know many people have said Tom Hardy, and as much as I like him, hell no because everyone wants him for Bond too (Which I am also against) and he has already been in the Batman franchise as well as also Mad Max. I don't want him to be in too many franchises as leads.
Whoever it is, I want him to be great as James 'Logan' Howlett and no matter how good he is, we know Hugh Jackman will always be Wolverine. If the next Wolverine isn't great, we will still have Hugh Jackman's incredible work, Hugh Jackman will never be 'replaced'. Infact, that's just made me think.
We use replace a lot when talking about this, what we should use instead is succeed. Replace just boils these characters and the actors behind them as nothing but tools to do the job, we should celebrate the people who are entrusted with these roles because they bring these characters to life for so many of us, and I don't think we show them enough appreciation.
In an ideal world, Hugh Jackman would be as immortal as the character of Wolverine and he could keep up his incredible physique constantly without any sort of discomfort or sacrifice in terms of the luxuries in life, like food. I know Hugh said he was willing at one point to do it forever, but as he said about Jerry Seinfeld, he decided enough was enough and there would have been a point where Hugh would have been too old and the story itself would be compromised by too old a Wolverine.
Hugh Jackman, you have done us X-Men fans, comic book fans, movie fans etc. all proud and you deserve to now be tucked up in bed with a nice cup of coco, and be proud of the legacy you have left behind. Nobody will ever surmount your efforts of going the extra mile, above and beyond the call of duty and Hugh ought to be proud, for helping and arguably, leading the charge of planting the breadcrumbs of what comic book movies have evolved into and are still becoming 17 years down the line.
To anyone saying "Hugh Jackman, don't stop being Wolverine please", I get that you're obviously upset, we all are! Hugh is amazing, and will always be our Wolverine but it's time to pass the torch. New stories with a new and ready actor, who is onboard to honour the character, the story, the audience, not the other way round. They have to earn it, because we are the consumers but we as consumers should also be ready to let whoever succeeds Hugh, give them a chance.
We want more movies with this character so many years down the line. This will be the same with so many other things in life, like Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May on The Grand Tour, eventually they'll grow too old for the show and will need to get out, we as the people who consume have to realise, it'll be time to stop soon.
It says a lot about our way of thinking as a whole. We need to branch out, not just go with what we know to be and learn that things won't be the way they are forever, especially when we are talking about humans, whether it be Hugh Jackman as Wolverine or the trio on The Grand Tour, all good things must end but we should look back, acknowledge the past in order to do the best for the future because for every one great, a million others may very well consist of so many more.
That's the note I want to end on. Hope you have enjoyed this article, and do go celebrate a wonderful ending to Hugh Jackman's time as Wolverine, go see Logan. I'll be doing so tomorrow (Today by the time I publish it) with my friend Ash, having already seen it once and knowing how much I love it.
Anyway that will be all, and as ever if you did enjoy, be sure to stick around for some more articles by putting your email in the 'Follow By Email' option to get these sent straight to your inbox. You can also follow me on Twitter @TheLucaFormat.
Thank you for reading, hope to see you soon! So until we meet again.
Luca.
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