The X-men franchise’s tenth installment, Logan was a turning point for the franchise and the superhero universe. The film marked the conclusion of the stories of the X-men’s two main characters, Charles Xavier and Logan, played by Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman, respectively. The trilogy of the Wolverine series ended with the installment. The film portrayed the image of an aged Wolverine, who was losing his powers, and an extremely ill Xavier.
Logan was a fresh take on the superhero movies, where the heroes are shown as young and healthy. The stars of the film were overwhelmed at the screening of their final X-men franchise film.
Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman became teary eyes at Logan’s premiere
X-men star Patrick Stewart played the role of Charles Xavier, a mutant with psychic powers. He ran a school for the gifted kids, at his palatial estate on the east coast of the United States. In the film, he is shown as an old and sick man, who is losing control over his powers.
Sir Patrick Stewart was seated next to Hugh Jackman at Logan’s premiere, and both of them became overwhelmed while watching a scene. In a conversation with The Independent, Stewart shared,
“Hugh was sitting next to me, with James on the other side of him. And the audience was clearly very caught up in it, and that was satisfying. It got into the last five or six minutes of the movie, and Hugh’s hand came over, and he took mine, and he squeezed my hand. He looked at me, and he had big tears and, of course, that set me off. Here we are, the two X-men wiping away the tears at our own movie! And then I thought while we were watching, ‘My God, this is a goodbye ending. What could I possibly do that could top this?'”
The star cast also included Richard E. Grant, Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant, and Dafne Keen. The film grossed $619 million worldwide.
Hugh Jackman on playing a weary Wolverine in Logan
The X-men star Huge Jackman has been part of the franchise since its inception. In Logan, the characters are living in 2029. As per the story, the mutant births became rare, and almost all the X-men team members are long gone by 2029. Only Logan and Charles Zavier are left alive. Both of them are old and weary. Logan’s self-healing powers were diminishing and sometimes did not even work.
The actor took assistance from veteran actor Jim Broadbent for his character, which was taken from the Old Man Logan comic series. Jackman shared with Empire Magazine,
“When he was playing older, [Broadbent] would tape a little stone to his heel. I would have that, just to remind myself of a limp. [Logan’s] body hurts. His joints hurt. His heart hurts. Psychologically, he’s damaged. What’s the collateral damage of being Wolverine for all those years?”
Jackman has not played the character since 2000, but he will finally reprise his role as Wolverine in Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool 3. The film will hit the theatres in May 2024.
Logan is available for streaming on Disney+.
Source- The Independent and Empire Magazine