The future looks anything but boring for Marvel Studios and the MCU. Since Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, the Marvel toy box has grown tenfold. With the Fox purchase came all the heroes the studio owned the film and television rights to. This list included Wolverine, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four.
Fans got their first taste of these characters coming to the MCU thanks to Patrick Stewart’s inclusion in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and the announcement of Jon Watts’ Fantastic Four movie. However, many are still wondering when a true MCU X-Men movie will be on the way and, more importantly, who will be playing this version of the mutant team.
ADVERTISEMENT
One name that comes up frequently is Daniel Radcliffe as the adamantium-infused Wolverine. The Harry Potter actor has recently played into these rumors, poking fun at reporters when asked about it, but that has only fueled wilder speculation.
So, Radcliffe has finally decided to clear the air regarding fan casting.
Radcliffe cleans the air
miracle
In an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Daniel Radcliffe addressed speculation that he would be taking on the role of Wolverine in the MCU.
ADVERTISEMENT
said the actor “That’s not true. There’s nothing behind it.” but joked that when I say that “Everybody’s like, ‘Oh, he said it might be true:'”
“It’s something that’s come up time and time again over the last few years. And every time it comes up, I’m like, ‘That’s not true. There’s nothing behind it.’ And everyone’s like, ‘Oh, he said it might be true.’ And I say, ‘No, I haven’t. I said the opposite.’”
Radcliffe went on to say that this happens so often that sometimes he will “It gets boring to answer questions properly” and instead “Make a joke.” However, every time he does so, he immediately regrets it, wondering “Why did you do that?:”
“And then every now and then I get bored of answering questions properly, so I make a joke, and every time I make a joke, I’m like, ‘Why did you do that? It’s going to happen–‘ So the other day I was like, ‘Prove me wrong, Marvel.’ And that sparked a whole thing.”
He speculated that the reason this keeps popping up is probably its size “Wolverine in the comics is pretty short”, so he sees a lot of people “going like, ‘Who’s a little actor? He. He might be able to play it :'”
ADVERTISEMENT
“But yeah, I think that’s because Woverine is pretty short in the comics, so I think people are like, ‘Who’s a little actor? He. He might be able to play it.’”
Radcliffe said he would accept the comparison “Anything that suggests even the slightest resemblance to Hugh Jackman is incredibly flattering:”
“I mean, anything implying even the slightest resemblance to Hugh Jackman is incredibly flattering. So I’m happy with that.”
Watch the full interview below:
From magic to mutant
That’s probably the end of it! Daniel Radcliffe is not playing Wolverine in any live-action X-Men project that Marvel Studios has planned. Or is it?
ADVERTISEMENT
If Radcliffe is indeed lying through his teeth here, knowing he’s taking on Marvel’s most iconic mutant, it wouldn’t be the first time someone has done so with one of these characters.
Just look at how Andrew Garfield spent the second half of 2021 leading up to Spider-Man: No Way Home. The actor denied he was in the film and joked about his involvement in the project. And no matter what he did, the rumors kept flying and he eventually ended up in the movie.
That could very well be the case here. In the ever-connected fandom that is the MCU in 2022, where there’s smoke there’s usually fire. However, with other rumors (à la Patrick Stewart in MoM) there are major information leaks that lead to the rumors getting started. That didn’t exist – at least not yet – in relation to Radcliffe, who might be suitable as Wolverine.
ADVERTISEMENT
So the question remains. Does the actor just play shy? Or is he actually telling the truth when he says he’s not involved with the character at this point?