Simon Kinberg on why Wolverine won’t make an appearance in Dark Phoenix

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

After making his debut as Wolverine in X-MEN back in 2000, Hugh Jackman has appeared, in some form or another, in every single X-MEN film, but it seems that the upcoming DARK PHOENIX won't include an appearance from the long-lived mutant. I know, Jackman provided a fitting closure to the character with LOGAN, but DARK PHOENIX writer/director Simon Kinberg told Rolling Stone that even if Jackman hadn't hung up the claws, there was one big reason not to include him in DARK PHOENIX.

Simon Kinberg noted that he could have fit Jackman into DARK PHOENIX with a small role similar to his cameo in X-MEN: APOCALYPSE, but the age difference between Jackman and Sophie Turner, who plays Jean Grey, made it a little unappealing.

If you know the Dark Phoenix story, you’d want to really service the love story between Logan and Jean. And I think the notion of Hugh Jackman, as great as he looks for his age, and Sophie Turner — it didn’t sit well with me. Or anyone else!

The DARK PHOENIX director added that he also wanted to keep the focus on the title character. "There was an element of this being Jean’s story," Kinberg said. "And I was committing so fully to it that I didn’t want to run the risk of pulling away from Jean by going to the well of a fan-favorite character in these movies. I wanted this to be a very different experience of seeing an X-Men movie."

The official synopsis for DARK PHOENIX:

In DARK PHOENIX, the X-MEN face their most formidable and powerful foe: one of their own, Jean Grey. During a rescue mission in space, Jean is nearly killed when she is hit by a mysterious cosmic force. Once she returns home, this force not only makes her infinitely more powerful, but far more unstable. Wrestling with this entity inside her, Jean unleashes her powers in ways she can neither comprehend nor contain. With Jean spiraling out of control, and hurting the ones she loves most, she begins to unravel the very fabric that holds the X-Men together. Now, with this family falling apart, they must find a way to unite — not only to save Jean's soul, but to save our very planet from aliens who wish to weaponize this force and rule the galaxy.

DARK PHOENIX will hit theaters on June 7th.