21st Century Fox is up for grabs, and it seems that everyone wants a piece of them. From Disney to Sony and even Comcast, we’ve heard that the studio has found many potential buyers, and though no deal has placed just yet, it would seem that things are moving quickly, with insiders saying the papers could be signed by next week. Who they’ll ultimately sell to remains to be seen of course, but if recent reports are to be believed, it might just be the Mouse House – and that’s hugely exciting, for many reasons.
Obviously, chief amongst them is the fact that if Disney were to own Fox, and all their assets, that’d mean they’d regain control of many of the Marvel characters that they don’t currently have the rights to, like the X-Men. And while there’s been no confirmation on if the studio would drop them into the MCU should this deal go through, you’ve got to believe that that’s something which is at the very least, being heavily considered. I mean, just imagine how much money they’d be able to print if they did an Avengers vs. X-Men movie.
So, with all that in mind, fans have begun wondering whether or not this deal could possibly tempt Hugh Jackman to return and don the adamantium claws once more to play Wolverine. Sure, Logan was marketed as his last hurrah in the role, and the actor’s said many times now that his stint as the X-Men leader is over, but it’s important to remember something he mentioned back in February, too. When asked if he would still be retiring from the franchise if somehow, Wolverine could join the MCU, here’s what he said:
“If that was on the table when I made my decision, it certainly would have made me pause,” said Jackman. “That’s for sure. Because I always love the idea of him within that dynamic, with the Hulk obviously, with Iron Man but there’s a lot of smarter people with MBAs who can’t figure that out [laughter]. You never know.”
He then added:
“At the moment, honestly, if I really did have [the other Marvel characters] there, I probably wouldn’t have said this is the last. It just feels like this is the right time [to leave the character].”
Now, none of this is to say that Jackman will return should the deal between Fox and Disney go through. I mean, he’s been pretty adamant in the past about not playing the character again, and with talk of recasting already underway, it’d be a stretch to see Hugh back in the role. Not to mention it’d kind of cheapen the events of Logan, and make the actor look like a liar.
Still, having Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, in the same film as the Avengers, might be too enticing an idea to pass up and being probably the most powerful studio in Hollywood at the moment, we imagine Disney could find a way to make it work. After all, everyone can be persuaded if the pay is high enough, right?
