It’s become quite the water cooler geek topic over the past few weeks regarding the news that Russell Crowe turned down the opportunity to play Wolverine in 2000’s X-Men, leading the way for Hugh Jackman’s rise to fame in the role.
In this interview with Access Hollywood’s Michelle Beadle at the NYC press junket for Les Misérables, Crowe dishes on why taking the part of the popular Marvel Mutant was not right for him at the time, having just come off of Gladiator. Crowe apparently felt the characters were too similar, and apparently suggested to director Bryan Singer that he take a look at his friend and fellow Aussie Hugh Jackman. And we know how that all turned out.
But what has been predominantly absent in most of these recent reports is where Scottish actor Dougray Scott fits into all this. Scott was initially set to play Wolverine, but was unable to make the start date for X-Men in 1999 when he had to honor his commitment to playing the main villain in John Woo’s Mission: Impossible II, which ran weeks over its shooting schedule. Jackman was then cast as Wolverine shortly before filming began. Where in this timeline Crowe’s presence in relation to Scott’s remains to be revealed.
Whether you think Wolverine was too similar to Maximus or not, take note how Crowe dismounts off the topic in the video by dismissing the whole X-Men deal as “it’s a cartoon. I’m not really into those.”
In twelve years time, Crowe must have re-considered his views regarding said “cartoons,” signing on to play Superman’s dad Jor-El in the upcoming Man of Steel. But hey, if the role was good enough for Brando, it should be good enough for Crowe, right?
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