Logan may well be the last we see of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, but it's fair to say the actor is going out on a high. James Mangold's film arrives in theaters with a 93% Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is expected to make a killing at the box office on its opening weekend.
Ever since its announcement, James Mangold's film's production has been a story of creative freedom. Jackman took a pay cut to ensure an R-rating (something that not only brings gore and swearing, but also allows it tackle deeper themes) and it recently emerged that Fox had little influence on the final cut. So little, in fact, that the director has no qualms with the finished version.
Mangold was asked on Twitter if Logan would get a director's cut for home video, to which the filmmaker responded saying his version is the theatrical cut.
@PotterDarth Yes. There is. It is the one in theaters.— Mangold (@mang0ld) March 1, 2017
This confirmation is particularly important as The Wolverine, the previous solo outing for Logan which was also directed by Mangold, did get an extended version on Blu-Ray. This reintroduced several moments of gore cut from the theatrical release, upping the rating from PG-13 to R (and resulting in a marginally better film). However, this was always part of the plan, with Jackman saying before the film even shot that the main concern was ensuring a PG-13 theatrical release.
Logan arrives in theaters as an R, with heightened violence even compared to The Wolverine's longer cut. As such, there's less of a reason for an alternative version, especially as - running at 137 minutes - it's already a meaty film; any extra footage (if it exists) would be for the sake of it.
There's been a major boom in the notoriety of director's cuts in the past year, especially in regards to superhero films. Batman v Superman's "Ultimate Edition" ran thirty minutes longer than the theatrical version and was said by some to fix the many narrative flaws, especially in regards to Clark Kent's arc. Suicide Squad followed suit with 11 minutes added footage, including a couple more glimpses of Jared Leto's Joker. While it's conventionally agreed the longer cuts offer more, in most cases they're pretty much the same basic movie - so it's refreshing to hear that Fox won't be joining in with the double-dip approach.
Of course, this new development doesn't mean that the home release of Logan will be totally devoid of new content. Mangold recently said he's toying with the idea of doing a black and white version a la Mad Max: Fury Road Black and Chrome. While it won't offer any unseen footage, that would certainly offer a unique viewing experience.
Source: James Mangold
