Marvel has been working to bring more of its previously adapted properties into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but two elements of the old X-Men universe that should stay retired are Hugh Jackman and Wolverine. Through Disney’s expansion, Marvel has regained the rights to properties like the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, the latter of which will be getting a reboot in the MCU future. Similarly, Marvel’s deal with Sony has allowed Spider-Man: Homecoming properties to be featured in the MCU with some actors reprising the same roles including J.K. Simmons’ J. Jonah Jameson and Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock.

Hugh Jackman first played Wolverine way back in 2000, years before Iron Man introduced the MCU, two years before the first Spider-Man movie, and only two years after the first Blade film was released. In total, Jackman appeared as Wolverine in a starring role in eight feature films including three standalone entries and made cameo appearances in X-Men: First Class and X-Men Apocalypse. His final outing in the role was in the 2017 Logan which drew on the “Old Man Logan” storyline from the comics and ending with the character’s eventual death.

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Although audiences have loved Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of Wolverine, bringing the actor back for the MCU would ultimately be a mistake. This particular iteration of the character has been explored as fully as could be deemed necessary. Stretching from his time as a child in 1845 to his death in 2029, Hugh Jackman’s tenure as Wolverine in X-Men movies has covered a lot of ground with many of the blanks being filled in with X-Men: Days of Future Past going as far as to give the character a time travel storyline. Having told a fulfilling character arc, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine would have little to offer the MCU at this point and would at best undercut the emotional send-off the character received in Logan.

However, beyond not bringing back Hugh Jackman to play Wolverine in the MCU, Marvel should abandon the character entirely for live-action editions. While there’s a consensus that The Fantastic Four could be improved upon and a recast movie could be successful, recasting Wolverine would inevitably lead to disappointment. Hugh Jackman definitely captured the role and played the part for so long that any new actor would be held up against an unreasonable standard, much as with the recasting of Harrison Ford’s Han Solo for Solo.

While reintroducing Wolverine alongside the X-Men in the MCU might seem like a winning move, Marvel can do better. Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine is certainly iconic, and Wolverine already had a large following from the comics and animated shows. Yet, Marvel has a huge roster of characters that it has yet to explore, and the MCU has already proven that it can reap great success by doing deeper dives into lesser-known characters.

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