While the smashing success ofDeadpoolno doubt made the executives at 20th Century Fox less wary about greenlighing an R-ratedWolverinemovie, that doesn’t mean the decision to move forward withLoganwas easy. Of course the studio wanted anotherWolverinesequel, especially ifHugh Jackmanplanned on hanging up the claws for good, but Jackman and directorJames Mangoldwanted to do somethingreallydifferent for this final outing. Mangold earned the goodwill of the fans withThe Wolverine, a Samurai-centric take on the character that showed despiteX-Men Origins: Wolverine, it was possible to make a really good standaloneWolverinemovie. And while that film bucked trends of its own—specifically the “hero must save the entire planet” plot that has been done to death in superhero movies at this point—it was still an action-packedWolverineadventure.
ForLogan, however, Mangold and Jackman wanted to go full Western, which means a lot more contemplation. And according to 20th Century Fox Film chairmanStacey Snider(viaVariety), that made some executivesverynervous:
“Inside, there was real consternation about the intensity of the tone of the film. It’s more of an elegy about life and death. The paradigm for it was a Western, and my colleagues were up in arms. It’s not a wise-cracking cigar-chomping mutton-sporting Wolverine, and the debate internally became, isn’t that freakin’ boring? Isn’t it exciting to imagine Wolverine as a real guy and he’s world-weary and he doesn’t want to fight anymore until a little girl needs him?”
Indeed, for all the concern over the limiting R-rating and fourth-wall-breaking ofDeadpool, there was likely little worry that the film would beboring. But while “an elegy about life and death” may be cause for concern for a studio bankrolling a superhero pic, that only makes the film that much more alluring to discerning viewers. There have now been nineX-Menmovies, countingDeadpool, all of which involve spectacle and set pieces and some variation of one-liners + action. For Wolverine’s final outing, why would you want to stick to formula? Why not break the mold? I mean,Christopher Nolantried it and it only resulted in one of the most iconic trilogies in movie history.
Ultimately Fox trusted Mangold and Jackman with a sizable budget, and thus farLoganlooks like it could be something really, really special. At the very least we can rest assured we’re not in for anX-Men: Apocalypseredux.
