For years now, one of the internet’s favorite Marvel fan casts has imagined Daniel Radcliffe trading in wands for adamantium claws. With the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the process of eventually reintroducing the X-Men, the debate over who will replace Hugh Jackman as Wolverine has only grown louder.
But according to Radcliffe himself? There’s nothing to it.
Why Daniel Radcliffe Doesn’t Want To Follow Hugh Jackman As Wolverine
The actor, in a recent interview, referred to the casting talk as a very flattering internet rumor, and no more. No meetings. No conversations. No backdoor deals being made in closed studio doors. For him, it’s all been fan imagination. “It was a very flattering internet rumor; it was not ever real,” he stated. “It was never suggested in any kind of way by anybody with any power to make that happen. And, honestly, you would be stupid not to consider something like that.”
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Radcliffe clarified that he does not want to be the one who succeeds Hugh Jackman, particularly in what he termed the most iconic part of Jackman’s career. Jackman has been Wolverine for decades, playing the role in several movies. To a large number of fans, he is the character.
There’s an honesty in that answer that feels refreshingly grounded. Being a successor of a popular superhero is not a simple task; it is a job with massive expectations. And Radcliffe does not appear to be keen on living in the shadow of another person.
Daniel Radcliffe Had His Eyes On Spider-Man
With that said, Radcliffe has not completely closed the door on comic book movies. The former ‘Harry Potter‘ actor jokingly said that his height would make him a better Spider-Man, but he immediately laughed that off, too.
His actual stance is straightforward: he is a follower of the script. He would consider something different and weird. But he’s not actively campaigning for a cape or claws.
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Having established a post-Potter career of offbeat, daring roles, Radcliffe seems to be more interested in taking creative risks than franchise commitments. As Marvel has significant changes in mind after ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’, Wolverine’s role will be transferred to another actor sooner or later. It’s inevitable.
But if Radcliffe’s comments prove anything, it’s that he’s content watching that evolution from the sidelines, unless the right story truly claws its way to him.
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