Summary
- Wolverine gets buffer in every new X-Men movie due to his healing factor rebuilding his body stronger with every damage he takes, according to a theory.
- The theory explains that in the original X-Men movie, Wolverine had taken less damage compared to future movies where he constantly faces powerful foes.
- The real reason behind Wolverine's different looks in the original X-Men and the rest of his live-action appearances is because Hugh Jackman was a last-minute replacement for Dougray Scott, resulting in Jackman having little time to get into superhero shape.
A Marvel theory explains why Wolverine gets buffer in every new Wolverine's Marvel Cinematic Universe debut, a new theory has emerged to explain why Wolverine gets buffer with every X-Men movie.
On Reddit, Marvel fan u/TheMediocreCritic came up with a theory to explain Wolverine's visible physical change from the first X-Men movie to his future appearances.
According to the theory, Jackman's Wolverine gets buffer in every X-Men movie due to the character's healing factor rebuilding his body stronger with every damage that he takes. When 2000's X-Men begins, Logan had been on the road participating in some bar cage matches where he would take little damage. In future movies, Wolverine actually fights powerful foes constantly, which would contribute to him getting buffer due to his healing factor compensating for the damage.
The Real Reason Wolverine Looks So Different In X-Men
While the theory is interesting and offers a reasonable in-universe explanation for why Wolverine gets buffer in every X-Men movie, there is a real reason behind Wolverine's different looks in the original X-Men and the rest of his live-action appearances. Jackman was not the first choice for the role, with X-Men director Bryan Singer originally offering the part to Batwoman actor Dougray Scott.
Jackman getting the Wolverine role in 2000's X-Men was a last-minute decision made by Singer after Scott was unable to fit the movie into his schedule. That happened due to production on Mission: Impossible 2, where Scott played rogue IMF agent Sean Ambrose opposite Tom Cruise's fan-favorite Ethan Hunt, running longer than it was expected. That led to X-Men changing Wolverine actors, and Jackman was cast, with the actor having little time to get into superhero shape, a problem he didn't have in future movies and which explains why Wolverine gets buffer in every new X-Men movie.
In 2020, Scott revealed in an interview with The Telegraph that Cruise actually didn't let him play Wolverine in X-Men. According to the actor, Cruise said, "you’ve got to stay and finish the film." Scott then tried to argue that he would do both, but Cruise could not be convinced. Scott lamented the situation, saying, "Other people were doing everything to make it work.” In the end, Jackman was cast as Wolverine and became the most iconic character in Fox's X-Men franchise, still playing the mutant to this day.
Source: u/TheMediocreCritic/Reddit