Marvel Already Told You How Wolverine Exists In MCU Canon

This article contains spoilers for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 2.The MCU has already set up its canon version of Wolverine. The mutant otherwise known as Logan made his feature film debut in Fox's X-Men in 2000. Portrayed by Hugh Jackman, the character appeared in nearly a dozen more installments of the franchise, including sequels and spinoffs, but that incarnation of Wolverine was not part of the MCU. However, now that Disney owns the bulk of Fox's film and TV empire, Marvel Studios finally holds the rights to the X-Men and their characters.

MCU's Hulk is being retconned as a mutant, too.

Presently those are only theories. Evidence is building, however, that the MCU is preparing to introduce its version of the most famous Marvel mutant of all: the X-Men's Wolverine. The initial setup was subtle and easily overlooked, but now all the clues are becoming pretty overt. It's only a matter of time before Wolverine makes his anticipated MCU debut.

How Marvel Already Set Up Wolverine In MCU Canon

She-Hulk Web Adverts Wolverine and Eternals Reference

It's becoming clear that mutants have always existed in the MCU. Curiously, that's quite an easy retcon to make. In fact, subtle X-Men setup in the MCU, but it also points the way to Wolverine specifically because the comics have hinted that the scientists at Alamogordo wound up working on the Weapon X project, which bound unbreakable adamantium to Wolverine's bones.

More recently, the MCU has begun to (re-)canonize Marvel's Netflix shows, with Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio reprising their roles as Daredevil and the Kingpin. This has the added benefit of introducing another element of Wolverine setup from the final scenes of Dr. Oyama, a deep dive into Wolverine lore. In the comics, Dr. Oyama, a.k.a. Lord Dark Wind, was the man who figured out how to bond adamantium to human bones. His research notes were stolen by the Weapon X project, and he was never able to replicate the process again. Dr. Oyama seems to be entering the mainstream MCU via Daredevil.

All this makes a final Easter egg in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 2 particularly exciting. In one scene, Jennifer Walters abandons her best efforts to get a job and simply starts browsing the internet. Attentive viewers noticed one headline at the side of her computer screen clearly referencing Wolverine: "Man fights with metal claws in bar brawl." The implication is that Wolverine is already part of the MCU, already has adamantium bones and claws, and is currently wandering around causing trouble.

Why Wolverine Already Existing In The MCU Makes Sense For Marvel

Wolverine as Weapon X Slashing Through A Yellow Foreground

This approach is sensible for Marvel. Wolverine is one of the oldest mutants; in the comics, he was born in 1832 and has lived an unusually long life thanks to his mutant healing factor. If mutants are indeed already present in the MCU, then the way to pull off a comic-accurate Wolverine is to establish that he's been active in the shadows of the MCU all along. Meanwhile, MCU Phase 4 films and TV shows have established that super-soldier experiments continued after Steve Rogers was lost at the end of World War II, meaning it's easy to imagine a scenario where the Weapon X project was established. The dots connect surprisingly well.

If Wolverine Is In The MCU, Then Where Is He?

Most viewers tend to forget Wolverine began as a drifter, a deeply wounded man desperate to find somewhere to belong. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier even introduced one of Wolverine's old haunts, a place where he feels much more at home than at the X-Mansion: the Princess Bar at Madripoor. In the comics, Wolverine is actually the co-owner of this disreputable establishment, where he hides from the world's attention under the alias "Patch."

The comic book storyline "Original Sin" revealed Wolverine never considered himself a superhero, nor did he ever believe he could make a difference in the world. All that changed when he met Professor X — or, rather, when he was sent on a mission to kill him. Professor X wiped the mutant's memory and rewrote his personality, turning Wolverine into a hero. Surprisingly, Wolverine came to feel gratitude for this because he believed Professor X had made him a better man. Presumably, the MCU's Wolverine simply hasn't met anyone committed to turning him into a superhero yet.

When & How Will Wolverine Appear In The MCU?

Right now, it's difficult to see how mutants fit into Marvel Studios' overarching plans. Ms. Marvel has officially introduced mutants in MCU Phase 4, and yet there's no obvious place for them in Phases 5 and 6, which are instead focused on the multiverse. Still, it seems difficult to believe Marvel would begin teasing Wolverine like this without a concrete plan to introduce him soon. Wolverine most likely fits into something that hasn't been announced yet, perhaps even an as-yet-unconfirmed film rumored to be called The Mutants. Hopefully, it won't be long before Marvel confirms more details.

New episodes of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law release Thursdays on Disney+.