Hugh Jackman is famous for packing on pounds of muscle to play Wolverine in various “X-Men” movies, but he told Chris Wallace during a recent interview on HBO’s “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace” that he’s never resorted to steroids in order to transform into the character.
“Over the years people have wondered, did he juice?” Wallace asked. “Did he take steroids?”
“No, I love my job. And I love Wolverine,” Jackman said. “I got to be careful what I say here, but I had been told anecdotally what the side effects are of that. And I was like, ‘I don’t love it that much.’ So no, I just did it the old school way. And I tell you, I’ve eaten more chickens — I’m so sorry to all the vegans and vegetarians and to the chickens of the world. Literally the karma is not good for me. If the deity has anything related to chickens, I’m in trouble.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Jackson admitted that he foolishly studied wolves after accepting the role ahead of 2000’s “X-Men.”
“I had never read the comic book,” Jackman said. “I got the part. I didn’t really know anything about…I didn’t, in Australia we don’t have wolverines. I didn’t know that was a real animal. I’d never heard of a wolverine. I thought it was a made-up animal. You know, like, he’s got man hands of steel, made up. And so I was passing as I was doing rehearsal at the Imax, they had this documentary about wolves. And I was like, perfect, because obviously I’m a wolf, part wolf.”
“So I went [to set] with all these wolf moves and I was doing these moves, and the director said, ‘What are you doing?’” Jackman continued. “And I said, ‘Well, I was just thinking wolves are always looking like this because they’re actually smelling, they’ve got their nose to the ground. That’s why they’re looking like this all the time.’ And he goes, ‘What do you mean a wolf?’ And I said, ‘Well, you know, Wolverine — I’m part wolf so…’ and he goes, ‘No, you’re a wolverine.’”
Jackson will be reprising the role of Wolverine in Marvel’s upcoming “Deadpool 3.” Production on the comic book tentpole is expected to start in the spring after Jackman’s wraps his run in Broadway’s “The Music Man.”
From Variety US