Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman will soon be playing lifelong rivals in the forthcoming adaptation of Les Miserables , but off-screen, the former gave the latter a huge helping hand in establishing his Hollywood career.
According to Jackman, he would never have got the role of Wolverine in the first X-Men film had it not been for the intervention of Crowe, who was Bryan Singer’s first choice to play the part.
“Bryan Singer asked [ Crowe ] to do Wolverine," Jackman explained. "And he said, 'Nah, I've just done Gladiator , it's not for me, but you should look at this guy…’”
The rest, as they say, is history. Although it’s interesting to ponder what Crowe would have been like as Wolverine. Would his portrayal have been as iconic, given that he was already a far more familiar face than Jackman?
In any case, Jackman got the gig and is still going strong, with The Wolverine still to come, and a cameo in X-Men: Days Of Future Past more than likely. Long may he continue.
