Early Tuesday evening, X-Men movie star Hugh Jackman was profiled on Australian current affairs program Today Tonight on the Seven Network for his upcoming reprisal of the role of feral mutant Wolverine in X2. Inbetween behind-the-scenes footage and new snippetts from the film, the down-to-earth 34-year old actor spoke about his breakout role, his son Oscar, and his post-X2 plans.
"I'm kind of glad in a way that I didn't know much about it, because if I knew how rabid the fans were about X-Men I would have been so much more scared than I was," Jackman said of his first blockbuster film. "Most days I felt like I was turning up to a Rolling Stones concert. There were so many people and lights, it was huge. My trailer was bigger than my apartment in Melbourne at the time."
Not your typical Hollywood star, Jackman still prefers to spend time with his wife, fellow Aussie actor Deborah Lee Furness, and their adopted son Oscar.
"He told me the other day he didn't like my job, because he looked at a poster of Wolverine and he keeps thinking Wolverine's cranky," Jackman said. "He's very perturbed about it. He says 'Why can't Wolverine be happy? Why can't you be happy, daddy?'"
Despite aversions to crankiness, little Oscar is most likely Jackman's biggest fan.
"It's kind of bizarre. He's got an action figure of Wolverine he's had since the first {movie}, and he loves it. He sometimes takes it to bed and he hugs it. It's voice-activated so he'll be hugging it and kissing it and it's saying back to him, 'I'll slice you in half!'"
The actor and his family are currently bound for New York where Jackman will soon make a return to the stage playing entertainer Peter Allen in The Boy From Oz, the first Australian musical to open on Broadway.
"Peter was beloved in New York. They loved him, and they loved who he was and his sensibilities, and Australia, too, is fascinated with him at the moment, so I think it'll go really well. Fingers crossed. So we're off to New York, and then we might think about having another bubba."
"We bought a place just outside Melbourne, and we were there at Christmas for two months, so if I'm not working I'll be back there. I think once {Oscar's} at school we'll just be based there more than not. Both Deb and I really wanna bring Oscar up in Australia. We just feel more right about it. It's probably just what we know."
To see the clip, follow the link to X-Fan.