X-Men Origins: Wolverine was released to mostly negative reviews, though it faced more than its fair share of challenges during production. The WGA strike had a huge impact on shooting, while a workprint of the movie was infamously leaked online weeks before its arrival in theaters.
Then, there's what 20th Century Fox decided to do to Deadpool. The less said about that, the better!
Had things gone differently, the plan was for Magneto, Gambit, and even the Merc with the Mouth to receive their own "X-Men Origins" movies. Instead, the concept was abandoned and Hugh Jackman's clawed mutant continued to appear in the main franchise along with a solo sequel/reboot titled The Wolverine.
Before that, a direct sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine had been in the works. Very little has been revealed about the movie, though we know many of that first instalment's characters were set to return.
Among them was Kevin Durand as The Blob. Talking to ComicBook.com about his role in Abigail, the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes star shed some light on what was in the works for his heavyweight mutant.
"I really should be because I remember when we were doing the scenes in Wolverine, he just kept saying 'You're going to end up with your own movie,' and he really wanted me to come back and do the next Wolverine and The Blob was going to be the sumo wrestling champion in Japan when he goes to Tokyo but it never panned out."
As for whether he'd be open to playing The Blob again (not bringing him back for Deadpool & Wolverine seems a missed trick), Durand seems enthusiastic. "I'm game," he said. "I'm always game."
In 2022, Bolt actor Dominic Monaghan told us this about about his X-Men Origins: Wolverine experience:
"I had a great time doing that film, and like you said, it was pre-the explosion of Marvel. I was over in Sydney, my friends were there so I got the chance to spend some time with them. Working with Hugh Jackman, will.i.am, and Ryan…they were all really lovely people. I got the chance to ask Hugh about his workout routine and that was fascinating. He was a gentleman and a beast."
"I love Australia and Sydney and had some of my favourite days on the planet in and around that city. It was a really fun thing. It was embraced by the people who loved it and, I’m not in it all the time, but people seem to universally think my character should have been in the film more and that he ended up being pretty cool."
The movie might not have been very good, but it seems everyone involved had fun making it. Rumour has it Deadpool & Wolverine will directly reference Wade Wilson's role in that my making the remains of Weapon XI the MCU's Headpool.
Would you like to see Durand play The Blob again?