Hugh Jackman on rumors of taking steroids for the role of Wolverine

Anyone who has seen the X-Men movies and seen Hugh Jackman as the claw-wielding mutant Wolverine will see that he's incredibly muscular. Hugh Jackman has vehemently denied taking steroids to put on that kind of muscle tone.

During a recent interview with Chris Wallace on the HBO program Who's Talking to Chris Wallace, Hugh Jackman stated he has never taken steroids to put on that kind of muscle tone. Wallace asked "Over the years, people have wondered did he juice? Did he take steroids?" Jackman answered flat out "No, I love my job and I love Wolverine. 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."

Also in the interview, he admitted he studied wolves after accepting the role of Wolverine ahead of the 2000 film X-Men. "I had never read the comic book, 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?' 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'."

Hugh Jackman is bringing back his iconic role as the claw-wielding mutant Wolverine alongside Deadpool in Deadpool 3. He has to wait, however, after he concludes his Broadway run of The Music Man

October Birthdays

Since it's October, time to say Happy Birthday

K.K. Downing

-Birth name: Kenneth Keith Downing

-DOB: 10/27/1951

-Where: West Bromwich, United Kingdom

-He grew up poor and had to suffer, along with his siblings, with their dad's gambling addiction

Lance Stroll

-Birth name: Lance Strulovitch

-DOB: 10/29/1988

-Where: Montreal, Canada

-Previously drove for Williams Racing Team

Hugh Jackman

-Birth name: Hugh Michael Jackman

-DOB: 10/12/1968

-Where: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

-Russell Crowe was originally supposed to play the character Wolverine in the 2000 film X-Men, but he turned it down. He personally recommended his good friend, Hugh Jackman, for the role to director Bryan Singer

Kevin Magnussen

-Birth name: Kevin Jan Magnussen

-DOB: 10/5/1992

-Where: Roskilde, Denmark

-His father, Jan Magnussen, is a four time Le Mans winner and former Formula 1 driver

Sting (singer)

-Birth name: Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner

-DOB: 10/2/1951

-Where: Wallsend, United Kingdom

-He was part of a group called the Phoenix Jazzmen when he earned his nickname "Sting", from wearing a black and yellow striped sweater, which gave him the look of a hornet

Kate Winslet

-Birth name: Kate Elizabeth Winslet

-DOB: 10/5/1975

-Where: Reading, Berkshire, England

-Her children are incredibly close to Leonardo DiCaprio

Brian Johnson

-DOB: 10/5/1947

-Where: Dunston, United Kingdom

-He started wearing his iconic hat after his brother lent him a hat of the same variety to keep his hair out of his face and also pay tribute to the working class heritage of the area Brian comes from

Chris Slade

-DOB: 10/30/1946

-Where: Pontypridd, United Kingdom

-His first album with AC/DC was 1990's The Razor's Edge

Mikkey Dee

-Birth name: Micael Kiriakos Delaglou

-DOB: 10/31/1963

-Where: Gothenburg, Sweden

-Says he had blisters on his hands after the aggressive playing style needed for Motorhead

"Fast" Eddie Clarke

-Birth name: Edward Allan Clarke

-DOB: 10/5/1950

-Where: Twickenham, United Kingdom

-DOD: 1/10/2018

-Where: London, United Kingdom

-He formed a band called Fastway with Pete Way of UFO

Glenn Tipton

-Birth name: Glenn Raymond Tipton

-DOB: 10/25/1947

-Where: Blackheath, United Kingdom

-Had to medically retire from Judas Priest in 2015 due to his diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease

Ken Watanabe

-Birth name: Kensaku Watanabe

-DOB: 10/21/1959

-Where: Uonuma, Japan

-His Hollywood breakthrough came in the form of The Last Samurai with Tom Cruise

Charles LeClerc

-Birth name: Charles Marc Herve Perceval Leclerc

-DOB: 10/16/1997

-Where: Monte Carlo, Monaco

-Like most future F1 drivers, he started out go karting

October birthdays

 Since it's October, time to say Happy Birthday

KK Downing

-Birth name: Kenneth Kevin Downing

-DOB: 10/27/1951

-Where: West Bromwich, England

-He left Judas Priest in 2011, citing reasons such as disagreements between him, management and elements of the band

Tommy Lee

-Birth name: Thomas Lee Bass

-DOB: 10/3/1962

-Where: Athens, Greece

-The only member of Motley Crue not born in the US

Hugh Jackman

-Birth name: Hugh Michael Jackman

-DOB: 10/12/1968

-Where: Sydney, Australia

-Met his wife Deborrah-Lee Furness on the set of an Australian prison drama called Corelli

Brian Johnson

-Birth name: Brian Francis Johnson

-DOB: 10/5/1947

-Where: Dunston, United Kingdom

-Became the singer for AC/DC in 1980, shortly after the death of original front man Bon Scott

Kate Winslet

-Birth name: Kate Elizabeth Winslet

-DOB: 10/5/1975

-Where: Reading, United Kingdom

-Known for playing headstrong, outgoing characters

Sting

-Birth name: Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner

-DOB: 10/2/1951

-Where: Wallsend, Newcastle, England

-Earned his nickname "Sting" from his habit of wearing a black and yellow striped sweater during his days with the Phoenix Jazzmen

Chris Slade

-Birth name: Christopher Slade Rees

-DOB: 10/30/1946

-Where: Pontypridd, United Kingdom

-He started drumming with AC/DC from 1989-1994, on their album The Razors Edge

Glenn Tipton

-Birth name: Glenn Raymond Tipton

-DOB: 10/25/1947

-Where: Blackheath, United Kingdom

-Was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 2015 and his last official tour with the band was 2015's Redeemer of Souls. He still wrote music for the band's next album, Firepower, and the songs are credited to him, but producer Andy Sneap played guitar in his place on tour

Mikkey Dee

-Birth name: Micael Kiriakos Delaglou

-DOB: 10/31/1963

-Where: Gothenburg, Sweden

-Drummed for Motorhead from 1991-2015, when the band disbanded after frontman/bassist Lemmy Kilmister's death. He now drums for German rock band The Scorpions

"Fast" Eddie Clarke

-Birth name: Edward Allan Clarke

-DOB: 10/5/1950

-Where: Twickenham, United Kingdom

-DOD: 1/10/2018

-Where: London, United Kingdom

-Played guitar in Motorhead and side band Fastway with former UFO member Pete Way

John Lennon

-Birth name: John Winston Ono Lennon

-DOB: 10/9/1940

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 12/8/1980

-Where: New York (murder)

-Changed his name to John Winston Ono Lennon after falling in love with artist Yoko Ono

October Birthdays

Since it's October, time to say Happy Birthday!!!

Julie Andrews

-Birth name: Julia Elizabeth Andrews

-DOB: 10/1/1935

-Where: Walton-on-Thames, United Kingdom

-Her Broadway debut was in The Boy Friend

Sting

-Birth name: Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner

-DOB: 10/2/1951

-Where: Wallsend, Newcastle, United Kingdom

-Got his nickname "Sting" from his days in the Phoenix Jazzmen, when one of the band members noticed his black and yellow striped shirt and remarked that he looked like a hornet

Tommy Lee

-Birth name: Thomas Lee Bass

-DOB: 10/3/1962

-Where: Athens, Greece

-Has a rap-metal band on the side called Methods of Mayhem

Kate Winslet

-Birth name: Kate Elizabeth Winslet

-DOB: 10/5/1975

-Where: Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom

-She is best known for working in tragedies and dramas

Parminder Nagra

-Birth name: Parminder Kaur Nagra

-DOB: 10/5/1975

-Where: Leicester, United Kingdom

-She is best known for her role in the film Bend It Like Beckham

Brian Johnson

-Birth name: Brian Francis Johnson

-DOB: 10/5/1947

-Where: Dunston, United Kingdom

-His first album with AC/DC was 1980's Back in Black

Glenn Tipton

-Birth name: Glenn Raymond Tipton

-DOB: 10/25/1947

-Where: Blackheath, United Kingdom

-He is one of the longest-serving members of heavy metal band Judas Priest

KK Downing

-Birth name: Kenneth Kevin Downing

-DOB: 10/27/1951

-Where: West Bromwich, United Kingdom

-Earned his nickname "KK" from the fact that in the early days, he met a girl who couldn't pronounce his first name, so she just nicknamed him "KK"

Hugh Jackman

-Birth name: Hugh Michael Jackman

-DOB: 10/12/1968

-Where: Sydney, Australia

-Known for his wide variety of roles, from period drama, to action, to musical, in which he can sing exceptionally well

Chris Slade

-DOB: 10/30/1946

-Where: Pontypridd, United Kingdom

-Played drums for AC/DC between 1989-1994

Hiroyuki Sanada

-DOB: 10/12/1968

-Where: Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan

-Some of the movies he's been in involve him using some sort of creative swordplay

The Wolverine

This is a stand alone film, separate from the X-Men movies. This one centers around Wolverine, thus the title.

Summary
-After surviving the Nagasaki blast as a prisoner of war, Logan is vulnerable for the first time as he travels through modern day Japan to meet someone from his past, a Japanese officer he saved from the blast

Cast
-Hugh Jackman: Logan
-Tao Okamoto: Mariko
-Rila Fukushima: Yukio
-Hiroyuki Sanada: Shingen
-Svetlana Khodchenkova: Viper
-Brian Tee: Noburo
-Hal Yamanouchi: Yashida
-Will Yun Lee: Harada
-Ken Yamamura: Young Yashida
-Famke Janssen: Jean Grey

Did You Know?
-When Yashida was young, he gave Wolverine a katana sword with six Kanji symbols on it, which translates into "Never Died, Never Aged, Never Destroyed", which references Wolverine's ability to heal
-Hugh Jackman wanted to look as muscular as possible for his shirtless scenes. He resorted to a dehydration diet, common in bodybuilders. This involved him not consuming any liquid for 36 hours before filming any shirtless scenes. Despite feeling faint with headaches, he said he was satisfied with the results as it gave him the tight, hard muscled look he wanted

-The film was released in mid-September in Japan. This luckily avoided any issues with the August anniversaries of the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima
-Mariko repeatedly mentions nightmares involving a "kuzuri". This is the Japanese word for "wolverine"
-In the comics, Yukio was known for short black hair and black leather clothing. In the film, however, Yukio has long red hair and has clothing and an appearance inspired by Generation X and Japanese anime
-Rila Fukushima, who plays Yukio, spent a month training in swordplay for the film
-Almost the entire cast of the film is Japanese

Logan

This is the most recent, probably last installment of the X-Men series.

Summary
-Logan is caring for an ailing Professor X while attempting to hide from the world. His attempts at hiding are hampered by a young mutant on the run who bears all too many similarities to him who wants to get to a safe place in North Dakota

Cast
-Hugh Jackman: Logan/X-24
-Patrick Stewart: Professor Charles Xavier
-Dafne Keen: Laura
-Boyd Holbrook: Pierce
-Stephen Merchant: Caliban
-Elizabeth Rodriguez: Gabriela
-Richard E. Grant: Dr. Rice
-Eriq La Salle: Will Munson
-Elise Neal: Kathryn Munson
-Quincy Fouse: Nate Munson

Did You Know?
-In order to look elderly and sick, Sir Patrick Stewart had to lose 21 pounds. He had never deliberately lost weight for a role before. Hugh Jackman also held him genuinely in all the scenes of Wolverine carrying Professor X

-During the scene where Laura and Charles are watching the film Shane, he mentions that was a film he remembered seeing as a child. This was improvised because the film was one of the first memories he had during his childhood at the theatre
-Hugh Jackman had stated in interviews that he learned his American accent from copying Johnny Depp
-During Professor X's seizure episodes, Hugh Jackman didn't act as if being pushed away. He was held back by a rope pulled by two men to give a realistic impression of being restrained
-Out of all the X-Men movies featuring Wolverine, Hugh Jackman said this was the hardest he has ever trained for a film

-For scenes where Logan was shirtless, Hugh Jackman went through a 48 hour period of dehydration to look emaciated. He does not recommend doing this and he used the same concept for his role as prisoner Jean Valjean in Les Miserables
-During the first half of the movie, when Logan is shown driving a limo, his name is displayed as James Howlett. This was the birth name of Wolverine in the X-Men comics and was also used in X-Men Origins: Wolverine
-When Nate is seen in his room and Laura comes in, deathcore posters can be seen dotting the walls. Deathcore is a sub-genre of heavy metal that combines death metal and hardcore metal. Ironically, he is seen listening to rap/pop music on his phone. The bands on the wall include All Shall Perish, Dr. Acula and Suicide Silence
-This was the last film for Hugh Jackman to play Wolverine. He said that because of a touch of skin cancer and his age that he would retire from the role
-In one of the X-Men comics, "Old Man Logan", Mysterio tricks Logan in to killing the X-Men while in the movie, Professor X kills the X-Men through one of his seizures
-In the comic "Death of Wolverine", it's suggested that the adamantium in his skeleton contains radiation from the Nagasaki bombing. In the film, it's suggested he is being slowly poisoned by unknown reasons, possibly the skeleton in his body
-Hugh Jackman did double duty, playing both Logan and X-24. This references the first X-Men movie where Mystique transforms into Wolverine