Well, who can say they saw this one coming? In an interview given over at Vulture, Hugh Jackman dropped the bombshell that Darren Aronofsky (writer/director behind such flicks as Pi, The Wrestler and the upcoming Black Swan) will be lensing the sequel to his 2009 Wolverine flick. According to the Aussie actor:
“This is Wolverine. This is not Popeye. He’s kind of dark. But, you know, this is a change of pace. Chris McQuarrie, who wrote The Usual Suspects, has written the script, so that’ll give you a good clue. [Aronofsky’s] going to make it fantastic. There’s going to be some meat on the bones. There will be something to think about as you leave the theater, for sure.”
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That’s a definite departure from what the poorly received original entry in the series seemed to be going for. Now believe it or not, this isn’t quite as random as it sounds. Aronofsky who is known more for a more thoughtful and artistic approach to his craft has been attached to several genre reboots over the years. Along with Christopher Nolan, he was one of a handful of filmmakers considered to revive the caped crusader after Schumacher murdered the franchise with Batman and Robin. Oh and there was also his proposed reboot of the Robocop series that never made it past early discussions (which is too bad, because I would definitely pay money to see that). Still, while it isn’t out of the ordinary for a director of his stature to take on a high profile superhero movie, it is slightly odd to see one take the reigns of a sequel. I’m getting the feeling that if this pans out, Wolverine 2 is going to feel a lot more like the first part of the series than it’s pedestrian precursor did.
So what does Aronofksy himself have to say about this situation? Surprisingly both he and the studio have remained tight lipped despite Jackman’s “confirmation” (I’m thinking that it’s probably just a matter of figuring out the director’s paycheck for the gig). In any case between this and Kick-Ass! helmer Matthew Vaughn’s upcoming X-Men prequel (which is already shooting), it’s looking like fans of Marvel’s mutants have a lot to look forward to in the next couple of years.
