Marvel Actor Hugh Jackman Didn’t Originally Want to Become an Actor

Celebrity Hugh Jackman has had a successful career for a couple of decades. Fans know him as the reluctant superhero Wolverine from X-Men. He has landed multiple big roles and shows no signs of stopping. 

There was a chance Jackman would not have been the award-winning actor that he is today. Before he got into acting, he had plans to pursue another career. The actor almost became a journalist. 

Hugh Jackman’s career so far

Jackman launched his acting career by joining stage productions. He gained recognition due to his performances in musicals. However, he obtained significant fame when he started to work in the film industry.

In 2000, Jackman starred in the superhero movie X-Men. In the film about mutants, he played the fan-favorite character Wolverine. However, he almost did not get the part. 

The film got released in a time before people took superhero movies seriously. A friend of his in the industry warned him to avoid X-Men. Not to mention, someone else was going to be Wolverine. By chance, Jackman got the role, and he received a few nominations for his performance. 

Since then, he starred in other popular movies, such as The Greatest Showman. He received a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy in 2013. Jackman also won awards for his stage work on Broadway. 

The actor has starred in a TV mini-series recently. Currently, he is working on a few projects. 

Some of Hugh Jackman’s notable roles

Jackman’s acting abilities have allowed him to star in a wide range of films. He can go from action to musicals. There are several characters of his that fans remember. 

One of Jackman’s most well-known roles is the character Wolverine from the X-Men franchise. His first appearance in 2000 had a significant impact on his career.  After Wolverine became popular with the mainstream audience, the actor reprised his role in sequels and spinoffs. His last appearance as the mutant was in the 2017 film, Logan. 

Not only can Jackman do action movies, but he can also give a great performance in romantic comedies. Fans may remember the actor from Kate & Leopold. He plays the Duke of Albany, who travels from 1876 to the present. The role won him a Golden Globe. 

He took on the role of the Barnum & Bailey Circus founder P.T. Barnum in The Greatest Showman. Jackman also contributed to one of the movie’s featured songs. While Les Misérables received mixed reviews, critics praised his performance. He played Jean Valjean, who struggles to live a normal life after prison during an economic depression. 

Hugh Jackman had no plans to be an actor

One fact that fans may not know is that Jackman did not want to be an actor originally. According to Mental Floss, the actor went to school intending to become a journalist. He studied communications at the University of Technology in Sydney. 

Specifically, Jackman wanted to be an international freelance journalist. He happened to be a few credits short of graduating. As a result, he took a drama class in his senior year.  

It would seem that his time in that class made him want to switch career goals. It was lucky for both him and fans that he decided to go into acting. He would not have played popular characters like Wolverine. 

Not to mention, he would not have met his wife. It just so happened that Jackman ran into his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, on the set of Correlli in 1995. It was his debut on television, and Furness was already an established actress.  

It is hard to say where Jackman would be today if he stayed on the path to journalism.