Daniel Radcliffe has denied any plans to portray Wolverine in the future – but understands why his fans have brought it up over the past few years.
The actor, most well-known for his childhood career as the lead of the Harry Potter film series, appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to talk about his upcoming movie. During the interview, Fallon brought up the fact that fans of the actor want him to play the Marvel character, Wolverine – originally portrayed by Hugh Jackman.
Radcliffe said fans want him to play Wolverine because of his height
When it came to playing the role, Radcliffe believed people wanted him to portray the character because he is “fairly short.” Although Jackman portrayed the role from 2000 to 2017, making Wolverine a character that stood at a 6’3” inch height, the comic book version of Wolverine is much shorter at 5’3”.
With Radcliffe standing at a height of 5’5”, Radcliffe felt his fans believed he would be accurately suited for the role.
“I think it’s because, they’re like, Wolverine in the comics is fairly short,” he said. “So I think it’s people going like, ‘who’s a short actor?’ Him! He could maybe play him!”
Radcliffe also said that every time people brought up the idea, he denied it and his words would somehow get twisted around. He explained how he would sometimes respond to questions involving future Wolverine plans with a joke – only to immediately regret the possibility of fans taking it the wrong way.
Jimmy Fallon also went on to agree that he believes Radcliffe would be a fantastic Wolverine.
“That’s very kind, thank you,” Radcliffe replied. “I mean, anything that implies the fleeting-est similarities to Hugh Jackman is incredibly flattering so I’m happy with that.”
Watch the clip from the interview with Fallon below:
Fans show their desire to see Radcliffe as Wolverine
Many people have taken to the @fallontonight video’s comment section to show their excitement over the possibility of Radcliffe playing the Marvel character.
Kristin Suzanne commented, “Okay but Daniel Radcliffe would make the PERFECT Wolverine.”
Similarly, another user commented their approval of the casting – “I think he’d follow up Hugh Jackmans wolverine pretty well.”
Fans also took to Twitter to show their own “fan edits” and positive comments on Radcliffe in the new role.
“Said it before but Daniel Radcliffe would be an excellent Wolverine,” Twitter user @DapperSteve wrote.
Twitter users even posted a fan-made poster of Radcliffe cast in the role that featured his face on Wolverine’s body. The poster also showed the movie’s title of the same name and the well-known line from the character – “Sometimes when you cage the beast, the beast gets angry!”
Although Radcliffe’s height may be more suited for the comic-book version of the role, he has definitely denied any possibility of stepping into Hugh Jackman’s shoes in the near future. Guess there won’t be a “from wizard to Wolverine” storyline after all.