Hugh Jackman Finally Makes Public Statement On Steroid Rumors
Hugh Jackman has officially denied using steroids to achieve his Wolverine physique, saying he did it the "old school way."
Hugh Jackman has denied that he had taken anabolic steroids to bulk up his muscles while portraying Wolverine in the X-Men franchise, according to a recent interview on HBO Max’s Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace (per Variety). The Logan actor has been plagued with rumors that he had used chemical means to achieve the chiseled look of the iconic antihero for years, as recently as last September when the controversial podcast host Joe Rogan claimed without evidence that he was sure that he had. Specifically, Hugh Jackman said regarding steroids that he “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.”
The Son actor began portraying Wolverine (aka Logan aka James Howlett) in the 2000 X-Men film by Bryan Singer, replacing the previously cast Dougray Scott. Notably, Hugh Jackman’s first appearance as the character saw him noticeably less muscular than he would appear in later films, prompting the steroid rumors. By the time of 2013’s The Wolverine, Hugh Jackman appeared extremely bulked up, which he stated was due to the advice of Dwayne Johnson, a man who knows something about being very large and veiny.
The difference between Hugh Jackman’s physical appearance in 2000 and 2013 (and the steroid rumors) can likely be attributed to several factors. For one, Hollywood began trending towards exaggerated musculature for men in the early 2000s, with the default look for any leading man essentially becoming a Rob Liefeld illustration. For another, prior to X-Men, Hugh Jackman was known as a highly acclaimed Broadway performer rather than an action star, so he likely spent a lot less time developing the kind of muscles that led to steroid allegations.
Per The Sports Rush, Joe Rogan claimed that Hugh Jackman must have used anabolic steroids, stating that “I am 100% confident that guy did steroids, look at his body, Hugh Jackman got fucking jacked and he’s 40 years old. I’m sure he was on a wonderful diet, I am also sure without a shadow of a doubt he was manipulating his hormones.” Notably, Joe Rogan has come under quite a lot of criticism in recent years for his enthusiasm for making medical claims on his podcast, despite his professed lack of any expertise or knowledge on the subject.
Hugh Jackman is set to reprise the role of Wolverine in the upcoming Deadpool 3, despite having famously retired the character in 2017’s acclaimed Logan. While the long-lived mutant finally died at the end of the film, it seems some kind of time travel shenanigans (not at all unusual for the X-franchise) will allow Jackman to team up with Ryan Reynold’s violent, quipping mercenary. According to Hugh Jackman, the events of Logan will not be altered by Deadpool 3, though this will be the first official appearance of the character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Hopefully, someday people will stop asking Hugh Jackman about steroids.
