Logan (film) on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
''Logan'' is a 2017 American
superhero film
Superhero film/movie is a film genre categorized by the presence of superhero characters, individuals with extraordinary abilities who are dedicated to fighting crime, saving the world, or helping the innocent. It is sometimes considered a sub ...
starring Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...
as the titular character. Based on the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
character Wolverine
The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...
, the film was directed by James Mangold
James Allen Mangold (born December 16, 1963) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Noted for his versatility in tackling a range of genres, Mangold made his debut as a film director with ''Heavy (film), Heavy'' (1995), and gai ...
, who co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Green and Scott Frank from a story by Mangold. It is the tenth film in the ''X-Men'' film series and the third and final installment in the ''Wolverine'' trilogy, following '' X-Men Origins: Wolverine'' (2009) and '' The Wolverine'' (2013). The film, which takes inspiration from the "Old Man Logan
Old Man Logan is an alternative version of the superhero Wolverine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. This character is an aged version of Wolverine set in an alternate future universe in which the supervillains overth ...
" comics storyline by Mark Millar
Mark Millar (; born 24 December 1969) is a Scottish comic book writer who first came to prominence with a run on the superhero series ''The Authority (comics), The Authority'', published by DC Comics' Wildstorm imprint. Millar has written ext ...
and Steve McNiven
Steven McNiven is a Canadians, Canadian comic book artist. He first gained prominence on CrossGen's ''Meridian (comics), Meridian'', before moving onto books such as ''Ultimate Secret'', ''Marvel Knights 4'', The New Avengers (comics), ''New Aven ...
, follows an aged Wolverine
The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...
and an extremely ill Charles Xavier
Professor X (Prof. Charles Francis Xavier) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 ( ...
who must defend a young mutant named Laura from the Reavers led by Donald Pierce
Donald Pierce is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a cyborg and is commonly an enemy of the X-Men.
Donald Pierce appears in the 2017 film '' Logan'', portrayed by Boyd Holbr ...
and Zander Rice
R'Klll
R'Klll (sometimes spelled R'Kill) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
She is depicted as the wife of Dorrek VII, the mother of Anelle, and the grandmother of Hulkling.
Raa of the Cave ...
. In addition to Jackman, the film also stars Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...
, Richard E. Grant
Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is an Eswatini-born English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack H ...
, Boyd Holbrook
Robert Boyd Holbrook (born September 1, 1981) is an American actor. He has starred in the Netflix series ''Narcos'' (2015–2016) as DEA agent Steve Murphy and '' The Sandman'' (2022–) as the Corinthian, as well as in the History miniseries ...
, Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974) is an English comedian, writer, director, and actor. He was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003), and co-writer ...
, and introduces Dafne Keen
Dafne Keen Fernández (born 4 January 2005) is a Spanish and British actress. Keen made her debut as a child actor on the series '' The Refugees'' (2015). Her breakthrough role was as Laura, in the ''X-Men'' superhero film '' Logan'' (2017) w ...
in her film debut as Laura.
Discussion for the film began following the release of ''The Wolverine'' in 2013, with Mangold in negotiations to write the treatment for the film and Lauren Shuler Donner
Lauren Diane Shuler Donner (born June 23, 1949) is an American film producer, who specializes in mainstream youth and family-oriented entertainment. She owned The Donners' Company with her late husband, director Richard Donner. Her films have ...
returning to produce. After updates followed that December to May 2016, principal photography began that May, and ended that August, mainly in Louisiana, New Mexico, and Mississippi
Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...
. The film was designed to look like it takes place in the near future, with slight updates to technology and the social environment, and written with a dark and violent tone closer to the Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
than the traditional superhero genre.
''Logan'' premiered at the 67th Berlin International Film Festival
The 67th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 18 February 2017 with Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven as president of the jury.
'' Django'', directed by Etienne Comar, opened the festival. The Golden Bear was awarded to the ...
on February 17, 2017, and was theatrically released in the United States on March 3. It was praised by critics for its action scenes, emotional depth, performances, and Mangold's direction, becoming the best-reviewed film in the ''X-Men'' franchise. The National Board of Review
The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered the first major harbinger of the film awards season that ...
named ''Logan'' one of the top-ten films of 2017, and was also nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 90th Academy Awards
The 90th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2017, and took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was held on March 4, ...
, becoming the first live-action superhero film to be nominated for screenwriting. Grossing $619.2 million worldwide, it became the third-highest-grossing R-rated film at its release. Jackman and Keen reprised their roles in the film ''Deadpool & Wolverine
''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...
'' (2024).
Plot
In 2029, nomutants
In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It i ...
have been born in 25 years, and an aging Logan
Logan may refer to:
Places
* Mount Logan (disambiguation)
Australia
* Logan (Queensland electoral district), an electoral district in the Queensland Legislative Assembly
* Logan, Victoria, small locality near St. Arnaud
* Logan City, local gove ...
suffers as his healing ability is failing, slowly poisoned by his adamantium
Adamantium is a fictional metal alloy, most famously appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is best known as the substance bonded to the character Wolverine's skeleton and claws.
First mention in Marvel comics
It was ...
skeletal grafts. Working as a limousine driver in El Paso, Texas
El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
, he and the mutant tracker Caliban
Caliban ( ), the subhuman son of the sea witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play ''The Tempest''.
His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own w ...
take care of the elderly Charles Xavier
Professor X (Prof. Charles Francis Xavier) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 ( ...
, in an abandoned smelting plant in northern Mexico
Northern Mexico ( ), commonly referred as , is an informal term for the northern cultural and geographical area in Mexico. Depending on the source, it contains some or all of the states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua (state), ...
. Xavier suffers from dementia
Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...
that causes him to have destructive telepathic
Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...
seizures, one of which killed several of the X-Men years prior.
Logan reluctantly agrees to escort Gabriela López, a former nurse for biotechnology corporation Alkali-Transigen, and a young girl named Laura to Eden, a supposed refuge near the American-Canadian border. After finding Gabriela dead, Logan is confronted by Donald Pierce
Donald Pierce is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a cyborg and is commonly an enemy of the X-Men.
Donald Pierce appears in the 2017 film '' Logan'', portrayed by Boyd Holbr ...
, Transigen's cyborg
A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.Reavers, but Caliban is captured. Pierce tortures Caliban into tracking Laura. Xavier and Logan watch a video on Gabriela's phone, revealing that Transigen created Laura and other children from mutant
*
A former member of the
A mutant who is the world's most powerful
A mysterious young girl, who is "very much" like Logan as well as Logan's biological daughter. She is also subject "X-23". On Keen's portrayal of Laura, Mangold mentioned, "If anyone could steal a movie from
Transigen's relentless, calculating, and intense head of security and leader of the militant Reavers, who is sent to retrieve Laura, which brings him into conflict with Wolverine. Holbrook said of the character, "He's an innovative engineer and he's a big fan of Wolverine. He just wants to hang out with him ... There's a lot of surprising stuff in it." Mangold praised Holbrook's performance, saying that " eis just a fabulous actor. I wanted this film to feel intimate and real and truthfully acted, and I wanted very much to break away from the kind of bloated feeling I've gotten from a lot of comic-book movies." *
An
The surgical head of Transigen, whose father was killed by Logan during his escape from the
On March 5, 2015, James Mangold anticipated that filming would begin "early next year". Prior to filming, the film was given the
''Logan'' grossed $226.3 million in the United States and Canada and $392.7 million in other countries for a worldwide gross of $619.2 million, against a production budget of $97 million. Worldwide, the film had a global debut of $247.4 million from 82 markets, as well as the second-biggest R-rated IMAX debut, with $20.6 million from 1,068 screens. The film grossed $440.9 million in its first 13 days of release, surpassing the entire theatrical gross of ''The Wolverine'' ($414.8 million).
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
to become weapons. The children proved challenging to control and were to be executed, but Gabriela and other nurses helped some escape. Xavier reveals to Logan that Laura was created from Logan's DNA and calls her Logan's daughter.
In Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...
, Logan discovers that Eden appears in Laura's ''X-Men'' comic
a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicat ...
and tells her it is fictional. The Reavers arrive, but Xavier has a seizure that incapacitates everyone except Logan and Laura, who kill the attackers and inject Xavier with his medication. As they flee, Dr. Zander Rice
R'Klll
R'Klll (sometimes spelled R'Kill) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
She is depicted as the wife of Dorrek VII, the mother of Anelle, and the grandmother of Hulkling.
Raa of the Cave ...
, the head of Transigen, arrives to help Pierce.
Logan, Laura, and Xavier help farmer Will Munson and his family after a traffic incident, accepting an offer of dinner at their home, where Logan drives off enforcers from a corporate farm. Rice unleashes X-24, a mindless clone of Logan in his prime created as Transigen's ultimate weapon. X-24 murders Will's family and Xavier before capturing Laura. Caliban sets off grenades, killing himself and several Reavers but only injuring Pierce. Logan is outmatched by X-24, but Will pins X-24 with his truck before dying from his injuries. Logan and Laura escape with Xavier's body.
After burying Xavier, Logan passes out. Laura takes him to a doctor and persuades him to prove that the site in North Dakota is not Eden. They find Rictor
Rictor (Julio Esteban "Ric" Richter) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, primarily in the ''X-Men'' family of books. The character was created by writer Louise Simonson and artist Walt Simonson and first ...
and other Transigen children preparing to cross into Canada. Laura finds an adamantium bullet that Logan has kept since he escaped from the Weapon X
Weapon X is a fictional government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They were conducted by Department K, which turned willing and unwilling beings into living weapons to carry out c ...
facility, which he once considered using to commit suicide. Logan decides not to accompany them, to Laura's dismay.
When the Reavers ambush the children, Logan takes an overdose of a serum given to him by Rictor that temporarily enhances his healing abilities and boosts his strength. With Laura's help, he slaughters most of the Reavers before the serum wears off. As Pierce holds Rictor at gunpoint, Rice tells Logan, who killed Rice's father years ago at the Weapon X facility, that no new mutants have been born due to genetically engineered crops created by Transigen and distributed through the world's food supply. Logan, having found a gun, shoots Rice dead and injures Pierce. X-24 fights Logan as the children combine their powers to kill Pierce and the remaining Reavers. Rictor uses his powers to flip a truck onto X-24, but X-24 frees himself and impales Logan on a large tree branch, mortally wounding him. Laura loads Logan's revolver with the adamantium bullet and shoots X-24 in the head, killing him.
Near death, Logan tells Laura not to become the weapon she was made to be, and after she tearfully acknowledges him as her father, Logan dies peacefully in Laura's arms. She and the children bury Logan, with Laura reciting as his eulogy the closing speech from ''Shane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (name), a masculine given name and a surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with this name
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born ...
'', which Logan, Xavier, and she had watched in the Oklahoma City hotel. Before the children depart, Laura tilts the cross on his grave marker to create an X, honoring him as the last of the X-Men.
Cast
* Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...
as James Howlett / Logan: A former member of the
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...
and a physically enhanced mutant with accelerated healing. Charles Xavier's former pupil and Laura's biological father, dealing with his age and ailment. He is one of Charles Xavier's caregivers, alongside Caliban. Mangold spoke of Logan's age influencing his regenerative capabilities, which he stated may no longer produce soft skin, "so we imagined he heals quickly, still, but it leaves a scar. The simple idea was that his body would start to get a little more ravaged with a kind of tattooing of past battles, lacerations that remain of previous conflicts." On the second page of the screenplay, Mangold spoke of Logan as "... he's older now and it's clear his abilities aren't what they once were. He's fading on the inside and his diminished healing factor keeps him in a constant state of chronic pain
Chronic pain is pain that persists or recurs for longer than 3 months.https://icd.who.int/browse/2025-01/mms/en#1581976053 It is also known as gradual burning pain, electrical pain, throbbing pain, and nauseating pain. This type of pain is in cont ...
—hence booze as a painkiller." In 2015, Jackman requested fan input for the direction Wolverine's story should go in the next film while seeming to confirm that the project would serve as his farewell to Logan. To prepare for his role, Jackman ate a minimum of six meals per day when working with trainer Mike Ryan. Ryan stated that an average workout session for Jackman lasts up to three hours, beginning at 4:00 a.m. Jackman stated, "It's going to be very different. Very different in tone and hopefully different to anything we've done." Regarding the more personal tone, Jackman noted, "That's always been really his dilemma, coming to terms with who he is". Jackman has also explained that comedian Jerry Seinfeld
Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. As a stand-up comedian, Seinfeld specializes in observational comedy. Seinfeld gained stardom playing a semi-fictionalized version ...
was indirectly responsible for his decision to stop playing Logan after 17 years, with Jackman stating, "I was having a chat with einfeldabout a year ago ... he was talking about why he finished ''Seinfeld
''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It ...
'' ... He said he'd always had this feeling and belief that you never know when either your energy or the audience's energy is going to dip over into people aying
Aying is a municipality in the district of Munich in Bavaria, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the s ...
'Oh, please go.'" Jackman accepted a pay reduction to ensure that the film would be produced to receive an R-rating. Additionally, Jackman portrays Logan's clone, X-24.
* Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...
as Charles Xavier / Professor X: A mutant who is the world's most powerful
telepath
Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...
, the founder and former leader of the now-defunct X-Men and formerly known as Professor X. Charles's telepathic abilities have become unstable due to age (over 90 years) and an unknown brain disease, and at times, he does not recognize Logan. During the events of ''Logan'', Xavier is cared for by Logan and Caliban. Regarding Xavier and the themes of aging and loneliness, Mangold said, "We've seen these characters in action, saving the universe. But what happens when you're in retirement and that career is over? ... The really interesting thing to me, or a place to dig that hadn't been dug, was the idea of mutants when they're no longer useful to the world, or even sure if they can do what they used to do. Their powers are diminished like all of ours are by age ... Our Charles is a very sweet character in this film. I think he's always been an incredibly sweet character. With the addition of his own physical fragility in this movie, he becomes an incredibly powerful paternal figure in the movie. Logan is more of a reluctant one, I think you can easily guess." Stewart remarked that "... this is probably the end of this franchise for me. But the thing about science fiction and fantasy is that you can never, ever say it's the end, it's over."
* Dafne Keen
Dafne Keen Fernández (born 4 January 2005) is a Spanish and British actress. Keen made her debut as a child actor on the series '' The Refugees'' (2015). Her breakthrough role was as Laura, in the ''X-Men'' superhero film '' Logan'' (2017) w ...
as Laura / X23: A mysterious young girl, who is "very much" like Logan as well as Logan's biological daughter. She is also subject "X-23". On Keen's portrayal of Laura, Mangold mentioned, "If anyone could steal a movie from
ackman Ackman is a surname. People with this surname include:
* Alyson Ackman (born 1993), Canadian swimmer
* Amy Vera Ackman, also known as Mother Giovanni (1886–1966), Australian hospital administrator
* Bill Ackman (born 1966), American hedge fund ma ...
it would be Dafne. She carries, all the time, a slight strangeness." In an interview with ''Digital Spy'', Mangold stated, "... een
Een ːnis a village in the Netherlands. It is part of the Noordenveld municipality in Drenthe.
History
Een is an ''esdorp'' which developed in the middle ages on the higher grounds. The communal pasture is triangular. The village developed dur ...
was 11 years old when we were shooting. She's a remarkable kid. Her parents are actors, and she's kind of a very modern kid. Very physically capable. Incredibly gifted as an actress. I mean, it was a huge risk for Fox to allow me to make a movie where the third point of the triangle was built upon someone so young." Mangold stated that the worldwide search for an actress to portray Laura was one in which he was seeking "someone who was bilingual because I wanted a Latina
Latina or Latinas most often refers to:
* Latinas, a demographic group in the United States
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America.
*Latin Americans
Latina and Latinas may also refer ...
kid—one who was between 10 and 12, and was a credible child." He later stated of Laura that: "She's an 11-year-old girl equipped with all the volatility, instability, mood swings, shadows and potential violence of our hero." Co-writer Scott Frank
A. Scott Frank (born March 10, 1960) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. Frank has received two Academy Awards, Academy Award nominations for Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay for '' ...
pushed for the character to speak as little as possible when he joined the project to avoid making her into a typical kid sidekick, explaining, "I read a few other drafts of the script that Jim worked on, and in all those drafts she was talking from the beginning and had an attitude. I thought that was a giant mistake." 11-year-old Nayah Murphy served as Dafne's stunt double. Millie Bobby Brown
Millie Bonnie Brown Bongiovi ( Brown; born 19 February 2004), known professionally as Millie Bobby Brown, is a British actress and producer. She gained recognition for playing Eleven (Stranger Things), Eleven in the Netflix science fiction ser ...
auditioned for the role before Keen was cast. ''Logan'' was Keen's film debut.
* Boyd Holbrook
Robert Boyd Holbrook (born September 1, 1981) is an American actor. He has starred in the Netflix series ''Narcos'' (2015–2016) as DEA agent Steve Murphy and '' The Sandman'' (2022–) as the Corinthian, as well as in the History miniseries ...
as Donald Pierce
Donald Pierce is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a cyborg and is commonly an enemy of the X-Men.
Donald Pierce appears in the 2017 film '' Logan'', portrayed by Boyd Holbr ...
: Transigen's relentless, calculating, and intense head of security and leader of the militant Reavers, who is sent to retrieve Laura, which brings him into conflict with Wolverine. Holbrook said of the character, "He's an innovative engineer and he's a big fan of Wolverine. He just wants to hang out with him ... There's a lot of surprising stuff in it." Mangold praised Holbrook's performance, saying that " eis just a fabulous actor. I wanted this film to feel intimate and real and truthfully acted, and I wanted very much to break away from the kind of bloated feeling I've gotten from a lot of comic-book movies." *
Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974) is an English comedian, writer, director, and actor. He was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003), and co-writer ...
as Caliban
Caliban ( ), the subhuman son of the sea witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play ''The Tempest''.
His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own w ...
: An
albino
Albinism is the congenital absence of melanin in an animal or plant resulting in white hair, feathers, scales and skin and reddish pink or blue eyes. Individuals with the condition are referred to as albinos.
Varied use and interpretation of ...
mutant who can sense and track other mutants, who is helping Logan take care of Xavier. On Merchant taking the role, Mangold mentioned, "I'm always interested to find the thing that looks most interesting on the actors. Stephen is a huge man. One of the things that is so wonderful filming with him for a character like this is that he's a good six inches taller than Logan, and huge over Patrick. The little kid in the movie would come up to basically his knee. So there's a wonderful sense of scale—but he has heart too." Mangold concluded by stating, "... So that was a wonderful energy to enter the movie, and someone who instead of turning things into their own energy kind of joined ours." A younger Caliban was previously portrayed by Tómas Lemarquis
Tómas Lemarquis (born 3 August 1977) is an Icelandic– French actor.
Early life
Lemarquis was born in Reykjavík, the son of an Icelandic mother and a French father, Gérard Lemarquis, who is a schoolteacher. His most distinguishing physical ...
in '' X-Men: Apocalypse''.
* Richard E. Grant
Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is an Eswatini-born English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack H ...
as Dr. Zander Rice: The surgical head of Transigen, whose father was killed by Logan during his escape from the
Weapon X
Weapon X is a fictional government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They were conducted by Department K, which turned willing and unwilling beings into living weapons to carry out c ...
Headquarters at Alkali Lake. On the character of Rice, Mangold stated, "He's the puppet master behind Pierce and the Reavers, and has a much larger role in the sense that he's actually the kind of brilliant mind that is trying to grow mutants."
Eriq La Salle
Erik Ki La Salle (born July 23, 1962), professionally known as Eriq La Salle, is an American actor, director, writer and producer. La Salle is known for his performance as Dr. Peter Benton in the NBC medical drama '' ER'' (1994–2002; 2008 ...
, Elise Neal
Elise Demetria Neal (born March 14, 1966) is an American actress known for her work in television and film. She rose to prominence in 1997 with roles in ''Rosewood'', '' Money Talks'', and ''Scream 2''. She later starred as Yvonne Hughley in th ...
, and Elizabeth Rodriguez
Elizabeth Rodriguez is an American actress. She began her career appearing in films ''Fresh'' (1994), ''Dead Presidents'' (1995), '' I Think I Do'' (1997) and '' Blow'' (2001). She played Detective Gina Calabrese in the 2006 film adaptation of ...
appear as Will Munson, Kathryn Munson, and Gabriela, respectively. Doris Morgado, David Kallaway, Han Soto, Jason Genao
Jason Genao (born 3 July 1997) is an American actor. He is best known for his appearance as the character Ruby Martinez on the Netflix show ''On My Block''.Contreras, Russell"Netflix's 'On My Block' hits race, poverty with teen humor", ''The San ...
, Krzysztof Soszynski
Krzysztof Soszyński (; born August 2, 1977) is a Polish‐Canadian actor and retired mixed martial artist. An 11-year competitor from 2003 until 2014, Soszynski fought in the UFC, Strikeforce, the Los Angeles Anacondas of the IFL. Also, he was ...
, and Alison Fernandez
Alison Fernandez (born July 20, 2005) is an American actress best known for her role in ABC's ''Once Upon a Time'' as Lucy Mills and in the 2017 film ''Logan'' as Delilah. She has had recurring roles in Netflix's ''Orange Is the New Black'' and ...
appear as Maria, Rhodes, Valet, Rictor
Rictor (Julio Esteban "Ric" Richter) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, primarily in the ''X-Men'' family of books. The character was created by writer Louise Simonson and artist Walt Simonson and first ...
, Mohawk, and Delilah, respectively. In the commentary to ''X-Men: Apocalypse'', director Bryan Singer
Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed, as well as multiple television series.
After graduating from the Univ ...
had stated that his film's post-credits scene
A post-credits scene (also known as a stinger, end tag, or credit cookie) is a short teaser clip that appears after the closing credits have rolled and sometimes after a production logo of a film, TV show, or video game has run. It is usually ...
would directly connect with the on-screen debut of ''X-Men'' antagonist Mister Sinister
Mister Sinister (Dr. Nathaniel Essex) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Marc Silvestri, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team ...
in ''Logan''. In January 2017, Mangold stated that the charactera genetic manipulator and surgeonwould not appear in this film. However, the DNA from several mutants, including Logan, in that film was used to create the clones that are seen in this film.
Production
Development
In November 2013,20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
initiated discussions over another solo film starring Wolverine, with James Mangold
James Allen Mangold (born December 16, 1963) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Noted for his versatility in tackling a range of genres, Mangold made his debut as a film director with ''Heavy (film), Heavy'' (1995), and gai ...
in negotiations to write the treatment for the film and Lauren Shuler Donner
Lauren Diane Shuler Donner (born June 23, 1949) is an American film producer, who specializes in mainstream youth and family-oriented entertainment. She owned The Donners' Company with her late husband, director Richard Donner. Her films have ...
returning to produce under The Donners' Company
The Donners' Company (formerly Donner/Shuler-Donner Productions) is the film production company of director Richard Donner and producer Lauren Shuler Donner, founded in 1986. It is notable for the ''Free Willy'' and ''X-Men'' franchises.
Hist ...
. At the time, Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...
neither confirmed nor denied his reprisal of Logan in a new film. Jackman clarified that his lapsing contract with Fox, which reportedly would need to be renegotiated after '' X-Men: Days of Future Past'' (2014), did not mean he was leaving the franchise, as he had been working movie-by-movie since '' X2'' (2003). He also stated, "I do want to do it with Jim and with roducerLauren Shuler-Donner because we had such a great experience. I'm really proud of '' The Wolverine'' (2013)". Later in the month, Mangold announced that the pre-production
Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, video game, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the co ...
aspect of the film had not yet begun, nor the writing process, though he furthered this by stating, "... I would say I'm not there yet. But I have taken finger to key. Let's say that. There's been typing. And ideas. And talking amongst all the principles".
Shortly after the release of ''The Wolverine'', Mangold spoke of a potential sequel with the aim of not converting it into a "Will the world survive?" film, while also stressing his need "... not to make the same picture again". In December 2013, Jackman spoke of nearing the end of his tenure as the character, while stating that the film was in the very early stages of development. Jackman also revealed that Mangold and he had begun speaking of potential ideas, adding, "... Jim Mangold and I were literally on the phone last night talking about ideas but there is no script and no writer yet so it's a way off". Mangold would later reveal that Jackman was very involved in developing the story, saying, "Hugh and I have been friends for almost twenty years now, and he was there every step of the way. For Hugh and I, the first goal was to construct something more intimate. Hugh often brought up '' The Wrestler'' (2008) and ''Unforgiven
''Unforgiven'' is a 1992 American revisionist Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood from a screenplay by David Webb Peoples. It stars Eastwood as William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after ...
'' (1992) as examples. I used those references as well as others. I pitched to both Hugh and the studio that I had an idea for an extremely bloody, existential ''Little Miss Sunshine
''Little Miss Sunshine'' is a 2006 American tragicomedy road movie, road film directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (in their directorial debut) from a screenplay written by Michael Arndt. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of G ...
'' (2006)".
By March 2014, a decision was made to begin shooting after Bryan Singer
Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed, as well as multiple television series.
After graduating from the Univ ...
's '' X-Men: Apocalypse'' (2016), with the tentative plan to shoot the films back-to-back
Back to Back or back-to-back may refer to:
Film and theatre
*Back to Back (film), ''Back to Back'' (film), a 1996 American action film
*Back-to-back film production, the practice of making two films as a unified production
*Back to Back Theatre, ...
, with producer Hutch Parker stating, "... the goal will be ''X-Men: Apocalypse'' for 2016, which means at the latest ilming beginsin summer 2015, and then the same thing with ''Wolverine'', either before or after, but based on the script". Also in March, 20th Century Fox set a release date of March 3, 2017, Mangold boarded the project as director, Jackman signed on to reprise his role, and David James Kelly was hired to pen the screenplay. In April 2014, Jackman spoke about his ambitious feelings for the character of Logan while mentioning that they can go further than what they achieved in ''The Wolverine''. Jackman also expressed his feelings of finality with portraying the character of Logan, while in terms of storyline, he explained that nothing had been decided as of yet. Jackman concluded by highlighting that the success of the script development would determine whether Jackman would return at all: "I haven't signed on. I'm genuinely at that point where unless it's better than the last one I'm not going to do it. I think it has to be better. I can still see where we can improve on the last one. I love the intimacy of that story, I liked the small stuff, I liked that it was a little unexpected".
In February 2015, Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...
spoke of discussions about the third Wolverine film, centering around a team-up between Jackman's Wolverine and himself as Charles Xavier, with Stewart stating to Marc Mohan that "... we have been talking about a Wolverine movie, which would team Hugh Jackman and myself together ... That would be a very different sort of ''X-Men'' from the four movies that I've already done". By April 2015, Michael Green had taken over screenwriting duties, with Mangold still actively overseeing the script development process. In September 2015, Jackman spoke of the writers being halfway through the script, and that the story would delve into the relationship between Wolverine and Professor X, to which he added, "I think it's a really important relationship but I want to see signs of that quasi-father/son sort of relationship that has not been seen before, and sides of particularly Professor X that have not been seen before". Jackman spoke of Mangold's plan to start filming the next year, though he expressed uncertainty as to filming locations. Also in September, Mark Millar
Mark Millar (; born 24 December 1969) is a Scottish comic book writer who first came to prominence with a run on the superhero series ''The Authority (comics), The Authority'', published by DC Comics' Wildstorm imprint. Millar has written ext ...
, creative consultant for Fox, confirmed that Mangold's film would be a loose adaptation of the "Old Man Logan
Old Man Logan is an alternative version of the superhero Wolverine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. This character is an aged version of Wolverine set in an alternate future universe in which the supervillains overth ...
" story he had written in 2008, something that was hinted at earlier by Jackman. In October 2016, the title of the film was announced as ''Logan''.
In January 2016, Jackman confirmed that Mangold had a full screenplay, albeit not complete. The following month, Liev Schreiber
Isaac Liev Schreiber ( ; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor. He has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award as well as nominations for nine Primetime Emmy Awards and five Golden Globe Awards.
Schreiber's early film roles incl ...
expressed interest in returning to portray Victor Creed / Sabretooth, with Jackman himself mentioning Mangold's vision to Schreiber. After the film's release, it was revealed by Jackman that originally the script had the character play a role in the film, but that Sabretooth was excluded from the final screenplay. By April 2016, Mangold had chosen Boyd Holbrook
Robert Boyd Holbrook (born September 1, 1981) is an American actor. He has starred in the Netflix series ''Narcos'' (2015–2016) as DEA agent Steve Murphy and '' The Sandman'' (2022–) as the Corinthian, as well as in the History miniseries ...
to portray the main antagonist of the movie, the chief of security for a global corporation that is pursuing Wolverine. Also by April, Richard E. Grant
Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is an Eswatini-born English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack H ...
was cast as a villainous mad scientist
The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as "mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insanity, insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabas ...
, and Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974) is an English comedian, writer, director, and actor. He was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003), and co-writer ...
had also been cast. In May, Eriq Lasalle
Erik Ki La Salle (born July 23, 1962), professionally known as Eriq La Salle, is an American actor, director, writer and producer. La Salle is known for his performance as Dr. Peter Benton in the NBC medical drama '' ER'' (1994–2002; 2008� ...
and Elise Neal
Elise Demetria Neal (born March 14, 1966) is an American actress known for her work in television and film. She rose to prominence in 1997 with roles in ''Rosewood'', '' Money Talks'', and ''Scream 2''. She later starred as Yvonne Hughley in th ...
were cast supporting roles, and Elizabeth Rodriguez
Elizabeth Rodriguez is an American actress. She began her career appearing in films ''Fresh'' (1994), ''Dead Presidents'' (1995), '' I Think I Do'' (1997) and '' Blow'' (2001). She played Detective Gina Calabrese in the 2006 film adaptation of ...
entered negotiations for a small but key role. Mangold felt Dafne Keen was a perfect choice for X-23 after seeing her audition tape, but Fox wanted to continue the casting process, so Mangold brought Stewart to see Keen's tape and he praised her and he had Jackman to read with her. Also in May, producer Simon Kinberg
Simon David Kinberg (born August 2, 1973) is an American filmmaker. He wrote and produced a number of films in the X-Men (film series), ''X-Men'' film franchise for 20th Century Studios, 20th Century Fox, and had produced a number of other projec ...
revealed that filming had already begun, and confirmed that the movie would be R-rated; regarding the setting and tonality, he stated, "It takes place in the future, and as you and others have reported, it is an R-rated movie. It's violent, it's kind of like a western in its tone. It's just a very cool, different film". Jackman wanted the film's ending be like ''Unforgiven'', but Mangold was keen to do the ending where Logan dies.
The film included some vintage X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...
comic books, used both to advance the plot and as a metafiction
Metafiction is a form of fiction that emphasizes its own narrative structure in a way that inherently reminds the audience that they are reading or viewing a fictional work. Metafiction is self-conscious about language, literary form, and story ...
al reference. The director clarified that Marvel Comics allowed this on the condition that they could use actual characters and designs, but not use any real comic book issues. As a result, the comic book covers and pages seen in the film were made specifically for it, by writer Joe Quesada
Joseph Quesada (; born January 12, 1962'' Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107) is an American comic book artist, writer, editor, and television producer. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, ...
and artist Dan Panosian
Dan Panosian (born 1969) is an American comic book artist, with extensive credits as both a penciller and an inker and has additional credits as an advertising and storyboard artist.
Early life
Dan Panosian was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to artisti ...
. Mangold commented that "The reality was that, like in ''Unforgiven'', when lintEastwood runs into Richard Harris, who's writing these fictional accounts of the great Western heroes, or Pat Garrett in ''Billy the Kid'', where you've got these aging heroes who kind of are twilight versions of their own legends — I think that idea, of being a kind of celebrity, or like a sports star long past your heyday, was really interesting for me to investigate with this kind of world". Panosian made 10 fake comic book covers, and interior arts were unused. He pointed that the arts had to resemble the style used in the Bronze Age of Comic Books
The Bronze Age of Comic Books is an informal name for a period in the history of American superhero comic books, usually said to run from 1970 to 1985. It follows the Silver Age of Comic Books and is followed by the Modern Age of Comic Books.
...
, and pointed out that they also served to contrast their campy style with the darker tone of the live-action film itself. He said that "The colors and art itself juxtaposed against the raw and savage world in the film capture just how much innocence has been lost over time".
Filming
On March 5, 2015, James Mangold anticipated that filming would begin "early next year". Prior to filming, the film was given the false title
A false, coined, fake, bogus or pseudo-title, also called a ''Time''-style adjective and an anarthrous nominal premodifier, is a kind of preposed appositive phrase before a noun predominantly found in journalistic writing. It formally resembles ...
of ''Juarez'' to lower the visibility of production, but the local media eventually uncovered the ruse. On March 1, 2016, ''The Times-Picayune
''The Times-Picayune , The New Orleans Advocate'' (commonly called ''The Times-Picayune'' or the ''T-P'') is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana. Ancestral publications of other names date back to January 25, 1837. The cu ...
'' had confirmed that Mangold's film was preparing to shoot in New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
, Louisiana
Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
, with a starting schedule of May. Producers Kinberg, Shuler Donner and Parker chose to film in Louisiana because of its popularity in filmmaking locations, as well as its filming incentive, which includes a 40% tax credit for movie productions, though it requires a minimum expenditure of US$300,000. Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
was confirmed to have begun in New Orleans, with an original shooting schedule occurring from April 25 to August 13, 2016, albeit shooting was altered to start on May 2, 2016.
On May 23, 2016, filming took place at the NASA Michoud Plant in New Orleans East
New Orleans East (also referred to as Eastern New Orleans, N.O. East and The East) is the eastern section of New Orleans, Louisiana, a large section of the 9th Ward of New Orleans, mostly not developed until the later 20th century. This collec ...
, with Jackman being spotted, not far from Slidell, shooting a fight scene outdoors on the property. On May 26, 2016, the intersection of LA 16 at US 51
U.S. Route 51 or U.S. Highway 51 (US 51) is a major south–north United States highway that extends from the western suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana, to within of the Wisconsin–Michigan state line. As most of the United States Numbered Hi ...
was closed for a time due to filming, with local store fronts donning faux signage to transform Amite City, and east of Amite near Bell Road. It was revealed that scenes were filmed prior in Husser on May 25, 2016, with a scheduled daytime shoot to occur at the Greenlawn Cemetery in Hammond
Hammond may refer to:
People
* Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist
* Hammond (surname)
* Justice Hammond (disambiguation)
Places Antarctica
* Hammond Glacier, Antarctica
Australia
*Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in Sout ...
on May 27, 2016. Filming took place from June 9, 2016, until June 10, 2016, in New Orleans and Metairie, respectively.
On June 1, 2016, it was confirmed that 20th Century Fox had applied to film exterior scenes for ''Juarez'' on Louisiana Highway 15
Louisiana Highway 15 (LA 15) is a state highway located in central and northern Louisiana. It runs in a north–south direction from the junction of LA 1 and LA 970 in Lettsworth to the concurrent U.S. Highways 63 and 167 ...
between Ferriday and Clayton from June 12, 2016, up until June 16, 2016, at the Ferriday Plaza Shopping Center, while a portion of U.S. Route 425
U.S. Route 425 (US 425) is a north–south United States highway that travels in the U.S. states of Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas. It was first commissioned in 1989.
The route's northern terminus is in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, at ...
between Ferriday and Clayton would be closed for a five-day period in connection with Fox's production. On June 1, 2016, ''The Concordia Sentinel'' revealed that Sicily Island High School and a house in Sicily Island would be used in the production, while a crash scene would be shot on U.S. Route 425 just outside of Ferriday. Producers Kinberg, Shuler Donner and Parker chose to film in Ferriday, Louisiana
Ferriday is a town in Concordia Parish, Louisiana, Concordia Parish, which borders the Mississippi River and is located on the central eastern border of Louisiana, United States. With a population of 3,511 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 ...
, because of Concordia Parish's beautiful countryside and green cornfields. On June 16, 2016, ''Juarez'' was originally scheduled to move on toward Sicily Island, however, additional periods of shooting were added. Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez ( ) is the only city in and the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 14,520 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Mississippi River across from Vidalia, Louisiana, Natchez was ...
, had been chosen by producers of ''Juarez'' as the next filming location, for an upcoming scene which required the casting truck drivers, that would be filmed between June 14 up until June 28, 2016.
On July 12, 2016, the ''Albuquerque Journal
The ''Albuquerque Journal'' is the largest newspaper in the U.S. state of New Mexico.
History
The ''Golden Gate'' newspaper was founded in June 1880. In the fall of 1880, the owner of the ''Golden Gate'' died and Journal Publishing Company was ...
'' confirmed that ''Juarez'' would move on to its third major filming location—New Mexico
New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, which ran through August in Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...
, Rio Rancho
Rio Rancho () is the largest and most populous city in Sandoval County, part of the expansive Albuquerque metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of New Mexico. A small portion of the city extends into northern Bernalillo County.
It is the third ...
, Abiquiú, Tierra Amarilla and Chama. The New Mexico Film Office revealed that the production employed about 130 New Mexican crew members and two New Mexican cast members, as well as 600 extras throughout the production, the film office stated. On July 17, 2016, it was reported that the production of ''Juarez'' was in the process of casting to work on a scene filmed on July 22, 2016, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. On July 25, 2016, it was reported that filming had begun in the Northern Meadows neighborhood of Rio Rancho, while a few miles further down King Boulevard there was an elaborate set built with a toppled water tower, that would be used for exterior shots until June 27, 2016. On August 11, 2016, it was reported that the production of ''Juarez'' were in the process of seeking worn out cars to work on an upcoming scene filmed on August 12, 2016, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Principal photography was confirmed to have ended in New Mexico on August 13, 2016, with an altered shooting schedule occurring from May 2 to August 13, 2016. Post-production
Post-production, also known simply as post, is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording indivi ...
began subsequent to filming closure on August 23, 2016.
Post-production
Film editor
Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...
Michael McCusker
Michael "Mike" McCusker (born June 23, 1966) is an American film editor. He has been nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Film Editing, for the Johnny Cash biopic ''Walk the Line'' (2005) and ''Ford v Ferrari'' (2019), winning the latte ...
was finishing work on Mangold's ''Logan'', during the period of October 7, 2016, wherein he spoke of going through the dailies and breaking them down, and figuring out the structure of one scene which he described as a "complicated, multi-component scene". McCusker spoke of the task being rather time-consuming, on the front end, albeit stating, "I am looking at the back end experience with angoldas the more important experience. I don't want to be searching for stuff for him, I want to be working towards getting the cut right". McCusker concluded by stating that another editor on ''Logan'' has use for post-production. Chas Jarrett was the overall visual effects supervisor and visual effects company Image Engine worked on most of the visual effects on ''Logan''.
Music
In July 2016,Cliff Martinez
Cliff Robert Martinez (born February 5, 1954) is an American musician and composer. Early in his career, Martinez was known as a drummer notably with the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Captain Beefheart, Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band. Since th ...
was announced as the composer of ''Logan'' musical score. In December 2016, Mangold announced that Marco Beltrami
Marco Beltrami (born October 7, 1966) is an American composer of film and television scores. He has worked in a number of genres, including horror ('' Scream'', ''Mimic, The Faculty, Resident Evil, The Woman in Black, Carrie, A Quiet Place'' ...
, who had previously collaborated with Mangold on '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (2007) and '' The Wolverine'' (2013), would take over from Martinez and score ''Logan'' instead.
Beltrami's musical score received critical acclaim, praising the composition and the minimalistic approach. Jonathan Broxton, in his critical review, wrote "there will be a significant disconnect between it and those who grew up listening to Michael Kamen
Michael Arnold Kamen (April 15, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American composer (especially of film scores), orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, songwriter, record producer and musician.
Early life
Michael Arnold Kamen was born in ...
, John Ottman
John Ottman (born July 6, 1964) is an American film composer, director, and editor. He is best known for collaborating with director Bryan Singer, composing and/or editing many of his films, including '' Public Access'' (1993), ''The Usual Suspec ...
, and John Powell's ''X-Men'' scores, because Beltrami's Logan is just ''so'' different from anything we have heard in a super-hero movie before. On the one hand, this is commendable; bucking expectations and taking an entirely new approach to a well-defined musical genre is not an easy thing to do, but that's exactly what Beltrami has done here. On the other hand, listeners will still need to be comfortable with music that shifts between being dissonant, ambient, and jazzy, and which has more in common with the work of Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone ( , ; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, Orchestration, orchestrator, conductor, trumpeter, and pianist who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 film score, scores for cinema and televisi ...
, Jerry Fielding
Jerry Fielding (born Joshua Itzhak Feldman; June 17, 1922 – February 17, 1980)Redman, Nick"Fielding, Jerry" Jackson, Kenneth T.; Markoe, Karen E.; Markoe, Arnold (1995). ''Dictionary of American Biography; Supplement 10: 1976–1980''. New Yor ...
, Elliot Goldenthal
Elliot Goldenthal (born May 2, 1954) is an American composer of contemporary classical music and film and theatrical scores. A student of Aaron Copland and John Corigliano, he is best known for his distinctive style and ability to blend variou ...
, and Bernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in film scoring. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely regarde ...
, than anyone who has scored a super-hero movie before. If you're cool with that, then Logan will find a way to at least entertain you and allow you to experience its unusual tonal palette. If not, then you may find yourself recoiling in horror like Caliban from the sun, or experiencing a psychic attack of your own."
Influences
The film takes visual, tonal and thematic inspiration from classic western and noir cinema, with director James Mangold having stated that ''Logan''s influences included "visual reference points" of cinema, citing ''Shane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (name), a masculine given name and a surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with this name
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born ...
'' (1953), ''The Cowboys
''The Cowboys'' is a 1972 American Western film starring John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, and Bruce Dern, and featuring Colleen Dewhurst and Slim Pickens. It was the feature film debut of Robert Carradine. Based on the 1971 novel of the sam ...
'' (1972), '' Paper Moon'' (1973), '' The Gauntlet'' (1977), ''Unforgiven
''Unforgiven'' is a 1992 American revisionist Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood from a screenplay by David Webb Peoples. It stars Eastwood as William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after ...
'' (1992), ''Little Miss Sunshine
''Little Miss Sunshine'' is a 2006 American tragicomedy road movie, road film directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (in their directorial debut) from a screenplay written by Michael Arndt. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of G ...
'' (2006), and '' The Wrestler'' (2008). Mangold was also inspired by ''The Dark Knight'' trilogy, saying "It seemed to me that the only films of this ilk that did interest me, that I did admire, or to use Chris Nolan's movies as an example, the ones that have really moved me beyond just the spectacle. There was a very clear decision to apply a film genre to the material, if that makes any sense."" The film also takes tropes and themes of the cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting said to focus on a combination of "low-life and high tech". It features futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyberwa ...
, with focus put on automation affecting the world of a near future.
Mangold spoke of visual framing, while noting that he does not necessarily think about the "comic-book" related sort, instead highlighting the variety of stylistic influences that went into ''Logan''. These influences include film noir
Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...
framings and classic Hollywood filmmaking styles, as well as the Germanic expressionist filmmaking style of the early twentieth century, which Mangold stated has a commonality with comic-book art. Mangold highlighted "Strong foregrounds, playing things in depth: you have to make an image say more within that one image."
Using the image of Logan at a funeral as an example of his stylistic logic, Mangold concluded by mentioning the aspects within modern filmmaking, primarily everything in close-up format. For ''Logan'', his aim was to set frames that are descriptive, and evocative of comic-book panels and classical filmmaking.
Release
Theatrical
''Logan'' premiered at the67th Berlin International Film Festival
The 67th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 18 February 2017 with Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven as president of the jury.
'' Django'', directed by Etienne Comar, opened the festival. The Golden Bear was awarded to the ...
on February 17, 2017, in Berlin, Germany
Berlin ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the highest population within its city limits of any city in the European Union. The city is also one of the states of ...
, where it was selected to be screened out of competition alongside '' The Bar'', '' Final Portrait'', '' The Midwife'', ''T2 Trainspotting
''T2 Trainspotting'' is a 2017 British black comedy-drama film directed by Danny Boyle and written by John Hodge. Set in and around Edinburgh, Scotland, it is based on characters created by Irvine Welsh in his 1993 novel '' Trainspotting'' and ...
'', and ''Viceroy's House
The Rashtrapati Bhavan (, ISO: ''Rāṣṭrapati Bhavana''; ; formerly Viceroy's House (1931–1947) and Government House (1947–1950)) is the official residence of the President of the Republic of India at the western end of Rajpath, Rai ...
'', before screening in the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, where it was given a wide release
In the motion picture industry, a wide release (short for nationwide release) is a film playing at the same time at cinemas in most markets across a country. This is in contrast to the formerly common practice of a roadshow theatrical release in ...
on March 3, 2017. In October 2015, Fox confirmed that ''Logan'' would be released in the IMAX
IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...
format. In the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, the film was preceded by a short film, '' Deadpool: No Good Deed''. In it, Deadpool
Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...
notices a man getting robbed, and springs into action—but first has to change into his costume in a phone booth. As he is finishing up, the man is shot; the short film ends with Deadpool commenting on the strangeness of the phone booth's presence, and eating the man's ice cream. The teaser met with positive reviews. Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian and American actor, producer and businessman. Known for starring in comedic and superhero films, he was the List of highest-paid film actors, world's second-highest-paid actor in 202 ...
posted an extended version of the teaser via his YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel the day after the film's release.
''One Last Time'' promotion and future
Prior to the confirmation that the then-untitled ''Logan'' would be his final appearance in the ''X-Men'' film franchise, Jackman initially denied such rumors. Jackman stated that he was inspired byMichael Keaton
Michael John Douglas (born September 5, 1951), known professionally as Michael Keaton, is an American actor. He has received numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for an Aca ...
's performance in '' Birdman'', and wished to portray the character of Wolverine until his death. In July 2015, Jackman posted an image of Logan giving the middle finger
The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the human hand, typically located between the index finger and the ring finger. It is typically the longest digit. In anatomy, it is al ...
with a claw to his Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
. The image, coupled with the hashtag
A hashtag is a metadata tag operator that is prefaced by the hash symbol, ''#''. On social media, hashtags are used on microblogging and photo-sharing services–especially Twitter and Tumblr–as a form of user-generated tagging that enable ...
"#OneLastTime", signified that the film would be his last appearance as Logan and officially announced his decision to stop playing the character he had been portraying for the past 17 years. Eventually it earned Jackman the Guinness World Record
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...
of the 'longest career as a live-action Marvel superhero'.
During an appearance on '' The Dr. Oz Show'' in May 2015, Jackman clarified the confusion over the conflicting sentiments by stating bluntly that the film would be his final portrayal of the character. In an interview with Willem Dafoe
William James "Willem" Dafoe ( ; born July 22, 1955) is an American actor. Known for his prolific career portraying diverse roles in both mainstream and arthouse films, he is the recipient of various accolades including a Volpi Cup Award for ...
on '' Variety Studio: Actors on Actors'' Jackman revealed that Jerry Seinfeld
Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. As a stand-up comedian, Seinfeld specializes in observational comedy. Seinfeld gained stardom playing a semi-fictionalized version ...
helped convince him to quit the role during a dinner after Jackman asked him why he had decided to end the show ''Seinfeld
''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It ...
''. Seinfeld replied "I've always believed, you should never spend everything creatively because it's almost herculean to start up again. You should always have something in the tank," with Jackman summarising his point with "Leave the party before it gets too late kind of theory."
In December 2016, Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian and American actor, producer and businessman. Known for starring in comedic and superhero films, he was the List of highest-paid film actors, world's second-highest-paid actor in 202 ...
revealed that he had been trying to convince Jackman to return for a crossover Deadpool film, urging fans to "convince Hugh" and campaign online. In January 2017, Reynolds and Jackman spoke about the proposed project; Jackman stated, "I'm hesitating, because I could totally see how that's the perfect fit. But the timing may be wrong." Jackman later stated that he would not reprise the role for a team-up film, specifying that he "knew two-and-a-half years ago that 'Logan''was the last one".
Jackman expressed interest in continuing to play Wolverine had the character been brought into the Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...
, saying that the prospect "certainly would have made impause" and citing a desire to see the character interact with the Hulk
The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk ...
and Iron Man
Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...
. Amid rumors of Disney's prospective acquisition of 20th Century Fox's film division, it was revealed such a deal would indeed allow the X-Men related characters to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. During press for ''The Greatest Showman
''The Greatest Showman'' is a 2017 American musical period drama film directed by Michael Gracey from a screenplay by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon, based on an original story by Bicks. The film stars Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, ...
'' in December 2017, Jackman denied that he would reprise the role if the acquisition occurred. He stated that while he noted the irony and felt some initial disappointment upon learning the news, he planned on standing by his decision and wanted to see another actor portray the character in future films.
In spite of his adamancy, Reynolds confirmed that Jackman would reprise his role as Logan in ''Deadpool & Wolverine
''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...
'' (2024) on September 27, 2022. Slated for release on July 26, 2024, the film will see the characters integrated into the MCU. The following month, Jackman elaborated that he wanted to return to the role after watching ''Deadpool'', but since ''Logan'' was already being promoted as his final time portraying the character, he felt he had to honor that sentiment and "straight-up lied" to journalists about his plans. He contacted Reynolds about reprising the role in August 2022, shortly before Reynolds met with Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...
president Kevin Feige
Kevin Feige ( ; born June 2, 1973) is an American film and television producer. He has been the president of Marvel Studios and the primary producer of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) franchise since 2007. The films he has produced have a co ...
to discuss a third ''Deadpool'' film. Shortly after the announcement, Reynolds and Jackman clarified that the film is set "before" ''Logan'' and would not retroactively contradict Wolverine's death.
As for the other principals and their prospective futures; although Patrick Stewart had stated that ''Logan'' would be the final time he played the role of Professor X, he later said that he would be willing to return to the role in ''Deadpool 2
''Deadpool 2'' is a 2018 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Deadpool. It is the sequel to ''Deadpool (film), Deadpool'' (2016) and the eleventh installment in the X-Men (film series), ''X-Men'' film series. The film wa ...
'' or ''Legion
Legion may refer to:
Military
* Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army
* Aviazione Legionaria, Italian air force during the Spanish Civil War
* A legion is the regional unit of the Italian carabinieri
* Spanish Legion, ...
''. Though ''Legion'' producers considered casting Stewart, they ultimately chose to utilize a younger version of the character portrayed by actor Harry Lloyd
Harry Charles Salusbury Lloyd (born 17 November 1983) is an English actor. His performance in the Channel 4 miniseries '' The Fear'' (2012) earned him a British Academy Television Award nomination. He gained prominence through his roles as W ...
. Nonetheless, Stewart would go on to portray the character again in the MCU film ''Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
''Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness'' is a 2022 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Doctor Strange. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the sequel ...
'', where he played a variant of Charles Xavier who was the leader of the Illuminati before being killed by Wanda Maximoff.
Marketing
In April 2016, Fox decided not to showcase its upcoming movie releases, including ''Logan'', at Hall H atSan Diego Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
, as the studio felt it could not prevent the piracy of custom trailers and exclusive footage routinely screened for fans in attendance.
On October 20, 2016, 20th Century Fox released a 90-second teaser trailer
A teaser trailer, also shortened to teaser, is a short trailer (promotion), trailer and a form of teaser campaign advertising that focuses on film and television programming. It is a videography pre-release film or television show advertisement. Sh ...
to promote ''Logan'', following a six-second sneak peek the prior day. Later that day, 20th Century Fox released an international red band version of the trailer, featuring slightly more graphic violence than the original. ''Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' chose the trailer as the best trailer of the year. ''The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
''s Aaron Couch praised the trailer, and stated, "If ''Logan'' delivers on the promise of this trailer, it will be a true rarity in modern superhero movie making." James Dyer of ''Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' heralded the trailer and its director, James Mangold, by stating: "We've had a veritable feast of great trailers ... from ''John Wick
''John Wick'' is an American media franchise created by Derek Kolstad. It centers on a neo-noir action thriller film series featuring titular character portrayed by Keanu Reeves. Wick is a legendary hitman who is reluctantly drawn back int ...
'' to ''Rogue One
''Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'' is a 2016 American epic space opera film directed by Gareth Edwards and written by Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy. Produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the first '' ...
'', ''Assassin's Creed
''Assassin's Creed'' is a historical fiction, historical action-adventure video game series and media franchise published by Ubisoft and developed mainly by its studio Ubisoft Montreal using the game engine Anvil (game engine), Anvil and its m ...
'' and ''A Cure for Wellness
''A Cure for Wellness'' is a 2016 psychological horror film directed by Gore Verbinski and written by Justin Haythe. Haythe and Verbinski were inspired by Thomas Mann's 1924 novel ''The Magic Mountain'' while coming up with the idea for the fil ...
''. But none ..., no matter how impressive, have been quite so artfully constructed as this glorious first look at angolds ''Logan''." Forrest Wickman of ''Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
'' called the trailer "surprisingly mournful".
Home media
''Logan'' was released onBlu-ray
Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
, DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
, and 4K on May 23, 2017, and was released on Digital HD on May 16, 2017. The film became available to stream on Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
on July 22, 2022, alongside ''Deadpool
Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...
'' and ''Deadpool 2
''Deadpool 2'' is a 2018 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Deadpool. It is the sequel to ''Deadpool (film), Deadpool'' (2016) and the eleventh installment in the X-Men (film series), ''X-Men'' film series. The film wa ...
''.
''Logan Noir''
On April 29, 2017, James Mangold announced viaTwitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
that a black-and-white version of the film entitled ''Logan Noir'' would have a limited theatrical run in U.S. theaters, an event set to begin on May 16, 2017. Mangold stated that ''Logan'' was shot as a color film with the awareness that it would play well as a black and white film. The film was re-graded and timed shot by shot for the Noir edition. This version of the film is included on the Digital HD release and also included in the DVD and Blu-ray Combo Pack.
Reception
Box office
''Logan'' grossed $226.3 million in the United States and Canada and $392.7 million in other countries for a worldwide gross of $619.2 million, against a production budget of $97 million. Worldwide, the film had a global debut of $247.4 million from 82 markets, as well as the second-biggest R-rated IMAX debut, with $20.6 million from 1,068 screens. The film grossed $440.9 million in its first 13 days of release, surpassing the entire theatrical gross of ''The Wolverine'' ($414.8 million).
United States and Canada
Predictions for its opening in the US and Canada were revised upwards from $55 million to $80 million or even higher. Fox, however, predicted an opening in the mid-$60 million range. Some critics said the film's R rating—the second such for a ''X-Men'' film—might hinder the film's mass appeal. Two days before the film's release, ticket selling siteFandango
Fandango is a lively partner dance originating in Portugal and Spain, usually in triple metre, triple meter, traditionally accompanied by guitars, castanets, tambourine or hand-clapping. Fandango can both be sung and danced. Sung fandango is u ...
reported that the film was outpacing all previous ''X-Men'' movies (except ''Deadpool
Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...
'') at the same point in their sales cycle.
''Logan'' was released in 4,071 theaters, the widest release for an R-rated film, breaking ''American Sniper
''American Sniper'' is a 2014 American Biographical film, biographical War film, war drama film directed and co-produced by Clint Eastwood and written and executive-produced by Jason Hall (screenwriter), Jason Hall, based on the memoir American ...
''s previous record of 3,888 theaters. Five hundred and eighty theatres were premium large-format screens, including 381 IMAX theaters, setting the IMAX record for an R-rated film.
''Logan'' earned $9.5 million from Thursday night previews, which began at 7 p.m. This marked the second-biggest previews in the ''X-Men'' franchise, behind ''Deadpool''s $12.7 million. On its opening day, the film scored the biggest R-rated March opening with $33.1 million, breaking ''300
__NOTOC__
Year 300 ( CCC) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 1053 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 300 ...
''s previous record, as well as the third-biggest R-rated opening day, after ''Deadpool'' ($47.3 million) and ''The Matrix Reloaded
''The Matrix Reloaded'' is a 2003 American science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the sequel to ''The Matrix'' (1999) and the second installment in the ''Matrix'' film series. The film stars Keanu Reeves, L ...
'' ($37.5 million). Earning a total of $88.4 million during its opening weekend, the film scored the biggest ''Wolverine'' movie opening, the biggest R-rated March opening, the fourth-biggest March opening weekend behind '' Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'' ($166 million), ''The Hunger Games
''The Hunger Games'' are a series of Young adult fiction, young adult Dystopian fiction, dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The series consists of a trilogy that follows teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and two ...
'' ($152.5 million) and ''Alice in Wonderland
''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
'' ($116.1 million), the fifth-largest ''X-Men'' opening, and the fourth-biggest R-rated opening weekend overall (ninth in terms of inflation adjusted) behind ''Deadpool'' ($132.4 million), ''The Matrix Reloaded'' ($91.7 million) and ''American Sniper'' ($89.2 million). This made it the highest opening weekend for a 2017 film at the time of its release, surpassing ''The Lego Batman Movie
''The Lego Batman Movie'' is a 2017 animated superhero comedy film, based on characters created by DC Comics and the Lego Batman toy line. It was directed by Chris McKay (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay that is based on a ...
'' ($53 million). It was also the biggest R-rated opening weekend that did not take place on a holiday. Additionally, ''Logan'' achieved the fifth-highest opening weekend for any 20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
film, trailing only behind ''Deadpool'' ($132.4 million), '' Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith'' ($108.4 million), '' X-Men: The Last Stand'' ($102.7 million) and '' X-Men: Days of Future Past'' ($90.8 million). About 8.2% of the total ticket sales were in Canada, with premium large formats comprising $12.3 million (15%) from 558 screens, and IMAX comprising $10 million (12%) of the film's total opening weekend.
The opening-weekend audience was 63% males and 83% people between 18 and 44 years old. In an opening-weekend poll conducted by Fandango, 71% of responders said that more superhero films should be rated R, while 86% were interested in seeing a more violent, adult ''X-Men'' film that weekend. Furthermore, 96% said they were excited to see Hugh Jackman, 94% were intrigued to see Patrick Stewart reprise his role as Professor X, and 76% were interested in watching newcomer Dafne Keen.
In its second weekend, the film dropped 56.9%, grossing $38.1 million and finishing second at the box office behind newcomer '' Kong: Skull Island'' ($61 million). In its third weekend, it made $17.8 million, finishing in third behind ''Beauty and the Beast
"Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales'').
Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...
'' ($174.8 million) and ''Kong: Skull Island'' ($27.8 million). In its fourth weekend, it made $10.1 million, dropping 43.1% from the previous week and finishing 5th at the box office.
Other countries
''Logan'' was projected to open as high as $105 million. However, US forecasters believed that it could post an even higher opening if it were to overperform in major markets—most notably China. It opened day-and-date in almost every major market except Japan, where '' Doraemon the Movie 2017'' was released. Fox ultimately decided to postpone the film's release there in order to avoid competition. Through Sunday, the film exceeded expectations and posted a five-day opening worth $159 million from 81 markets. This is Fox International's third-biggest launch of all time, behind ''X-Men: Days of Future Past'' ($172 million) and ''Avatar
Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes u ...
'' ($164 million). It debuted at No. 1 in 80 markets, surpassing ''Fifty Shades of Grey
''Fifty Shades of Grey'' is a 2011 erotic romance novel by British author E. L. James. It became the first instalment in the ''Fifty Shades'' novel series that follows the deepening relationship between a college graduate, Anastasia Steele, ...
'' ($156 million) to have the highest international opening weekend for an R-rated film. It broke the record for the biggest R-rated IMAX release ever and the biggest 2D IMAX opening, with $10.6 million on 687 screens.
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
is the movie's best-grossing market outside America, contributing $106 million in box office. The film was the first to feature an age-restriction warning in its marketing material, as required by a Film Promotion Law that took effect on March 1, 2017. Nevertheless, the film is still trimmed by 14 minutes, totaling 123 minutes. It is very likely that the move was due to usual censorship by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television
The National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) is a ministry-level executive agency controlled by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Its main task is the administration and supervision of state-own ...
, because of the violence depicted. Despite such restrictions, the film managed to debut with a better-than-expected $48.9 million, including previews, according to data from Ent Group (Fox reported $46.3 million). This marked the second-biggest ''X-Men'' opening in the country, trailing behind only ''Apocalypse''. Tracking showed that the film opened with 85,000 screenings on Friday, which increased to about 95,000 on Saturday and Sunday, from a 9.98 million attendance. Included within that total was $4.4 million from 388 IMAX screens.
In Brazil, it recorded the biggest opening for Fox, and the seventh-biggest opening overall, with $8.2 million. The top openings were in China ($46.3 million), Korea ($8.2 million), and Russia ($7.1 million). In the UK, ''Logan'' made $11.4 million during its opening weekend, beating ''The Lego Batman Movie'' to reach the number one spot, while also achieving the second-highest opening weekend of the year, behind ''Sing
Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...
''. Meanwhile, in India, the film debuted with an estimated 17 crore ($2.5 million) net, equating to a gross of $3.4 million, on 1,400 screens. According to Fox, that was the highest debut for any ''X-Men'' title in the territory, marginally ahead of ''X-Men: Apocalypse''. While the debut was not enough to break any significant records, it ranked as the second-biggest opening weekend for a Hollywood release in the January–March quarter, behind ''Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice''.
Critical response
Audiences polled byCinemaScore
CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data.
Background
Ed Mintz, who ...
gave an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak
PostTrak is a U.S.-based service that surveys film audiences for film studios.
History
The service conducts surveys in the top 20 markets in the U.S. and Canada with the use of polling cards and electronic kiosks. A PostTrak report for a fil ...
-surveyed audiences gave the film five out of five. Some reviewers noted ''Logan'' as one of the greatest superhero films ever made. Critics praised the film for its emotional depth, Mangold's direction, action sequences, screenplay, uncompromising tone, thematic profundity, and the performances of Jackman, Keen and Stewart.
Scott Collura of ''IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' gave ''Logan'' a score of 9.7/10, and called it, "an emotional, heavy picture, but it's also an uplifting one that reminds us that it's okay to fight for something more, something better", and "perhaps the best X-Men movie yet". A. A. Dowd of ''The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'' gave an 'A−' and said that "he film
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads
* He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English
* He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana)
* Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
manages to deliver the visceral goods, all the hardcore Wolverine action its fans could desire, while still functioning as a surprisingly thoughtful, even poignant drama—a terrific movie, no 'comic-book' qualifier required". Chris Nashawaty of ''Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' gave it a 'B−', and called it "both the most violent film in the series and the most sentimental one. When it's not showering you in blood, it's trying to make you spill tears." Sheri Linden of ''The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' reacted positively, saying: "Seamlessly melding Marvel mythology with Western mythology, irectorJames Mangold
James Allen Mangold (born December 16, 1963) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Noted for his versatility in tackling a range of genres, Mangold made his debut as a film director with ''Heavy (film), Heavy'' (1995), and gai ...
has crafted an affectingly stripped-down standalone feature, one that draws its strength from Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...
's nuanced turn as a reluctant, all but dissipated hero."
Peter Bradshaw of ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' gave it four out of five, stating "It is more like a survivalist thriller than a superhero film, and signals its wintry quality with the title itself" and compared Wolverine's hitting of his truck during the film to Basil Fawlty
Basil Fawlty is the main character of the 1970s British sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'', played by John Cleese. The proprietor of the hotel Fawlty Towers, he is a cynical and misanthropic snob, desperate to attract hotel guests from the British upper ...
from ''Fawlty Towers
''Fawlty Towers'' is a British television sitcom written by John Cleese and Connie Booth, originally broadcast on BBC Two in 1975 and 1979. Two series of six episodes each were made. The series is set in Fawlty Towers, a dysfunctional fictional ...
''. James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli (born September 25, 1967) is an American film critic. His reviews are mainly published on his blog ''ReelViews.'' Approved as a critic by the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, he has published two collections of reviews of movies on ...
of ReelViews gave it three and a half out of four, and said "In terms of tone and content, ''Logan'' is ''Deadpool
Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...
''s polar opposite but both productions refuse to play by traditional superhero movie rules ... With his glimpse into what superhero movies can be, James Mangold has given us something sadly lacking in recent genre entries: hope." Brian Tallerico of ''RogerEbert.com
''RogerEbert.com'' is an American film review website that archives reviews written by film critic Roger Ebert for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and also shares other critics' reviews and essays. The website, underwritten by the ''Chicago Sun-Times ...
'' stated, "''Logan'' has stakes that feel real, and fight choreography that's fluid and gorgeous instead of just computer-generated effects. Most importantly, ''Logan'' has characters with which you identify and about whom you care. It's not just 'great for a superhero movie', it's a great movie for any genre."
Brian Truitt of ''USA Today
''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' said, "Easily the best Wolverine outing, ''Logan'' is he'' Dark Knight'' of the mutant-filled X-franchise, a gripping film that transcends the comic-book genre by saying something important." Peter Travers
Peter Joseph Travers (born June 27, 1943) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film i ...
of ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.
The magazine was first known fo ...
'' gave three and a half out of four, and called it "a hard-ass, R-rated rager that explodes with action". Amy Nicholson of MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
called it "a phenomenal, throat-slashing, gut-stabbing superhero movie". Germain Lussier of ''io9
''io9'' is a sub-blog of the technology blog ''Gizmodo'' that focuses on science fiction and fantasy pop culture, with former focuses on science, technology and futurism. It was created as a standalone blog in 2008 by editor Annalee Newitz under ...
'' said, "''Logan'' is beautiful, sophisticated, and still a kick-ass superhero film". Debbie Holloway of '' Crosswalk'' gave the film four out of five, praising how the "script also has several powerful themes, and is truly deft in its handling of them". Michael Roffman of ''Consequence of Sound
''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television.
History
''Consequence of Sound'' was founded in Septem ...
'' called the film "A game-changing masterpiece". Matt Donato of ''We Got This Covered'' said, "It's not just one of the best superhero movies ever, it's a damn-fine cinematic representation of the human condition in all its agonizing forms." Joe Morgenstern of ''The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' said, "It's the best superhero film to come out of the comic-book world, and I'm not forgetting Christopher Nolan
Sir Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British and American filmmaker. Known for his Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters with complex storytelling, he is considered a leading filmma ...
's 'The Dark Knight'." Jackman's acting as Wolverine has been praised, and his performance topped ''The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
''s Greatest Superhero Movie Performances of All Time list.
Anthony Lane
Anthony Lane is a British journalist who was a film critic for ''The New Yorker'' magazine from 1993 to 2024.
Career Education and early career
Lane attended Sherborne School, graduating with a degree in English from Trinity College, Cambrid ...
of ''The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...
'' was underwhelmed, commenting on the film's parallel with ''Shane'', "These quiet images (from ''Shane'') brand themselves on the mind, and the gunshots come as an overwhelming release, whereas when Logan and Laura unleash their furious scythes nothing feels settled or satisfied." Mara Reinstein of ''Us Weekly
''Us Weekly'' is an American weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. ''Us Weekly'' was founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, which sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986, and sold to Ameri ...
'' gave the movie two and a half out of four, in a lukewarm review, said that " e film loses its way during the 20-minutes-too-long journey. For all the breathless talk about how ''Logan'' transcends the superhero genre, there's nothing groundbreaking about a road trip movie in which adults try to elude the bad guys to protect a super-special child." Michael Phillips of the ''Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'' gave it two out of four and said, "''Logan'' is deadly serious, and while its gamer-style killing sprees are meant to be excitingly brutal, I found them numbing and, in the climax, borderline offensive." Stephanie Zacharek
Stephanie Zacharek is an American film critic at ''Time'', based in New York City. From 2013 to 2015, she was the principal film critic for ''The Village Voice''. She was a 2015 Pulitzer Prize finalist in criticism.
In February 2018, invited to s ...
of ''Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine said, "The grim side of human nature is all over James Mangold's ''Logan''. But that doesn't necessarily make it a good movie."
Accolades
Future
In October 2017, it was reported that director James Mangold had begun writing a sequel to ''Logan'', tentatively titled ''Laura'', focusing on Laura and the continuation of her story, with Logan being represented with archive footage of Jackman. After Disney's acquisition of Fox was finalized in 2019, all ''X-Men'' films in development were stalled, leaving the future of ''Laura'' uncertain. In November 2019, Mangold said he did not think the project would be happening, and that he believed the studio would be trying to figure out where to go in the future with the characters, particularly with Wolverine.Marvel Cinematic Universe
Jackman and Keen reprised their roles in theMarvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...
film ''Deadpool & Wolverine
''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...
'' (2024), which is set after the events of ''Logan''. The film opens with Wade Wilson visiting Logan's grave in North Dakota, before using his adamantium skeleton to fight off a team of agents from the Time Variance Authority
The Time Variance Authority (TVA) is a fictional organization appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is depicted as a group of timeline monitors tasked with preventing the existence of certain timelines that are deemed to ...
. Later, an older and more mature Laura motivates an alternate version of Logan by referencing her experiences with her father.
References
External links
* {{Michael Green 2017 films 2010s English-language films 2010s action adventure films 2017 drama films 2010s psychological drama films 2017 science fiction action films 2017 science fiction films 2010s superhero films 2010s American films 2010s science fiction adventure films 2010s drama road movies 2010s chase films 20th Century Fox films Film spinoffs American action adventure films American science fiction adventure films American psychological drama films American drama road movies American sequel films American superhero films American survival films American chase films American dystopian films Fiction about familicide Films scored by Marco Beltrami American films about Alzheimer's disease Films about cloning Films about death Films about old age Films about orphans Films based on works by Mark Millar Films directed by James Mangold Films produced by Lauren Shuler Donner Films produced by Simon Kinberg Films set in the future Films set in 2029 Films set in the United States Films set in El Paso, Texas Films set in Mexico Films set in North Dakota Films set in Oklahoma Films set in Texas Films shot in Louisiana Films shot in Mississippi Films shot in New Mexico Films shot in New Orleans Films about human experimentation IMAX films Metafictional works Films with screenplays by James Mangold Films with screenplays by Michael Green (writer) Films with screenplays by Scott Frank Superhero drama films Contemporary Western films Films about telekinesis TSG Entertainment films Wolverine (film series) films Films about father–daughter relationships Live-action films based on Marvel Comics English-language science fiction action films English-language action adventure films English-language action drama films Saturn Award–winning films