Looking back --
When Hugh Jackman made unusual diversions from his acting/performing path --
I have always said that
I would go along with whatever he does. I trust his talent, his conviction and his commitment to deliver his best performance, no matter the material he choses to tackle.
The only project that did not pass with me was "43". Eventually, he admitted that it was one project that he regretted doing.
From the beginning, there were seeming inconsistencies in the roles or projects that he may have chosen to do against what he may have planned as a longterm career goal --
*Accepting Beauty & the Beast -- when his academic background was dramatic theatre, not musical theatre.
*Deciding to go to Hollywood, after fulfilling his dream of peforming at the West End (Oklahoma!, Royal National Theatre)
*Accepting an action/comicbook movie role ( Wolverine), when his background prepared him for more serious roles.
*At the time when his career was fast rising after a few roles in Hollywood, deciding to spend one year on Broadway (The Boy From Oz) against objections from advisers, except for PWhitesell.
*From TheBoyFromOz, going into the direction of l'enfant terrible in terms of shocking dramatic fare (Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream) by volunteering to do THE FOUNTAIN. The reception was very divisive but I remember him saying that it was the very first time that he felt artistically pleased with a role.
*From there, the plethora of roles (sometimes, seemingly questionable, like that project where he would have played a Nazi intellectual). Then the chance to work with Nolan (The Prestige), Allen (Scoop).
*He also decided to do an arena tour of The Boy From Oz - when there were some reservations that it might go against the popularity of the first staging of the show with Todd McKenny.
*When he decided to put up a production company -- that was also met with some apprehensions.
*Deception was one of the first projects -- it suffered from some script inconsistencies but otherwise good as a first effort as a producer.
*This was followed by ORIGINS:Wolverine where Hugh was also a producer. Unfortunately, fans were not receptive to how Deadpool, another comicbook favorite was treated in the script... and an unfortunate leak of the movie which has not been completely edited... both resulted in fan dissatisfaction with the movie.
*But Hugh persevered and continued the trilogy ( The Wolverine & Logan).
*He also did the Luhrmann tribute to his homeland (AUSTRALIA). Again, Hugh was only cast after someone declined the lead (Russell Crowe) but he did go toe-to-toe with Nicole Kidman in this epic. Its failure was in the length that Baz decided to give the storytelling.
From time to time, he also tried the unenviable task of hosting awards shows -- he hosted the 2009 Oscars and the Tonys 4 times ( 2003/2004/2005/2014). His Oscars hosting drew the most favorable comments to this day ( to the effect that it was the best hosting of the Oscars to-date). His Tonys hosting earned him an Emmy for his 2004 hosting.
In the meantime, he had time to go back to Broadway ( A Steady Rain, a new drama that debuted on Broadway). Surprisingly, he and Daniel Craig were not awarded any Tony nominations ( it looks like the negativity towards Hugh on Broadway started with this play)...then the highly successful BackonBroadway.
*He tried a comedic role ( Real Steel) with Shawn Levy which was surprisingly well-received.
Then against suggestions that he try for the role of Javert instead ( including Mackintosh's own suggestion), he decided to try for the role of Valjean. The role in Les Miserables would lead to an Oscar nomination. Some say that he should have won the Oscar for that portrayal!
A film project that was postponed after it was announced...became a reality after so many cast changes & a director change. Hugh was the first one cast in the lead role, but had to give it up for some time, until the newbie director Denis Villeneuve was given the job and they went to film one of his most successful forays into drama. Prisoners, to this day, has been hailed for its theme and its outstanding cast, notably Jackman!
Days of Future Past was his most successful XMen ensemble movie. He would later depart from that premise and continue with the solo trilogy ( The Wolverine & Logan).
He also did other comedic roles ( Eddie the Eagle). A movie with Joe Wright at the helm -- PAN -- saw him again portraying an unusual role - that of Blackbeard, the main villain in the story.
He would also do voiceover work for animated movies. But unlike those involving slaptstick comedy, he would do voiceovers for project that partly reflect on advocacies ( climate change for Happy Feet), love of sports (Flushed Away), a Christmas tale for kids (Rise of the Guardians) or even some scientific curiousities (Missing Link).
Back to Broadway in 2014 - another unusual play (The River)- enigmatic-- even if the words came from the pen of the prolific Jez Butterworth.
This was followed by a year where he decided on 2 career landmark movies --
*Logan - the comicbook genre was transformed into a dramatic & tragic story. Its reception was so unexpected and is now hailed as arguably the greatest comicbook movie ever made!
*The Greatest Showman - a passion project that he shepherded for 8 years, but will eventually turn out in partly defining his film career. It gained Hugh Jackman a whole new fanbase!
*After this, he looked at material which were not in keeping with some of his usual roles ( that of failed presidential candidate Gary Hart in The FrontRunner... and the charismatic con-man in the educational system, a movie called Bad Education). The last movie drew many performance raves accorded to Hugh Jackman. Unfortunately, the producers decided to sell it to HBO and thus it did not qualify for any Oscar consideration.
*Before the pandemic, he decided to spend almost a year in preparing and going on a 90-show concert tour! Again, a departure from his usual live performances, even if he says it is really a theatre show.
*He completed a movie before the pandemic, Reminiscence, which unfortunately suffered from a failed release strategy by Warner Bros.
*While awaiting word on what would happen to The Music Man ( the pandemic, the Rudin issue), Hugh volunteered to do the role of the father in THE SON.
And from Dec 2021 to Jan 15, 2023, he is committed to the Broadway revival of THE MUSIC MAN. The season's biggest hit despite the negativity towards the show and towards Hugh Jackman.
Despite his avowal that Logan would be his Wolverine swan song... he has recently announced that he is joining Ryan Reynolds in a new Wolverine/Deadpool adventure. That piece of news broke the internet on that day!
Unlike some other actors of his generation -- Hugh Jackman interspersed his career choices with unusual choices. And when he said that the Robert Frost lines of
"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I
I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference"
have also inspired him...
he is being true to his artistic calling.
Jo
OZalots HQ - a place to celebrate The Boy(s) From OZ
