Marvel fans all over the world are still adjusting to the announcement that the studio has delayed Avengers: Doomsday (and, by extension, its 2027 sequel Avengers: Secret Wars). The film, which was set for release next May has been pushed to December 18 instead (while Secret Wars, set for May 2027, has been pushed to December of that year). Experts say that Marvel and Disney want more time to perfect the movie, which can only mean good things, but it also means a much longer wait for the blockbuster than anticipated.
Another thing that it also means is much more time for speculation about who's going to be in it. Of course, we know that Marvel have already announced the film's huge cast of 25+ actors, but you don't have to be a full-time Marvel Cinematic Universe fan to know that there will be surprises.
Surprises in MCU movies usually come in the form of cameo appearances (or even larger roles) from legendary actors associated with one Marvel character or another (sometimes two!). Now, one legendary actor has addressed his potential involvement in the film, and the answer might surprise - or excite - you.
Hugh Jackman addresses potential Wolverine return in Avengers: Doomsday
Hugh Jackman recently appeared on The View, where he discussed his Radio City residency, his legendary career, and his star in Hollywood. Of course Wolverine came up, with the actor discussing the global success of last year's Deadpool and Wolverine and his return to the role after retiring it in 2017's Logan. He was also asked about the rumors that he might return as the character again in Avengers: Doomsday and provided some interesting answers.
He was humorous at first, offering up a joke about how Logan will "dominate and destroy every other character in the movie" before assuring the audience that he was in fact just kidding: "I really can’t say much, except when you say ‘appear,’ more like dominate and destroy every other character—I’m kidding." But that's when things got even more interesting, as he followed that up with:
"I really have nothing to add, and if I did, I would find a really cool way to not say it, but I actually have nothing to add."
On the surface that obviously implies that he isn't in the movie, but as the most passionate of fans might point out: It's not a denial either. It's true too, for Jackman didn't go the full Andrew Garfield route of outright saying I am not in that movie. And even if he did, remember that Andrew Garfield did appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home in a pretty substantial role.
It's also worth remembering that Avengers: Doomsday will have surprises. Jackman's name was obviously one of the most surprising omissions from that cast list reveal, especially as the vast majority of his X-Men costars will be appearing. And let's be honest, it's hard to imagine a Marvel movie featuring Patrick Stewart's Professor X, Ian McKellen's Magneto, James Marsden's Cyclops, Alan Cumming's Nightcrawler, Rebecca Romijin's Mystique, and Kelsey Grammer's Beast while also not featuring him. The newer version of Logan that he plays lost his version of the X-Men on his world, so crossing paths with another would undoubtedly be a powerful moment if Marvel wished to tell that story.
Jackman portrayed the claw-wielding mutant back in 2000's X-Men, which was his first major role in a Hollywood movie. He then went on to reprise it throughout the whole X-Men movie franchise, headlining three Wolverine movies too. When he starred in the Academy Award-nominated Logan in 2017, he was - at the time - ready to move on from the role, but Ryan Reynolds eventually pulled him into the world of the MCU for Deadpool and Wolverine in 2024. The film ended up becoming one of Marvel Studios' most successful ever, grossing $1.3 billion at the box office and becoming the most important movie in the franchise's ongoing Multiverse Saga in years.
With that in mind, it's hard to imagine that the character won't make some kind of appearance in at least one of the two upcoming Avengers movies. Jackman might not tell us as we wait, but that will only increase the speculation of his involvement. And honestly, if he is in it, well... as he and Deadpool like to say: LFG!
Avengers: Doomsday arrives in movie theaters on December 18, 2026.