Hugh Jackman Talks ‘Fountain,’ Wolverine

For moviegoers, getting a glimpse of Hugh Jackman on the big screen this year hasn’t been much of a task. So far in 2006, the Aussie actor has already starred in three films: Woody Allen’s “Scoop,” this summer’s blockbuster “X-Men: The Last Stand,” and the dark twists-and-turns-filled “The Prestige.” If that wasn’t enough, not only does Hugh have “The Fountain” on deck for November, he still managed to squeeze in roles voicing animated characters in the upcoming “Flushed Away” and “Happy Feet.”

While Access Hollywood had Hugh?s full attention chatting up ?The Prestige? and ?Flushed Away,? talk not only turned to ?The Fountain,? but of course what we can expect to see the next time Wolverine unleashes his claws.

?The Fountain,? a labor of love project from director Darren Aronofsky (?Pi,? ?Requiem For A Dream?), hits theatres next month after an arduous struggle to get made. Initial casting had Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett in the roles eventually played by Jackman and Rachel Weisz (who has since married her director to become Mrs. Aronofsky). After Pitt left the project to instead star in “Troy,” pre-production was abruptly halted. A crushed Aronofsky re-imagined the story and halved the production budget, while managing to keep the integrity of the film’s core themes intact.

Hugh gave us a preview of the plot. ?It spans a thousand years and it?s about a man who is searching for, and ultimately finds, the Fountain of Youth. It?s really a love story set over a thousand years. It?s pretty amazing. It?s pretty different.?

He then hinted on how a movie that takes place over the course of a millennium can feature the same lead actors in three parallel tales. ? ?The Fountain? centers on that first quote in the Bible in Genesis about The Tree of Life. That?s where a lot of the discussions over the years have been. Many people believe The Tree of Life that was in the Garden of Eden is still here on Earth somewhere and it just needs to be found.? This is obviously a film that promises to be anything but a simple boy-meets-girl love story.

Moving on to the latest about the Wolverine film, Jackman confirms the popular mutant will go it alone without the X-Men in this prequel to the franchise, and offered this update.

?We have a script. We?re now talking to directors. So we?re gonna get the director next. Then I?m shooting a movie with Baz Luhrman next year and then we shoot it sometime after that. So it?s a reality, which is great.?

There has been no official announcement from 20th Century Fox about a fourth film in the ?X-Men? series, even after $450 million in worldwide ticket sales for ?X-Men: The Last Stand.? However, Hugh wanted to set the record straight on what not to expect from the film.

?Not that I want people to think the ?Wolverine? movie is ?X-Men 4? in disguise. It?s not. It will be quite different. I don?t want it to feel like a spin-off so to speak.?

He doubts there will be an X-Men 4, ?Not as a straight ?X-Men? movie as we have done.? But he doesn?t rule out a movie that deals with other characters and themes established by the franchise.

?I think there?s been some talk and I haven?t heard anything official, but maybe more of a movie centering on the younger X-Men.? Jackman speculated. ?Another one I?ve heard of maybe Magneto,? referring to the rumored prequel film exploring the origins of Sir Ian McKellen?s character. ?It just seems to me there?s people who like the stories and there?s enough for more movies.?

Hugh is currently shooting ?The Tourist? in New York City with Ewan McGregor and Michelle Williams.

?Flushed Away? hits theatres November 3rd and ?The Fountain? opens on November 22nd.