Keanu Reeves Eyeing The Role of Wolverine After Hugh Jackman's Exit From The X-Men World

For fans of the X-Men franchise, it is almost impossible to envision Wolverine with any other face than that of Hugh Jackman. The actor has cemented his place in our minds as the retractable claws wielding mutant, having played the character for almost two decades.

It was heartbreaking to watch him bid goodbye to the X-Men last year through the death of his character in 'Logan'. Such was the brilliance of his performance over the years that he has left behind some pretty big shoes for his successor to fill. And not many in the movie industry today would even have the guts to take on such a monumental task.

And while many fans believe that the role should never be re-cast out of respect for Jackman, one actor who has established himself as a force to be reckoned with has expressed interest in the role. Keanu Reeves wouldn't mind getting an Adamantium skeleton for himself based on what he had to say about the now-vacant chair of Wolverine.

The 'John Wick' star revealed that he "would love" to take on the role of the iconic X-man if the chance presented itself. And considering how Reeves has time and again played to perfection the part of the daunting hero bad guys would think twice before messing with, we totally stan this juicy prospect.

Keanu's wish to take on the role of Logan came to light when ScreenGeek asked him to pick between Ben Affleck's Batman and Hugh Jackman's Wolverine. With Affleck rumored to be retiring his Batman cape soon, there have been talks about who would play the Dark Knight next.

According to the website, Reeves had previously expressed interest in playing both characters. And now that the positions are opening up again, the actor has a shot at actually picking one of the two. However, Reeves has his eye set on Wolverine as he said, "Of the two, I’d love to play Wolverine."

The 'Matrix' actor also clarified that though he was interested in both the characters earlier, he had been unable to do so as they had already cast Affleck and Jackman.

To the interviewer's statement of "A few years ago, you were asked you if you’d do a comic book film. You said you wanted to do Wolverine but you couldn’t take it. You wanted to do Batman, but you couldn’t take it," Reeves responded, "No it wasn’t that I couldn’t take it, it was cast." And when asked if there was any other comic book superhero he would like to bring to the big screen, he replied, "I don’t have one, to be candid."

Meanwhile, fans have already started making Reeves' wish come true in the whatever way they possibly can. Ever since news broke of Reeves choosing Wolverine over Batman, fans have taken it upon themselves to create fan art depicting the actor as the mutant.

While some of them have taken on a satirical approach to it, illustrating Keanu with pencil claws rather than the fictional metal alloy, others have expertly photoshopped the actor with Wolverine's signature beard. And based on these artworks, it appears as though the 'Constantine' star would indeed make a brilliant X-man.

While the day we see the 'Sweet November' actor as Wolverine may never come, Reeves recently joined the 'Toy Story' franchise as a part of 'Toy Story 4'. He appears alongside a star-studded cast of the likes of Tim Allen, Tom Hanks and Joan Cusack in the Pixar feature. The filmmakers are yet to announce what role he will be playing in the movie though.

Speaking of how he came to be a part of this series, Keanu told Collider, "I got a call which was really cool out the blue from the lovely people at Pixar and the creators of this number, this edition, or continuation of the story."

He added, "They pitched the character to me and then we spoke and they allowed me to kind of riff on it." He also revealed that he had done four recording sessions for the movie so far. The new sequel in the popular franchise is being directed by Josh Cooley and will follow the events of 'Toy Story 3'. 'Toy Story 4' will see other new additions to the cast like Tony Hale, Keegan-Michael Key, and Jordan Peele, apart from the mystery toy played by Keanu.

During an appearance on 'The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon' in November, Tim Allen revealed: "They really will surprise you with the toys they came up with. Characters came back, new guys in it that are great."

He continued with a little tease about Reeves' character, "Keanu Reeves has got a great part. Actually, a little inside story. Even he said- gentle, wonderful guy that he is - 'This sounds too much like Buzz Lightyear.' And his character does have an edge to that. So we calmed him down a little bit, and they reminded me that his toy is only that big. And I said, 'Well, Buzz ain't that big.' I mean, of course, Woody is bigger because it's Tom Hanks, you know?"

Allen's tease about Keanu's character has got us all the more excited to find out how the 'Speed' actor will fare in an animated movie.