Why Glenn Danzig Refused to Play Wolverine in the 'X-Men' Movies
Glenn Danzig, a founding member of the bands the Misfits, Samhain, and Danzig, had the opportunity to play Wolverine. However, he was unwilling to commit to the project. Ultimately, he wasn’t pleased with Bryan Singer’s film X-Men or Hugh Jackman’s career-defining performance in it as Wolverine.
The connection between Glenn Danzig and Wolverine
The history of Danzig and Wolverine goes way back. The Hollywood Reporter says Danzig is a Wolverine fanatic. According to GQ, Wizard magazine said Danzig would be the perfect person to play Wolverine in film back in 1995.
The book This Music Leaves Stains: The Complete Story of the Misfits reports people in Hollywood thought Danzig should play Wolverine because he resembled the character. Like Danzig, Wolverine is a muscular man with sideburns and a furrowed brow. In addition, IMDB says Danzig is 5’ 3” — the same height as Wolverine in the comics!
Of course, while Danzig has found success as a musician, he has no experience as an actor. This could have prevented Hollywood from casting him in such a major role. However, this didn’t stop the film industry from seriously considering the idea of Danzig playing Wolverine. In addition, many fans were open to the idea.
Why the film fell through
Danzig met with 20th Century Fox to discuss playing Wolverine in a film directed by Richard Donner. Fans of older superhero movies like Donner because he directed Superman and Superman II. Ultimately, Danzig wasn’t willing to spend an entire year shooting a movie as this would get in the way of his musical career. Therefore, the deal fell through.
What Glenn Danzig thought of Bryan Singer’s ‘X-Men’
Many actors would be devastated to lose a role like Wolverine given the popularity of Marvel Comics. Danzig, meanwhile, was happy. During an interview with LA Weekly, he called the movie X-Men “terrible.” In addition, he felt the movie would have been better if he had starred in it instead than Jackman.
Glenn Danzig’s connection to the world of comic books
Although Danzig lost the opportunity to play one of the most famous comic book characters, he still has major ties to the world of comics. He owns a comics company called Verotik, which produces risque horror comics. Fittingly for someone who passed on a Marvel role, he takes inspiration from artists who were sick of Marvel.
“I was influenced for my company by the indies — artists frustrated working with DC and Marvel who started their own little collective and started doing indie stuff,” Danzig told Revolver. “That stuff was cooler. And of course I’m very influenced by European comics, like Italian fumettis, which is just crazy erotic horror. And the Japanese stuff, which is similar to erotic horror Manga.”
The world never got to see Danzig play Wolverine. However, anyone who wants to can see Danzig’s own comics. For some fans, that’s enough.
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