X-Men Origins: Wolverine | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster. | |
Directed by | Gavin Hood |
Screenplay by | |
Based on | |
Produced by |
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Starring |
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Cinematography | Donald McAlpine |
Edited by |
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Music by | Harry Gregson-Williams |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Running time | 107 minutes |
Country | United States[1][2] |
Language | English |
Budget | $150 million[3] |
Box office | $373 million[3] |
X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a 2009 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics fictional character Wolverine. It is the fourth installment of the X-Men film series, the first installment of the Wolverine trilogy within the series, and a spin-off/prequel to X-Men (2000). The film was directed by Gavin Hood, written by David Benioff and Skip Woods, and produced by Hugh Jackman, who stars as the titular character, alongside Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Dominic Monaghan, and Ryan Reynolds. The film's plot details Wolverine's childhood as James Howlett, his time with Major William Stryker's Team X, the bonding of Wolverine's skeleton with the indestructible metal adamantium during the Weapon X program and his relationship with his half-brother Victor Creed.
The film was mostly shot in Australia and New Zealand, with Canada also serving as a location. Filming took place from January to May 2008. Production and post-production were troubled, with delays due to the weather and Jackman's other commitments, an incomplete screenplay that was still being written in Los Angeles while principal photography rolled in Australia, conflicts arising between director Hood and Fox's executives over the film's direction, and an unfinished workprint being leaked on the internet a month before the film's debut.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine was released on May 1, 2009, by 20th Century Fox. The film received mixed reviews from critics for its screenplay, visual effects, pacing, and editing, although Jackman's performance and action sequences received some praise. It opened at the top of the North American box office and grossed $179 million in the United States and Canada and $373 million worldwide. Two subsequent films, The Wolverine and Logan, were released in 2013 and 2017, respectively. Reynolds would star as a new version of his Origins character, Wade Wilson, beginning with Deadpool (2016). Later, both Jackman and Reynolds would star together in the 2024 film Deadpool & Wolverine.