Daniel Radcliffe Shoots Down Rumor That He Got Ripped to Play Wolverine

Daniel Radcliffe denies rumors that he got shredded to play Wolverine. Hugh Jackman has played the buff X-Men character with retractable adamantium claws on-screen since 2000's X-Men.

In the season four finale of Miracle Workers, Radcliffe showed off his buff physique and sparked speculation that he was angling to replace Jackman as Wolverine. In a Vanity Fair lie detector interview reported by Entertainment Weekly, Radcliffe says that he did not start the rumor. “I got buff because I am obsessive, and I want to… You've seen my parents, they're like insane fitness people,” says Radcliffe. “So that's just been passed on. But no. No Wolverine. Flattered, but no.”

The Wolverine rumor is not the weirdest thing that the Harry Potter actor has read about himself.  “What's the weirdest story that I've read about myself? That I had the [U.K. Special Air Service] walk my dogs,” says Radcliffe. “That I had special beer brewed for myself by monks in a monastery in Belgium. That I used to get my assistant to hold my scripts in the mirror so I could read it while I was having makeup done — even though that doesn't make f—ing sense because I wouldn't be able to read mirror writing. There's a long list.”

Hugh Jackman Returns as Wolverine in Deadpool 3

Jackman has played Wolverine 10 times on-screen, including the upcoming Deadpool 3 (pictured, above) opposite Ryan Reynolds. Deadpool 3 is scheduled for release on May 3, 2024 as part of the MCU's Phase Five. Jackman last played the character in 2017's Logan.

In an interview on The View reported by Entertainment Weekly, Radcliffe also shot down the Wolverine rumor. Says Radcliffe, “This is something that comes up every so often, I think because in the comics Wolverine is short, so every so often they're like, ‘Who's a short actor?' There's never been any actual truth to it. Every so often I get bored of answering the questions sensibly, so I just make a joke like I did the other day and that sort of has reignited the rumors of it, but there's nothing going on.”

Even though Radcliffe won't star as Wolverine anytime soon, he still appreciates fans pushing for him to play the role as well as any association with Jackman. “I will not stop anybody from doing anything,” says Radcliffe. “Any comparison that implies me being even remotely in the world of Hugh Jackman is inherently flattering.”