Hugh Jackman might be best-known for his enduring role as Wolverine in the X-Men franchise, but the rest of the Australian actor’s varied and rich filmography shouldn’t be overlooked. From Les Miserables to The Greatest Showman and Eddie the Eagle, Jackman has proven the sheer breadth of his talents in these diverse roles. Read on to discover the best Hugh Jackman movies ranked and where to stream them online!
Back in 2000, as a season stage star, Hugh Jackman landed his breakout role as Logan aka the Wolverine in Bryan Singer’s X-Men, alongside Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen and Halle Berry. The Marvel movie kick-started a franchise, which Jackman was at the helm of, in a trilogy, prequel trilogy and his own spin-off series of films.
Critically and commercially acclaimed, X-Men went onto gross over $296 million at the box office on a $75 million budget, as well as lead to a sequel, X2 and a X-Men: The Last Stand. After the success of this trilogy, Hugh Jackman went onto his own solo film series in X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2009.
Another commercial success, garnering $373 million at the worldwide box office, this led to another two movies that culminated in the 15-rated, gritty superhero movie, Logan in 2017. It became the highest grossing movie in the trilogy and the third-highest grossing R-rated movie at the time of its release. It was also the first superhero movie to be nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards.
Around his comic book commitments, Hugh Jackman fronted a host of romantic comedies such as Kate & Leopold, as well as starred in epics such as Baz Luhrmans’ Australia, the gripping crime thriller, Prisoners and fronted poignant dramas such as The Son.
Though Hugh Jackman’s other greatest strength, arguably, lies within musicals such as his outstanding performance in Les Miserables as Jean Valjean in 2012 and as PT Barnum in The Greatest Showman in 2017. In the big-screen adaptation of the stage play, Jackman as Valjean received widespread acclaim and won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical and was nominated for Best Actor at the Academy Awards.
Similarly, The Greatest Showman was a record-breaking success at the box office and in the charts. The Grammy-Award winning movie musical grossed $435 million worldwide on an $84 million budget and earned Jackman another Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor.
Alongside this, Jackman has fronted poignant dramas such as The Son, as well as lent his voice to roles in Flushed Away and Happy Feet.
Most recently, Hugh Jackman has returned to play his claw cladded mutant in Deadpool & Wolverine, alongside Ryan Reynolds. The film which finally brings the X-Men franchise into the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) opened to record-breaking success, taking $438.3 million worldwide on its opening weekend, making it the biggest opening weekend for a R-rated film at the time of writing. Jackman’s return to the franchise also earned him the title of the “longest career as a live-action Marvel character” in the Guinness Book of Records.
Understandably, some of Hugh Jackman’s best performances occur within this universe, with one of the best being Logan, which sits alongside his roles in Les Miserables and The Greatest Showman. The rest may be subjective, but the power of Australia, the haunting effect of Prisoners and the empowerment in Eddie the Eagle deserve a spot at the top of this list too.
Where to watch the best Hugh Jackman movies online
With so many films to discover, here’s the best Hugh Jackman movies ranked and where to stream them now.