Here’s how most folks tend to think of Hugh Jackman: off screen, he’s the lighthearted, affable song-and-dance fellow we all know and love (look no further than his charming Oscar-hosting stint). And on screen, he’s Brooding Intense Guy (Wolverine, Jean Valjean, et al).
Well, it turns out this may be an oversimplification. In the new issue of Men’s Health, Hugh reveals a fair amount of badass intensity is always in him, whether or not he’s decked out as everyone’s favourite X-Men member.
“I made a very clear decision to do what I thought was right,”; the 45-year-old says of the attitude that shaped his film career. “If I didn’t like the script, change the script. If I didn’t like the action, change it. But it needed to come from me so if I got fired, I was not doing what I thought people wanted – just what I wanted to do.”;
Which means Hugh has a longstanding intolerance of on-set bullying. On being yelled at early in his career, the actor reveals, “I took [the director] aside and said, “If someone on the street talked to me that way, I’d punch him in the head. So if you continue, that’s what’s gonna happen.’ You can’t be afraid to lose something for what you think is right.”;
And with a workout regimen like Hugh’s, may we suggest not getting into a scrap with him? “This morning, including this [photoshoot], I’ve trained twice,”; he says. “I’m betting that for the next five or 10 years, I’ll still get asked to do stuff where I have to be physical.”;
The June issue of Men’s Health is available for download now, and hits newsstands on May 20.
