LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Twentieth Century Fox plans to keep the mutants coming with a spinoff of its popular "X-Men" film franchise starring Australian-born actor Hugh Jackman in the title role of "Wolverine."
A studio spokesman confirmed on Wednesday that the film is in development with a script currently in the works but no director yet on board.
Although initial reports from the international industry conference Cine Expo in Amsterdam suggested the film was slated for a 2007 release, the Fox spokesman said it was doubtful the picture would be ready before 2008, in part because Jackman is expected to do another movie first for director Baz Luhrmann.
But that didn't stop Jackman himself from making a videotaped appearance touting the "Wolverine" project for conventioneers in Amsterdam earlier this week.
Jackman already has appeared in three big-screen "X-Men" adventures as Logan, the mutant superhero also known as "Wolverine" for the three-pronged claws he wields in each fist and his power to instantly regenerate his own injured body tissue.
The latest installment in the franchise, "X-Men: The Last Stand," is one of this year's biggest box-office hits, grossing nearly $225 million in domestic ticket sales alone.
Reuters/VNU