X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Movie, 2009, The Wolverine Trilogy, Set in 1845–1979
X-Men Origins: Wolverine is #5 of 18 in release order and #3 of 18 in chronological order in the X-Men.
The story
After seeking to live a normal life after 200 years, Logan sets out to avenge a death by undergoing the mutant Weapon X program and becoming Wolverine.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine recap
In Canada in 1845, young James Howlett kills the man who murdered his father, learns the man was his real father, and runs away with his half-brother Victor. The two fight in every American war up to Vietnam, until William Stryker recruits them for a team of mutants, Team X, including the wisecracking swordsman Wade Wilson. Logan quits after the team slaughters villagers in Africa and settles in the Rockies with his girlfriend Kayla. Years later, Victor, now called Sabretooth, appears to murder Kayla, and Logan agrees to Stryker's offer to bond an unbreakable metal, adamantium, to his skeleton to get revenge. Overhearing that Stryker plans to wipe his memory, Logan escapes. With help from the gambler Gambit, he finds Stryker's secret base on Three Mile Island, where captured mutants are being used to build Weapon XI, Wade Wilson fused with stolen powers.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine ending explained
Kayla is alive and helped Stryker deceive Logan in return for her sister's freedom. Logan and Victor together defeat Weapon XI, and Logan beheads him. Stryker shoots Logan in the head with adamantium bullets, wiping his memory, and Kayla dies after helping free the captured young mutants, whom Xavier rescues. Logan walks away with no memory of who he is.
Post-credits scenes
Yes. In a mid-credits scene, military police arrest Stryker for the murder of a general. In a post-credits scene, Weapon XI's severed head opens its eyes, hinting that Deadpool survived; some prints instead end with Logan in a bar in Japan.
Where to watch X-Men Origins: Wolverine
X-Men Origins: Wolverine is streaming on Disney+ in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 6.5/10, Rotten Tomatoes 37%
Where it fits
- Release order: after X-Men: The Last Stand, before X-Men: First Class.
- Chronological order: after X-Men: Days of Future Past, before X-Men: Apocalypse.
What to watch before X-Men Origins: Wolverine
In release order, the essentials before X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) are X-Men (2000), X2: X-Men United (2003), and X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). X-Men Origins: Wolverine itself is optional in the X-Men order.
Cast
- Hugh Jackman as Logan / Wolverine
- Liev Schreiber as Victor Creed
- Danny Huston as Stryker
- Lynn Collins as Kayla Silverfox
- Kevin Durand as Fred Dukes
- Dominic Monaghan as Bradley
- Taylor Kitsch as Remy LeBeau
- Daniel Henney as Agent Zero
- Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson
- will.i.am as John Wraith
- Tim Pocock as Scott Summers
- Julia Blake as Heather Hudson
Directed by Gavin Hood.