Though the X-Men franchise is continuing with the younger cast in next year's X-Men: Apocalypse, Hugh Jackman will be returning in the newest installment of the Wolverine series, and we now have an idea of when we can expect the latest sequel.
According to Slashfilm, The Wolverine 2 will begin filming early next year. The confirmation came from director James Mangold on Twitter.
This falls in line with the expected March 3, 2017 release date of the film. Before this we had heard virtually no updates on the movie in some time, so this is definitely reassuring to hear.
This movie will be the latest in the series of Wolverine solo films. The first was X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2009, and then most recently The Wolverine in 2013.
We don't know a whole lot about the plot of this movie except that it might feature the appearance of Patrick Stewart as Professor X, according to Superhero Hype.
What will definitely be interesting is that assuming The Wolverine picks up in the future after Days of Future Past, the X-Men timeline will have been essentially reset. This provides plenty of opportunity for other original cast members to return to the franchise.
This will be one of four X-Men movies currently scheduled for release in the next few years. First we have X-Men: Apocalypse, the sequel to Days of Future Past which picks up in 1983. Hugh Jackman is expected to reprise his role as Wolverine in that film. We also have the upcoming Deadpool starring Ryan Reynolds, as well as Gambit starring Channing Tatum.
Jackson recently said he hoped to continue playing Wolverine until he dies, as we previously reported. Given the popularity of the character, it seems like Fox will be happy to let him do so.
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