by Hugh Jackman is one of the most successful and beloved actors in Hollywood today. His portrayal of Wolverine in the X-Men films propelled him to A-list stardom and cemented his place as a leading man. However, long before he donned the adamantium claws, Jackman was struggling to make ends meet as an aspiring actor. In the late 1990s, right before his big break with X-Men, Jackman found himself nearly broke and facing eviction. It was a difficult time filled with uncertainty, but also proved formative in pushing him to finally achieve his dreams. This is the behind-the-scenes story of Hugh Jackman’s financial rollercoaster ride in the years leading up to X-Men.
The Early Struggling Actor Days
Hugh Jackman’s journey to stardom was hard fought. He grew up in Australia and graduated from the University of Technology Sydney with a degree in communications. Upon graduating in 1991, Jackman knew he wanted to pursue acting. He enrolled in the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in Perth. After graduating in 1994, he began auditioning for roles but struggled to get work.
In 1995, Jackman made the bold move to relocate to Melbourne to try to land theatre roles. The transition was difficult. He has said he lived in a flat that was virtually empty besides a bed. “I remember I used to walk down the street and people would laugh at me because I had holes in my shoes,” Jackman told Katie Couric in an interview.
His persistence paid off when he was cast in the production Correlli, a 10-part Australian TV drama series. However, the show was cancelled after airing only one episode. Luckily, this role brought Jackman exposure and more opportunities began presenting themselves. In 1996, he was cast as Gaston in the stage production of Beauty and the Beast. His performance brought him to the attention of Oscar-winning actress Deborra-Lee Furness.
Romance with Deborra-Lee Furness
In 1995, Jackman was cast in the TV series Corelli alongside seasoned actress Deborra-Lee Furness. Furness took notice of the handsome, 6-foot-2 actor who was playing the role of her character’s love interest.
“He had this amazing manliness to him but also a really playful boyishness,” Furness later told Katie Couric. The two began dating in 1995 during filming and their chemistry was obvious both on and off screen. Despite being 13 years older than Jackman, the couple found they had an instant connection.
Jackman has said meeting Furness was “love at first sight” and that he knew right away she was the woman for him. After only four months of dating, Jackman proposed. The couple married in 1996 in Melbourne, a year after meeting. “I decided, I won’t ask a lot of questions, I’ll just go with the flow, embrace it and see where it goes,” Furness said of their whirlwind romance.
Early Financial Struggles as Newlyweds
After getting married in 1996, Jackman and Furness settled in Melbourne. He continued auditioning for acting roles while also working odd jobs. In an interview with Katie Couric, Furness described their early newlywed life as filled with “a lot of rice and beans.”
Jackman has been open about the financial struggles he and Furness faced before his career took off. “We were living in a tiny apartment between the two of us. Deb was working on a TV series, I was doing theatre,” Jackman told Australian radio show Fitzy and Wippa.
He continued: “I remember I went away to New Zealand to do a TV show, and I came back and Deb said to me, ‘How much money do you have in the bank?’ I said, ‘I don’t really know.’ She said, ‘Well, we’ve got minus $26.’ We owed the bank $26. So we had nothing.”
As a new couple just starting out, Jackman and Furness had to carefully budget to get by. They were committed to making it work through the uncertainty. “We never wanted the other person to feel like they had to be the breadwinner… Whatever came, we were going to deal with it,” Jackman has said of their mentality during the lean years.
The Adelaide Years
By 1998, Jackman was itching to expand beyond Melbourne. He and Furness relocated to Adelaide so Jackman could take on the role of Joe Gillis in the stage production of Sunset Boulevard. Moving was a risk, but proved rewarding career-wise. Jackman thrived in the role and his natural talent earned praise.
However, the couple was still struggling financially. In Adelaide, they lived in a tiny apartment that was virtually empty. In a 2012 interview with Australia’s 60 Minutes, Jackman said, “I remember we rented a tiny apartment from a guy who said: ‘Just cook meat outside because the place stinks when you cook meat.'”
Between sparse furnishings and trying not to cook meat indoors, the Adelaide apartment was far from glamorous. Jackman and Furness were committed to sticking it out for the sake of his budding career. However, tensions over money were high. “There were times when Deb and I were first together that I’m surprised we didn’t kill each other, because it was so stressful,” Jackman admitted.
The most stressful point came when the landlord told the couple he was selling the apartment and they had two weeks to move out. They were devastated by the prospect of having no place to live. Out of desperation, Furness even called her parents asking for financial help, despite initial reservations. “That was the most humbling moment of my entire life,” Jackman said of asking his in-laws for money.
By some miracle, right after being told they would be evicted, Jackman got a call from his agent saying he had landed a role in the TV drama series Panic Cove. The 11-week TV shoot saved them at the last minute by providing enough money to afford a new apartment. It was a reminder not to give up hope when things look bleak.
Trying His Luck in Los Angeles
By the late 1990s, Jackman knew that to achieve the international stardom he dreamed of, he likely had to try his hand in Los Angeles. In 1999, he and Furness took a leap of faith and relocated to LA.
The Aussie actor quickly realized the steep learning curve. “Here I was: untrained, with an Aussie accent no one understood, and no idea how to get an agent in America,” Jackman reflected to Broadway World. Once again the couple found themselves nearly broke, living in a modest apartment, as Jackman hustled to try to break into Hollywood.
He was able to get a talent agent fairly quickly, but then faced constant audition rejections. “I’d Lines home and there would never be a call back,” Jackman recalled of his LA audition experiences. The constant rejection only made him more determined. He decided to take vocal lessons to reduce his Australian accent. He also committed to a strict workout regimen to get in superhero shape.
After months of auditions that went nowhere, Jackman was on the verge of giving up. His drama school training had not prepared him for the ruthless Hollywood landscape. As he started contemplating taking roles in Australia again, his agent convinced him to try one last audition before retreating back home. That final audition would end up changing his life.
The Life-Changing Audition for X-Men
In early 1999, Jackman’s agent lined up one final audition before the actor planned to leave LA. The audition was for an action movie based on the Marvel comic X-Men. The director, Bryan Singer, was looking to cast the lead role of Wolverine. Jackman had limited knowledge of the character but immersed himself in the comics to prepare.
The night before the audition, he had a epiphany. “I realized that the character was funny, he was vulnerable…I knew this was my last shot and poured everything into it,” Jackman shared in an interview.
When he showed up for the audition the next day he came in with a fresh, passionate take on Wolverine. He also lied and said he was only 5’11” when he is actually 6’2″, because the producers wanted a shorter actor for Wolverine. Against the odds, Singer loved Jackman’s performance and immediately knew he had found their Wolverine.
After months of rejection, Jackman couldn’t believe he landed such a career-changing role. “I was jobless and could see the acting dream dying. I come home and say to Deb ‘I got the part in X-Men.’ She, of course, freaked out and knew this was a big break,” Jackman said.
Training to Become Wolverine
After signing onto X-Men in early 1999, Jackman had several months before filming began. He committed himself to intense physical training to bulk up and get in superhero shape for the iconic role. Jackman’s training consisted of weight lifting, martial arts, boxing, and other exercise that transformed him physically.
“I was happy to work out six to eight hours a day…I felt like I owed it to the character,” he told Comics 101. He gained 20 pounds of muscle and eventually bench pressed 305 pounds, thanks to the rigorous preparations. To get into character mentally, he spent many hours in the comics learning all he could about Wolverine’s backstory and persona.
Jackman has said the months of physical and mental preparation were crucial to him feeling confident in taking on such an iconic character. “By the time I walked onto the X-Men set, I felt really ready to go,” Jackman shared in an interview.
Filming X-Men and Life Changing Success
X-Men began filming in Toronto in the fall of 1999. The shoot went smoothly, but Jackman still had no idea if the movie or role would be any good. “At the time comic book movies were not big blockbuster hits, it was a bit of a gamble,” Jackman told Inside Film.
When X-Men hit theaters in July 2000 it was both a critical and commercial smash success. Jackman’s performance was met with universal praise. Critics were wowed by his ability to bring both intensity and vulnerability to the role of Wolverine.
Audiences turned out in droves and X-Men went on to earn nearly $300 million worldwide. Almost overnight, at age 31, Hugh Jackman had gone from a virtual unknown to a major movie star. He vividly remembers getting the phone call that X-Men debuted at #1 its opening weekend.
“I was standing in a payphone in New York City – it gives you an idea how long ago it was,” Jackman laughed in an interview. “I’ll never forget that feeling. When I hung up I ran out onto the street screaming ‘Wahooo!’ I didn’t care who was looking.”
X-Men was a watershed moment that changed the trajectory of his career. Thanks to one role, he went from being broke and struggling to establish himself, to an A-list actor with the keys to Hollywood.
Reflecting Back on His Winding Road to Success
Looking back now over two decades later on his journey to stardom, Hugh Jackman is able to appreciate the bumpy road that got him there. Through the lean years and constant rejection, he managed to stay positive and committed to his dreams.
Jackman now seems almost grateful for the character building struggles. “You can’t have the climb with no mountain, can you?” he shared philosophically in an interview. “Coming from Australia with no name…I had to work harder than the next guy and appreciate every gig.”
He learned from an early age not to listen when people said he was too tall, too unknown, or too inexperienced to make it big. Jackman is adamant that sticking with acting was the best decision he ever made. “I never wanted to fail at what I loved doing,” he has said of his motivation during the rough times.
Now that he’s found success, Jackman is committed to giving back and paying his blessings forward. He and Furness are active philanthropists who’ve started charities supporting the performing arts and adoption advocacy. Despite attaining so much wealth and fame, the couple remains remarkably down to earth.
Jackman has shared that the most important thing to him is being a good husband and father. After everything he went through and all he sacrificed, his devotion to his family is unwavering. “Having a family was always my biggest dream and focus in life. Acting was just a conduit,” Jackman told Hello! magazine in 2012.
Looking back at Hugh Jackman’s circuitous road to fame, it’s amazing to see what perseverance and passion can achieve. He’s a testament that struggling early on can ultimately make success sweeter and more rewarding when it finally arrives. Jackman’s story serves as inspiration to never stop chasing your dreams, no matter how many setbacks or closed doors you face along the way.
