A new image has been released for The Wolverine, showcasing the famous mutant as he bears his teeth and two claws in what has become his most famous pose.
The image was leaked sometime last week, but it was far too fuzzy and low-res to be worth talking about. The newer, hi-res picture looks far more attractive. The picture shows Hugh Jackman as the titular Wolverine in what can only be described as a Japanese style house late at night. The image also suggests that he is not too happy about it.
The Wolverine, directed by James Mangold, will pick up a little while after the events in Brett Ratner’s X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006, seeming to disregard the events from 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, directed by Gavin Hood. Fortunately, both films suggest Logan eventually goes off on his own in search of a fresh start as far away as possible: Japan.
The plot synopsis on IMDB.com is quite vague, promising only that “Wolverine travels to Japan to train with a samurai warrior,” and having Will Yun Lee on the cast list as Kenuichio Harada, AKA Silver Samurai. There are also rumors involving the young daughter of a Yakuza boss that Logan becomes involved with. With such an interesting setting and culturally rich locale, the possibilities are endless.
There’s still plenty of time to speculate, too. The Wolverine hits theaters July 2013, starring Jackman in addition to Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, and Hiroyuki Sanada. While we always have high hopes for comic-based films and superhero movies, one can’t help but assume the studio will somehow find a way to simultaneously please and displease fans (this is geek mythology, after all). However, with such a talented director as James Mangold — who gifted audiences Walk the Line and 3:10 to Yuma — we have a little bit more optimism.
