It seems like superhero films have always been a part of our paradigm, but it all began with X-Men . The film’s humble hopes eventually snowballed into one of the most successful franchises of all time.
In order to celebrate this iconic achievement, here are 10+ X-Men behind the scenes secrets that’s fans didn’t know. Trust me, bub, you’re going to want to pay attention.
1. Right from the start, the public wanted Sir Patrick Stewart to play Charles Xavier.
“From time to time at conventions, some people might have said, “Mr. Stewart, Mr. Stewart have you ever considered playing Professor Xavier .” And then when the movie became distinct possibility there was this huge web campaign for me.”
2. Rebecca Romijn threw up all over Hugh Jackman while filming their fight scene.
Rebecca suffered a reaction as a result of the blue body paint that she was wearing (and as a result of a few tequila shots too!).
She was celebrating the final day of shooting a little too early as it would seem.
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3. Sir Ian McKellan might not have been Gandalf the Grey were it not for Bryan Singer.
“It’s only because Bryan Singer is a gentleman and talked to Peter Jackson and they agreed quite unofficially, nothing in writing, that Singer would get me out of X-Men in time to do Fellowship of the Ring that I was able to do both parts,” Ian explained.
4. Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellan didn’t know how to play chess at the time.
“Yes, Bryan Singer set up a scene where Ian and I were playing chess . He said, “Ok, why don’t you all just make some moves.” I said, “Well, I don’t know how to play.” He said, “Ian?” Sir Ian said he didn’t know how to play either.”
5. Hugh Jackman took ice-cold showers in order to help tap into Wolverine’s rage.
“I turned the water on and was waiting and I got in and I couldn t make a noise. I don t know how it was running; it was that cold. After 20 to 30 seconds I thought, ‘This is exactly how [Wolverine] feels all the time. It’s that inner rage but you can’t yell or [do anything.” ](( https://www.imdb.com/news/ni0762731 )
6. It took an insane amount of time to apply Rebecca Romijn’s Mystique makeup.
During an interview with Larry King, Rebecca admitted that while she looks back on her time on set with fond memories, there were elements that she’d rather forget.
Mainly, sitting in a makeup chair for nine hours a day!
7. Hugh Jackman studied wolves for the role of Wolverine.
Hugh was a little foggy as to just what exactly a wolverine was. In his defense, he’d gone his entire life without ever seeing one.
Bryan Singer had to explain that a wolverine is actually a close relative of the badger.
8. Wolverine’s dog tags are comic book accurate.
A fact that many people tend to conveniently forget is that Wolverine is Canadian!
Production even went through the trouble of making sure that his dog tags were the exact type issued by the Canadian military .
9. The mansion used for Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters might look familiar.
In real life, the mansion is known as the Parkwood Estate and it’s located in Oshawa, ON. This was also the exact same location where Adam Sandler filmed Billy Madison .
10. Bryan Singer prohibited the cast from reading X-Men comics.
Hugh Jackman explains that “It was like contraband . I’d never read X-Men, so people slipped them under my door. I’m reading these things, I’m going, ‘These are brilliant. Look at the physicality.'”
But that didn’t stop Hugh or the cast from reading them.
“So I would go into Kevin Feige ‘s office, and it was wall-to-wall- not only comics all over, but about 600 figurines of different characters. And I’d be like, ‘What should I read?’ So he was slipping me stuff, and we’ve stayed friends ever since.”
11. Patrick Stewart wasn’t a fan of filming the Cerebro sequences.
“Oh, I spent days up there. And it was hard to get down and there was nowhere to go up there. Sometimes I would nap because it was very warm . Or I’d meditate.”
12. Hugh Jackman was nearly fired from the set!
“Five weeks into shooting ‘X-Men’, I was on the verge of getting fired . The head of the studio pulled me aside at lunch and he told me that they were worried at the studio, that they weren’t seeing on camera what they’d seen in the audition.”
13. Production installed a special pocket in Xavier’s wheelchair for Patrick Stewart’s video game.
“I’m a Tetris man. I had a little pocket hidden on the back of the chair where I can hide it from the cameras. I could just pull it out and just play.”
14. Sir Patrick and Sir Ian’s bromance began while on set!
The pair had met back in the ’70s but became incredibly close after filming began. Sir Ian even ended up officiating Sir Patrick’s wedding ceremony !
Ian and Patrick are the true Hollywood power couple.
