For ten movies, Hugh Jackman has consistently
portrayed Wolverine in live-action, making him the longest standing actor to
play a comic-book superhero. By extent, he’s also had more action scenes than
any other actor portraying a superhero, and often did his own stunts. It’s
quiet the accomplishment, and it shouldn’t go un-celebrated. Thus, the time
felt right to stop and rank my top twenty favorite solo Wolverine action scenes
from the live-action movies.
#20 Protecting
his Ride: Wolverine versus the Car Thieves (from “Logan”)
Aside from
the special Extended Cut of “The Wolverine”, “Logan” was the
first of the characters real R-Rated movies, and it didn’t waste any time to
see some brutal action. Right from the start, we see Wolverine battling a group
of car thieves … and it is brutal. The set-up is simple, but the sequence is
memorable, and it effectively sets the tone for gritty fights that would come
later in the film.
#19 Bedroom
Brawl: Wolverine versus Hit-Men (from “X-Men: Days of Future Past”)
On a journey
through time, Wolverine lands in the past, and in the company of a crime bosses
lovely daughter. This gets the attention of some Hitmen, who don’t take Logans
offer to just walk away before he breaks out the claws. It’s a short brawl, but
a cool sequence all the same, and it highlights that our hero can be just as
awesome with bone claws, instead of his slicker metal claws.
#18 Lumber Yard Rumble: Wolverine vs Sabretooth (from “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”)
After losing his love Silver Fox at the hands of his savage brother, Wolverine finds himself out for blood, leading into his first of many showdowns with his arch foe Sabretooth. For all this movies faults, Liev Schreiber made for a terrific Sabretooth, and their first match-up in the abandoned lumber yard is suitably white knuckled … or sharp clawed, given both their trademark weapons. Of their many fights, this is the only one with some urgency, as Wolverine takes a wallop, and is left beaten. It’s hard to have suspense in a battle between immortals, but this Lumber brawl at least had some tension, and fine use of the surroundings.
#17 Testing
his Metal: Wolverine versus the Silver Samurai (from “The Wolverine”)
In this frequently criticized final battle, we see Wolverine engage a giant metal robot called The Silver Samurai. While I have great fondness for this movie overall, this battle is admittedly out of place with the established tone and presentation of the film. Having said that ... this is still a fairly awesome set-piece on its own. Seeing Wolverine go up against a robot soldier three times his size is nothing short of awesome, and the indoor location of this giant tower is really cool, as it allows the characters to cover a lot of ground.
Not to mention, The Silver Samurai poses a real threat to Wolverine, and he’s the only adversary who can actually cut through his metal claws. It’s still at odds with the film as a whole, and the villain barely resembles his comic book counterpart, but the battle on its own is still worth highlighting.
#16 Brothers in Arms: Wolverine and Sabretooth versus Weapon 11 (from “X-Men Origins Wolverine”)
The most criticized Wolverine movie is back with another memorable set-piece in its own right. At the end of the film, Wolverine battles a new foe called Weapon 11 (not Deadpool, this is a completely different character) on Three Mile Island in a climactic final showdown. Unfortunately for our lead hero, Weapon 11 has more than just two swords … he also has a wide collection of different mutant powers, and ... I think that’s awesome! I know I’m in the minority about this, but I’ve always wanted to see a character that utilized several powers at once.
Plus, the final fight scene with Wolverine and Sabretooth teaming up to battle Weapon 11 is fantastic. There’s a novelty in seeing a hero and villain join forces, it’s shot beautifully, it’s a big spectacle, and manages to thrill even though I’m not invested in the characters or story. It’s certainly the goofiest battle of the series, but one that I can take enjoyment from for just how over-the-top it goes.
#15 Barn Yard Attack: Wolverine versus Evil Clone [The X-24] (from “Logan”)
While on the run, Logan, his daughter Laura, and Professor X seek refuge on a family farm. It’s a calm and peaceful rest, with Wolverine observing what it means to be part of a family again. Unfortunately, this peace time just can’t last, as an evil Wolverine clone sneaks in, and attempts to kidnap Logans little girl. What results is the bloodiest and most tragic sequence of any X-Men film, and sets-up Wolverines clone as his most lethal adversary by a mile.
While Logan is successful in rescuing his little girl, the damage is done, and the encounter leaves him emotionally and physically damaged beyond anything his healing powers can withstand. A part of me wants to rank this higher, but there’s a better battle with Wolverine’s evil clone still to come.
#14 Mansion
Raid: Wolverine versus Strikers Soldiers (from “X2: X-Men United”)
While
looking after the younger mutants at the X-Mansion, the team’s most ruthless
human enemy, Colonel Striker lays siege to the grounds, and aims to take the students
into custody. Wolverine naturally is the one opposition standing between the
invaders and their targets, and it leads into a memorable set-piece. I’ll admit,
I always felt this sequence was holding back from its full potential, and to
often cut-away from the action, but with that said … this was a special event
for the character. It was Wolverines first battle in which he used his claws to
take out a number of attacking adversaries. The standout highlight is Wolverine
disposing of an intruder in the kitchen.
#13 Battle at the Campground: Wolverine versus
Spike and the Brotherhood (from “X-Men 3: The Last Stand”)
On a
personal mission to find, and win back the emotionally lost and confused Jean
Grey, Wolverine has to infiltrate the camp sight of Magneto’s Brother Hood of
evil Mutants. It doesn’t take long for him to get spotted, resulting in a
riveting standoff with the mutant Spike, and various other Brotherhood members.
There’s an awesome stunt with Wolverine doing a back flip off a tree, and
unlike the previously mentioned battle at the mansion, this fight doesn’t cut
away from all the action.
#12 Escaping the Weapon X Base: Wolverine versus Strikers Soldiers (from “X-Men Apocalypse”)
Amidst a
mission to stop the evil Apocalypse from ending the world, the X-Men find
themselves taken captive by Colonel Striker and his troops. In order to escape,
the younger members release the captive Wolverine, who goes into full berserker
rage against Strikers Soldiers. It’s debatable whether a solo Wolverine
sequence in a non-Wolverine movie was to the films benefit or detriment … but
as a sequence in of itself, this is one of the character’s best. It makes up
for the lack of a savage escape in his origin movie, and it’s arguably his most
violent brawl from any of his PG-13 X-Men pictures.
#11 Battle in the Waist land: Wolverine vs Deadpool and Sabretooth (from “Deadpool and Wolverine”)
Before our two heroes can work together to save Deadpool’s home dimension from utter annihilation, they let out their pent-up rage and anger with each other in the waist lands of 20th Century Fox. It’s always a treat to see two iconic superheroes team-up, and it’s just as big a treat to see them fight each other. Once again, there’s no real danger in seeing two immortals knock each other down, but the setting, the banter and the payoff is all there, and it makes for a very satisfying treat. Also, with a last-minute appearance from Sabretooth, it led to one of the funnier, yet still awesome moments of the film.
#10 The
Motorcycle chase: Wolverine vs Agent Zero (from “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”)
While on the
run from Colonel Striker, and his Weapon X team, Wolverine finds himself
fiercely pursued by an armed helicopter and battle vehicles. Once again, despite
being one of the more critically maligned entries in the franchise, it’s not
without its entertaining highlights. Wolverines big motorcycle chase admittedly
has its faults that keep it at the low end of great for me, but it’s still
immensely satisfying to see him cutting through the sides of battle jeeps,
slicing through gun turrets, and the shot of Wolverine using his claws as a
parking brake is one of the character’s most memorable action shots. There’s
also great use of practical effects, including a barn that blew-up on set, and
even a real helicopter that was totaled for this sequence.
#9 The
Funeral Brawl: Wolverine and Yukio versus the Yakuza (from “The Wolverine”)
As Wolverine
is paying respects to a late soldier, the funeral and all its occupants are
ambushed by Yakuza assassins. Thankfully, Wolverine and his partner Yukio are
on hand to battle the invaders. Both the set-up and even the setting itself are
fairly simple, but the execution is great, with tight fighting choreography,
excellent staging, lots of energy, and there’s even a fair amount of tension as
Wolverine’s vulnerable side is exposed. It’s also the battle that launches all
the action moving forward, making it one of the most important to the
narrative.
#8 Battling
a shapeshifter: Wolverines versus Mystique (from “X-Men”)
For his
first movie, we saw Mystique engage Wolverine in a deeply thrilling scuffle, and
it still holds-up as one of our heroes best showdowns. Before we saw Wolverine
battle an evil clone in “Logan”, we got to see him battle a shapeshifter
taking on his likeness, which makes Hugh Jackman the only other actor to battle
himself more than William Shatner did on “Star Trek”. This is also a great-looking
sequence, with the red-lighting giving the fight some personality, great use of prop-weapons, and the surprise pay-off at the end is fantastic.
#7 Car Rumble: Wolverine versus Deadpool (from “Deadpool and Wolverine”)
As established before, Wolverine and Deadpool are a unique pairing of superheroes, who spend as much time fighting each other as they do fighting their enemies. While their initial waist-land match is great, it’s their second battle inside the confines of a car that really stands out as their most creative and entertaining. It’s such a different setting for a fight and manages to work some comedy into the white knuckled action on display.
#6 The
Bullet Train Chase: Wolverine versus the Yakuza (from “The Wolverine”)
In his
efforts to keep the Japanese Princess Mariko (company princess, not country),
Wolverine finds himself once again brawling with the ever-persistent Yakuza
assassins. Their second engagement culminates in a thrilling set-piece on the
roof of a bullet train, and the fight is just as breathless as the locomotive they’re
trapped on. Seeing everyone leaping over oncoming obstacles, our hero faking
out one of the goons, and an awesome final shot of Wolverine launching himself
at one of the assassins, it’s one of the films main highlights, and one of
Wolverines iconic set-pieces.
#5 Battle on the Crown of the Statue of Liberty: Wolverines versus Sabretooth (from “X-Men”)
When the X-Men are forced to act against Magneto, who’s hatching a plan on the Stature of Liberty, the big highlight is the final duel between Wolverine and Sabretooth on the head-peace of the statue. This is personally one of my favorite action scenes in the whole series, and the head piece is the perfect setting for these two characters to duke it out.
One of the biggest things I always looked
forward to from both the X-Men comics and the T.V. show were the fights between
Wolverine and Sabretooth, so it was a big treat to see a live action battle
between the two, and while they’d face-off again in other live-action movies,
this still stands as their most memorable. While the staging could have been
shot a little better, it’s still an iconic set-piece, and features some awesome
slow-motion shots, most notably when Wolverine spins on the crown.
#4 Two of a Kind: Wolverine versus Lady Deathstrike (from
“X2: X-Men United”)
Universally regarded as one of the greatest action scenes from any superhero movie, Wolverines showdown with Lady Deathstrike absolutely shines as one of Wolverines best fights, with relentless energy on display in the staging, choreography, editing and even camera work. It’s also the perfect setting for these two to scratch-up their surroundings, and it leads to a really cool villain death.
As established several times on this list, Wolverine frequently
battles foes with healing powers and sharp claws, but this one still packs the
excitement, the intensity and is just plain awesome. The only thing lacking is
any kind of personal conflict between our hero and villain, as that was one of
the strengths of their characters in both the show and comics, and had that
element been present, this would have been my favorite of Wolverines battles.
#3 Village
Battle: Wolverine and Yukio Versus the Black Ninja Clan (from “The Wolverine” [Extended-Cut])
During a mission to protect the air to the largest Japanese company, Wolverine finds himself falling in love with the young woman and is determined to keep her safe. Unfortunately, it’s not too long before she gets kidnaped, and our favorite clawed hero goes in pursuit to rescue her. The scene plays out and is even shot like a classic medieval fable, with the beautiful princess locked in a tower and the brave knight battling various obstacles, with the figurative dragon coming in the form of a young swordsman leading a well-armed band of Ninja’s.
The ensuing battle with Wolverine fighting the Black Clan in the abandoned village regrettably wasn’t in the theatrical cut of the film, but the extended cut put it back in its rightful place, and it’s personally one of my favorite action scenes of the whole X-Men film series. We have ninjas driving motorcycles on rooftops, along with chain whips, explosions, Yukio drives this massive snowplow and literally shreds the villains in her path ... it’s just crazy awesome!
The setting is also really cool, and it’s just a refreshing
departure from what you’d usually see in an X-Men film. Typically, in these
films we only see Wolverine battle another super-powered mutant, but it’s cool
to see a clan of ninja’s deliver something new, as well as provide a real
challenge for our hero to concur.
#2 Getting
the Bug Out: Wolverine and Yukio vs Shin-Gin (from “The Wolverine”)
After being put through the ringer, Wolverine finally discovers a genetically created silver fish embedded in his chest, which is slowing down his healing. In order to rescue his friend Marico from the black ninja clan, he undergoes a dangerous surgery on his own to get the bug out. During the operation, he’s attacked by Marico’s wicked father Shin-Gin, who’s ready to finish the job his assassins couldn’t, and Wolverines only defense is his partner Yukio.
It’s obvious this
movie contains most of my favorite Wolverine battles, and this one is my
personal favorite. The tension, in-camera action, staging and fight
choreography in this sequence is brilliant. It also builds to a sensational
payoff with Wolverine defeating his enemy, while embracing his warrior’s name,
which he had been dismissive of through the whole film. It could have been my
favorite Wolverine battle … if not for one other.
Before I
reveal my Number One favorite Wolverine Fight, here are some quick Honorable
Mentions …
Wolverine versus Gambit from “X-Men: Origins Wolverine”
Cage Match
from “X-Men”
Battle with Juggernaut from “X-Men 3: The Last Stand”
Deadpool
Army from “Deadpool & Wolverine”
Boxing with
Blob from “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”
#1 His Last
Stand: Wolverine and X-23 versus the Reevers and X-24 (from “Logan”)
To no-one’s surprise, the Wolverine battle landing at number one on my list is his brutal and emotional final stand. As we build to the finale, our heroes meet more genetically cloned mutant children who are being hunted by the cybernetic Reavers. The set-up couldn’t be simpler, as it’s just Wolverine and his daughter fighting off armed troopers in the woods, just to keep some kids safe.
It’s so simplistic, yet it’s so much more engaging than the super-powered brawls we usually get from most comic book films. Seeing Wolverine and X-23 fight side by side is a dream come true. This is also the most intense battle of the X-Men series, as our hero is beaten, bruised, bloody and out of breath the whole time. I wouldn’t have pegged a fight between Wolverine and an evil double ganger to be his most thrilling matchup, but this one really hit it out of the park.
When the fighting concludes, we get to the films big, emotional highlight ... the death of Wolverine. To kill a big-name superhero like Wolverine is a risky venture if not handled well, but I’m happy to say that it was very well earned in this film … and lands this as my favorite of Wolverines theatrical battles.
That
concludes my list, thanks for reading … and continue to enjoy the movies you
Love!
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