Dwayne Johnson’s Rumored X-Men Villain Casting Could Mean That Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine Will Change the Sides in the Upcoming MCU Phases

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ marked several important things in the MCU. It’s Deadpool’s & Wolverine’s first foray into the cinematic universe, but as Feige mentioned, it’s also the start of a mutant era in the MCU.

While we know that X-Men are coming via the upcoming live-action X-Men reboot, we know that they are going to need a villain to fight. We can only guess who that villain might be, but if some recent rumors are correct, we know that Wolverine is heading toward one dark path.

Several months back, Dwayne “The Rock’ Johnson was reportedly eyed for an MCU role, conveniently at around the same time his production house signed a deal with Disney, meaning that Seven Bucks Production will collaborate across all Disney divisions, and the projects may feature Johnson as a star.

One of the potential projects was the X-Men live-action reboot, and fans quickly jumped into the fray to fan-cast Johnson as Apocalypse, one of the most powerful and menacing villains when it comes to mutants in general.

How is this connected to Wolverine you ask? Well, the story we are about to reference technically already started in ‘X-Men ’97’ season 1, but might as well be touched upon in the MCU.

When Magneto managed to strip Wolverine from his adamantium skeleton he was desperate. With the adamantium gone, Wolverine’s healing factor was severely taxed, revealing just how much the metal had messed with it. His claws, which had previously been encased in adamantium, were now revealed as bone. Without the weight and structure provided by the metal, Wolverine’s body started to revert to a more feral, animalistic state. His appearance became more primal, and his behavior more savage.

Losing the adamantium was a psychological blow to Wolverine. He felt vulnerable and weakened, which led to a crisis of confidence. Eventually, after several failed attempts to restore his metal skeleton, Wolverine encountered Apocalypse, who made him an irresistible offer.

Eventually, Wolverine’s adamantium was restored by Apocalypse during the “The Twelve” storyline. Apocalypse captured Wolverine and bonded adamantium back to his skeleton as part of a plan to turn him into his Horseman of Death. Though Wolverine resisted the transformation he also knew that Sabretooth as Death would be far more dangerous so he fought him for the right to become one of the horsemen. He regained his adamantium-laced skeleton and claws.

This is one of the most important Wolverine storylines in the comics, and seeing it play out in the MCU would be brutal.

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