The “spectacularly” bad audition that haunts Hugh Jackman: “Just humilated”
The moment Hugh Jackman first appeared as Wolverine in the first X-Men movie, people knew he was going to be a star. Since then, he has dominated Hollywood. As well as reprising his most famous role nine times, he’s appeared in several other blockbusters, been nominated for an Oscar, and even hit the UK Top 20 with a song from The Greatest Showman.
That last film, the cuddly and happy story of real-life monster PT Barnum, reconnected Jackman with his roots. Prior to his film career taking off, he was a star of the stage in both his native Australia and the United Kingdom. He was even nominated for a prestigious Olivier Award in 1999 for his performance as Curly in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma! This was right before a quirk of fate led him to the gruff, cigar-smoking mutant that would define his legacy.
As with any actor before they hit it big, Jackman had to audition for his roles. Movie auditions are brutal enough, but ones for the stage are even harder, especially musicals, and our hero found this out the hard way. While presenting An Evening with Hugh Jackman, a variety show beamed from Los Angeles’ iconic Hollywood Bowl, the man from ‘Down Under’ recalled a moment from early in his career that will stick with him for life.
“I read first and I could tell it was going well,” he recalled to Variety. “Then I sang and I cracked on the final note so spectacularly. Like it was the worst crack you could have ever imagined. Whatever excitement was on the panel, it just deflated immediately. I was about to run out, just humiliated.”
The song Jackman chose for his audition was a big one. It was ‘Stars’, one of the most famous pieces from the legendary musical Les Misérables. Sung by Javert, the lawman on the hunt for the Elusive Jean Valjean, the song is a monologue of his innermost thoughts. He is literally asking the stars themselves for help in his pursuit, complimenting them for staying true to their cause and never failing to light the heavens. When asked during this disastrous audition why he selected ‘Stars’, Jackman admitted that it was the only song he had the music for. The response he got was brutal, as the casting director said he could “throw that away”, as he would “never sing that again”.
Of course, the big joke here is that Jackman and Les Misérables are now intrinsically linked. In 2012, he starred as Valjean in the Tom Hooper-directed big screen adaptation of the stage show. Anne Hathaway won an Oscar for her brief appearance as Fontaine, while the role of Javert went to Hugh’s old pal Russell Crowe. Ironically, the response to the latter’s performance, which includes a rendition of “Stars”, was so roundly criticised that it would have been better if Jackman had sung the song again. Poor Russell, he wasn’t that bad.
The true strength of any successful actor is their ability to brush off criticism or take it in their stride and get back on the horse. Jackman could have taken this bad review to heart and walked away from musicals altogether. Instead, he kept going until, one day, he had the last laugh.
