Really Bad News — Darren Aronofsky No Longer Directing ‘The Wolverine’

Well this almost completely dashes my hopes for The Wolverine being any good. Darren Aronofsky, director of The Wrestler, Black Swan, and Requiem for a Dream, is no longer taking the reigns of the latest Wolverine adaptation. Initially I thought it was a strange move for this unique director to lead a new Wolverine seeing as the last one was in most regards, a failure (after watching it twice, the film has almost no replay value). Though I thought it was odd for Aronofsky to direct, I was definitely excited to see what he could bring to the series. Now this anticipation is snuffed with him gone; a search for a new director has begun.

While this happened a few days back, I had to share this with readers. Sadly, we learned (via The Hollywood Reporter) that Aronofsky would bow out because he would be out of the country away from his family for too long while filming The Wolverine.

Here is what the Black Swan director had to say:

As I talked more about the film with my collaborators at Fox, it became clear that the production of The Wolverine would keep me out of the country for almost a year. I was not comfortable being away from my family for that length of time. I am sad that I won’t be able to see the project through, as it is a terrific script and I was very much looking forward to working with my friend, Hugh Jackman, again.

Here is what 20th Century Fox added to the conversation:

While we are of course disappointed that Darren can’t do The Wolverine, we also understand and respect his reasons.  Having done both The Wrestler and Black Swan with Darren, we know he is an extraordinary talent and we look forward to working with him on other projects in the future. Hugh Jackman and Fox both remain fully committed to making The Wolverine.  We will regroup and move forward aggressively.

Given the recent earthquakes and disasters in Japan, could this have influenced his decision to leave The Wolverine? Seeing as a huge portion of the film will be shot there, my guess would be yes. It is sad to see this talent leave the project which now most likely will be less good. I thought X-Men Origins: Wolverine was not a very good film, and Aronofsky was the right path towards remedying this previous failure. Who will be next in line to direct this film? Stay tuned.

Are you as sad as I am to see Darren leave The Wolverine?