Petition to make Danny DeVito the next Wolverine breaks 30,000 mark
Maybe it’s the tufty facial hair or his habit of playing irascible characters, but a group of Marvel fans have decided that if Hugh Jackman no longer wants to play X-Men’s Wolverine, then there’s only one other actor who can replace him – Danny DeVito.
At least that’s what Ring Arius, who started a petition to Marvel on Change.org, believes – as do the 30,000 plus people who have now signed it.
The number of people signing has rocketed in the last week, doubling from its 13,000 just days ago to over 30,000 today.
To celebrate hitting the landmark number, Arius posted a video update, in which he read out some of the comments left on his page.
Reasons behind choosing the Twins star included his height – Wolverine is apparently 5'3", while DeVito is 4'10" – and his character Trashman, a wrestling character that DeVito’s Frank create for himself in long-running US comedy It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
There is a history of people petitioning Marvel through the Change.org platform. Previous campaigns have sought to reinstate James Gunn as director of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise (which did indeed happen) and have Tobey Maguire cameo in a new Spider-Man movie.
Read more: More than 240 000 people sign petition to give James Gunn his job back
DeVito appears to have competition though in his bid to become the next wolfman. There is in fact a rival petition on Change.org which asks Marvel to cast Indian actor Rajat Tokas in the role. It also has a high volume of interest, with nearly 26,000 people pledging their signatures to the cause.
Tokas is only 27 and the argument for his casting is to “consider him for the audition of Wolverine, a younger and newer version.” Adding, “We know, the Wolverine is of Canadian origin and Mr Hugh Jackman is loved for his portrayal throughout the world.
“We also know, that our Rajat Tokas is not a reigning superstar of Hollywood Cinema yet, we still aspire for an audition for WOLVERINE as we are convinced that he would make himself worthy of your decision by giving his sweat and blood like he does each time.”
