Age, Biography, and Wiki
Hugh Jackman was born on October 12, 1968, in Sydney, Australia. He is the son of English immigrants Grace McNeil and Christopher John Jackman, who moved to Australia as part of the "Ten Pound Poms" immigration wave in 1967. Jackman's early life was marked by a love for the outdoors and a strong desire to explore the world. His parents divorced when he was eight, and he remained in Australia with his father and two sisters.
| Occupation | Voice Actors |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 12 October 1968 |
| Age | 56 Years |
| Birth Place | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Horoscope | Libra |
| Country | Australia |
Height, Weight & Measurements
- Height: 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm)
- Weight: Approximately 190 pounds (86 kg)
- Measurements: Not specified
At 6ft 2in, Jackman stands 11 in taller than Wolverine, who is said in the original comic book to be 5ft 3in. Hence, the filmmakers were frequently forced to shoot Jackman at unusual angles or only from the waist up to make him appear shorter than he actually is, and his co-stars wore platform soles. Jackman was also required to add a great deal of muscle for the role, and in preparing for the fourth film in the series, he bench-pressed over 136 kg (300 lb).
Jackman appeared alongside Kate Winslet in Movie 43, an ensemble comedy, in January 2013. Jackman (along with actress Kristen Wiig) was featured on "You've Got the Look", a song by comedy hip hop group The Lonely Island on their third album, The Wack Album, released in June 2013. Jackman returned to Broadway in the new play, The River, which ran at the Circle in the Square Theatre from October 2014 to February 2015.
| Height | 6 feet 2 inches |
| Weight | 86 kg |
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Dating & Relationship Status
Hugh Jackman was married to Deborra-Lee Furness from 1996 until they announced their separation in 2023. The couple met on the set of the Australian TV series "Corelli" in 1995 and have two adopted children, Ava and Oscar. In 2023, Deborra-Lee Furness filed for divorce, marking the end of their nearly three-decade-long marriage.
His parents were English and went to Australia in 1967 as part of the "Ten Pound Poms" immigration scheme. Thus, in addition to his Australian citizenship, Jackman holds British citizenship by virtue of being born to UK-born parents. One of his paternal great-grandfathers, Nicholas Isidor Bellas, was Greek, from the Ottoman Empire (now in Greece). His parents were devout Christians, having been converted by Evangelist Billy Graham after their marriage. Jackman has four older siblings and was the second of his parents' children to be born in Australia. He also has a younger half-sister, from his mother's remarriage. His parents divorced when he was eight, and Jackman remained in Australia with his father and two brothers, while his mother moved back to England with Jackman's two sisters. As a child, Jackman liked the outdoors, spending much time at the beach and on camping trips and school holidays all over Australia. He wanted to see the world, saying, "I used to spend nights looking at atlases. I decided I wanted to be a chef on a plane. Because I'd been on a plane and there was food on board, I presumed there was a chef. I thought that would be an ideal job."
On the night of his final Academy graduation performance, Jackman received a phone call offering him a role on Correlli: "I was technically unemployed for thirteen seconds." Correlli, devised by Australian actress Denise Roberts, was a 10-part drama series on ABC, Jackman's first major professional job, and where he met his future wife Deborra-Lee Furness. Jackman stated that "Meeting my wife was the greatest thing to come out of it." The show lasted only one season. After Correlli Jackman went on the stage in Melbourne. In 1996, Jackman played Gaston in the local Walt Disney production of Beauty and the Beast, and Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard. During his stage musical career in Melbourne, he starred in the 1998 Midsumma festival cabaret production Summa Cabaret. He also hosted Melbourne's Carols by Candlelight and Sydney's Carols in the Domain. Jackman's early film works include Erskineville Kings and Paperback Hero (1999), and his television work includes Law of the Land, Halifax f.p., Blue Heelers, and Banjo Paterson's The Man from Snowy River.
Jackman had his breakthrough role playing Wolverine in Bryan Singer's X-Men (2000)—a superhero film based on the Marvel Comics team of the same name. Co-starring Patrick Stewart, James Marsden, Famke Janssen and Ian McKellen, the film tells the story of a group of mutants, whose superhuman powers make them distrusted by normal humans, but who fight to protect humans from villains. The role was originally written for Russell Crowe who instead suggested Jackman for the part. Jackman says that his wife advised him against taking on the role, as she found it "ridiculous". He initially studied wolves to develop his character, as he thought that Wolverine alluded to wolves. X-Men was successful at the box-office, earning US$296 million. The role earned him a Saturn Award for Best Actor.
Jackman portrayed three different characters in Darren Aronofsky's science-fiction film The Fountain: Tommy Creo, a neuroscientist, who is torn between his wife, Izzi (Rachel Weisz), who is dying of a brain tumor, and his work at trying to cure her; Captain Tomas Creo, a Spanish conquistador in 1532 Seville; and a future astronaut, Tom, travelling to a golden nebula in an eco-spacecraft seeking to be reunited with Izzi. Jackman said The Fountain was his most difficult film thus far due to the physical and emotional demands of the part.
In 2008, director Baz Luhrmann cast Jackman to replace Russell Crowe as the male lead in his much-publicised epic film, Australia, which co-starred Nicole Kidman. The movie was released in late November 2008 in Australia and the U.S. Jackman played a tough, independent cattle drover, who reluctantly helps an English noblewoman in her quest to save both her philandering husband's Australian cattle station and the mixed race Aboriginal child she finds there. Of the movie, Jackman said, "This is pretty much one of those roles that had me pinching myself all the way through the shoot. I got to shoot a big-budget, shamelessly old-fashioned romantic epic set against one of the most turbulent times in my native country's history, while, at the same time, celebrating that country's natural beauty, its people, its cultures... I'll die a happy man knowing I've got this film on my CV." That year, People Magazine named Jackman its 2008 "Sexiest Man Alive".
In 2005, Jackman joined with longtime assistant John Palermo to form a production company, Seed Productions, whose first project was Viva Laughlin in 2007. Jackman's wife Deborra-Lee Furness is also involved in the company, and Palermo had three rings made with a "unity" inscription for himself, Furness, and Jackman. Jackman said, "I'm very lucky in the partners I work with in my life, Deb and John Palermo. It really works. We all have different strengths. I love it. It's very exciting."
Jackman is a global advisor of the Global Poverty Project, for which he narrated a documentary. Jackman hosted a preview of the Global Poverty Project Presentation in New York with Donna Karan, Lisa Fox, and his wife Deborra-Lee Furness. Jackman supports The Art of Elysium and the MPTV Fund Foundation, and he and Furness are patrons of the Bone Marrow Institute in Australia.
Jackman was raised Christian, attending multiple revivals during his childhood. In a 2015 interview, he identified as Christian but says his version of faith differs from his father's: "He takes his religion very seriously and would prefer I go to church," "We've had discussions about our separate beliefs. I just find the evangelical church too, well, restrictive." He meditates daily and incorporates teachings from the spiritually eclectic School of Practical Philosophy.
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| Husband | Deborra-Lee Furness (m. 1996-2023) |
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Net Worth and Salary
As of 2025, Hugh Jackman's net worth is estimated between $100 million and $250 million depending on the source. His earnings come primarily from his successful film career, including significant roles in the "X-Men" franchise where he earned up to $20 million per film plus backend profits. He also garnered substantial income from musicals like "The Greatest Showman," where he earned an upfront salary around $10 million. Additionally, he made $5 million for "Les Misérables," excluding box office bonuses.
Career, Business, and Investments
- Early Career: Jackman gained recognition in Australia through stage productions and television roles before his breakthrough as Wolverine in the "X-Men" franchise.
- Film Career Highlights:
- X-Men Franchise: Played Wolverine in numerous films, earning him both critical acclaim and substantial financial rewards.
- The Greatest Showman: Starred alongside Zac Efron and Zendaya in this successful musical.
- Les Misérables: Earned an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Jean Valjean.
- Broadway Career: Notably starred in "The Music Man" on Broadway, which saw a successful run from February 2022 to January 2023.
- Business and Investments: Jackman has also ventured into production and has been involved in various philanthropic efforts.
Jackman reprised his role in 2003's X2, 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand, and the 2009 prequel X-Men Origins: Wolverine, where Troye Sivan played the younger version of James Howlett. He also cameoed as Wolverine in 2011's X-Men: First Class. He returned for the role of Wolverine again in 2013's The Wolverine, a stand-alone sequel taking place after the events of X-Men: The Last Stand, and reprised the character in the 2014 sequel X-Men: Days of Future Past and briefly in the 2016 follow-up X-Men: Apocalypse. In 2015, Jackman announced that the 2017 sequel to The Wolverine, Logan, was the final time that he would play the role. It earned him the Guinness World Record of "longest career as a live-action Marvel superhero", although this record has since been surpassed.
Jackman launched the Laughing Man Coffee company in 2011. He founded two cafés in Lower Manhattan, and also sold the coffee online, before it also became a brand for Keurig. Jackman founded the company after a trip to Ethiopia in 2009 for World Vision, where he met a fair trade coffee farmer named Dukale. All profits from Laughing Man Coffee go to the Laughing Man Foundation, which supports educational programs, community development, and social entrepreneurs around the world.
Social Network
Hugh Jackman is active on social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter, where he engages with fans and shares updates about his projects.
Jackman has said he "always loved acting but when I started at drama school I was like the dunce of the class. It just wasn't coming right to me. Everyone was cooler, everyone seemed more likely to succeed, everyone seemed more natural at it and in retrospect, I think that is good. I think it is good to come from behind as an actor. I think it is good to go into an audition thinking, 'Man I've got to be at my best to get this gig.'".
Jackman became known outside Australia in 1998, when he played the leading role of Curly in the Royal National Theatre's acclaimed stage production of Oklahoma!, in London's West End. The performance earned him an Olivier Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical. Jackman said, "I totally felt like it can't get any better than this. On some level that production will be one of the highlights of my career." He also starred in the 1999 film version of the same stage musical, which has been screened in many countries.
Wolverine was tough for Jackman to portray because he had few lines, but much emotion to convey in them. To prepare, he watched Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry movies and Mel Gibson in Mad Max 2. "There were guys who had relatively little dialogue, like Wolverine had, but you knew and felt everything. I'm not normally one to copy, but I wanted to see how these guys achieved it." Jackman was adamant about doing his own stunts for the movie. "We worked a lot on the movement style of Wolverine, and I studied some martial arts. I watched a lot of Mike Tyson fights, especially his early fights. There's something about his style, the animal rage, that seemed right for Wolverine. I kept saying to the writers, 'Don't give me long, choreographed fights for the sake of it. Don't make the fights pretty." Jackman also had to get used to wearing Wolverine's claws. He said, "Every day in my living room, I'd just walk around with those claws, to get used to them. I've got scars on one leg, punctures straight through the cheek, on my forehead. I'm a bit clumsy. I'm lucky I didn't tell them that when I auditioned."
Jackman is a longtime proponent of microcredit – the extension of very small loans to prospective entrepreneurs in impoverished countries. He is a vocal supporter of Muhammad Yunus, microcredit pioneer and the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner. On 14 April 2009, Jackman posted on his Twitter page that he would donate $100,000 to one individual's favourite non-profit organisation. On 21 April 2009, he revealed his decision to donate $50,000 to Charity:Water and $50,000 to Operation of Hope.
In November 2013, Jackman announced he had basal-cell carcinoma removed from his nose. He had a second carcinoma removed from his nose in May 2014, telling Associated Press that he expects to have future recurrences. This resulted in Jackman attending the various worldwide premieres of X-Men: Days of Future Past with a bandage on his nose and urging his Instagram followers to wear sunscreen. In April 2023, Jackman shared in a social media update that his biopsy results had all returned negative. He had tests taken as a precaution after his doctor observed symptoms that, according to the doctor, "could be or could not be" basal-cell carcinomas. Jackman has undergone multiple procedures to remove skin cancer. He has continued to stress the significance of wearing high-SPF sunscreen regardless of the season.
Jackman has been a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation since the age of twenty. He said "Nothing has ever opened my eyes like Transcendental Meditation has. It makes me calm and happy, and, well, it gives me some peace and quiet in what's a pretty chaotic life!". He now helps the David Lynch Foundation to "bring meditation to everyone from PTSD sufferers to inner-city kids".
Jackman has been the face of several high-profile brands. He is a global ambassador for Montblanc. He is also the brand ambassador of R. M. Williams since March 2019.
Education
Jackman attended the University of Technology, Sydney, where he earned a degree in communications. He later graduated from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) in 1994.
Jackman has headlined films in various genres, including the romantic comedy Kate & Leopold (2001), the action-horror Van Helsing (2004), the drama The Prestige (2006), the period romance Australia (2008), the science fiction Real Steel (2011), the musical Les Misérables (2012), the thriller Prisoners (2013), the musical The Greatest Showman (2017), the political drama The Front Runner (2018), and the crime drama Bad Education (2019). For his role as Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, and for The Greatest Showman soundtrack, Jackman received a Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack. He also provided voice roles in the animated films Flushed Away, Happy Feet (both 2006), Rise of the Guardians (2012) and Missing Link (2019).
Jackman went to primary school at Pymble Public School and later attended the all-boys Knox Grammar School on Sydney's Upper North Shore, where he starred in its production of My Fair Lady in 1985 and became the school captain in 1986. He spent a gap year in 1987 working at Uppingham School in England as a Physical Education teacher. On his return, he studied at the University of Technology Sydney, graduating in 1991 with a BA in Communications. In his final year of university, he took a drama course to make up additional credits. The class did Václav Havel's The Memorandum with Jackman as the lead. He later commented, "In that week I felt more at home with those people than I did in the entire three years [at university]".
After obtaining his BA, Jackman completed the one-year course "The Journey" at the Actors' Centre in Sydney. About studying acting full-time, he stated, "It wasn't until I was 22 that I ever thought about my hobby being something I could make a living out of. As a boy, I'd always had an interest in theatre. But the idea at my school was that drama and music were to round out the man. It wasn't what one did for a living. I got over that. I found the courage to stand up and say, 'I want to do it'." After completing "The Journey", he was offered a role on the popular soap opera Neighbours but turned it down to attend the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts of Edith Cowan University in Perth, Western Australia, from which he graduated in 1994.
Jackman starred in the comedy drama Bad Education (2019), opposite Allison Janney. Jackman and Laura Dern starred in Florian Zeller's film The Son, adapted from Zeller's own play of the same name.
In high school, Jackman played rugby union and cricket, took part in high jumping and was on the swimming team. He enjoys basketball and kayaking. He has expressed an interest in football, committing his support to Norwich City F.C. In the United States, Jackman supports the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer, attending a match at PPL Park in June 2010.
