Hugh Jackman (on the short list of Oscar favorites for his work in Les Misérables) opens up to PARADE this weekend about his role in Les Mis, taking risks, cherishing fatherhood, and what makes his 16-year marriage work. Here are a few highlights:
ON MAKING HIS MARRIAGE WORK:
“I am the pragmatic, steady, sensible one. Deb is the hilarious, fun, sexy, crazy, impractical one. When it comes to the kids, I’m strict and she’s lenient. But deep down, we’re very similar. We get each other completely without ever having to speak, and we have pretty much since day one.”
ON BEING A FATHER:
“I feel so lucky to have both a son and a daughter, because there’s a different relationship with each of them. Instinctively as a man, you know what your son has to go through. So I think you’re a little tougher. … With a daughter, this protective side comes out. When I come home, my daughter will run to the door and give me a big hug, and everything that’s happened that day just melts away.”
ON THE LATEST WOLVERINE FILM:
“Okay, the movie takes place after X-Men: The Last Stand. My character is at his lowest. He is supposed to be able to healhimself, but he may encounter someone who has worked out a way to really hurt him. And there is a cameo from one of the past X-Men in it.”
ON AIRBRUSHING THE NEW PHOTOS OF THE WOLVERINE:
“No, I had to do it the hard way. Let me tell you, at 44 it’s not getting easier.”
ON BEING A FOODIE:
“My gosh, I love food. If I wasn’t an actor, I could be a completely different body shape right now. But I finished filming [The Wolverine] four days ago, so I’m eating pretty much anything that comes my way!”
See video of Jackman’s Les Mis costars dishing about him here.
