First Look: USA Today

[Colossal Spoons]

I'm definitely in awe of Hugh for dropping and adding ridiculous amounts of weight, no question about it. Will Smith has done the same(though not to such an extreme). I'm not writing off the possibility of Hugh hopping on a cycle of HGH but his muscles and musculature aren't impossible to attain naturally ya know? This most recent pic of Wolvie is photoshopped to hell and back lol. I look forward to seeing him on screen. I should be able to tell almost immediately if he's been using any kind of enhancer when I see him on screen.

Nice to see a fellow comic-nerd bodybuilder THOMAS. You should swing by the Fitness thread in the Community sometime

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

There's a fitness thread??????

I'm there Colossal.

And do you know how I can create an Avatar pic?

-TL

 

[Colossal Spoons]

You need about 241 more posts for a small one

Yeah, the Fitness thread is a blast

http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=219170

 

[Nightwing 52]

Definitely a great image.

 

[Adam]

Very sexy... but why is 20th century Fox releasing this a promo pic instead of DB? it comes out before this (I think.)

 

[Celestial]

Use of HGH for bodybuilding is illegal in Australia. I could be naive, but I doubt Jackman would be willing to risk his reputation for the sake of a little muscle growth.

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

Jackman would keep it quiet Celestial. Just as Stallone tried to do while filming Rambo until he got caught.

-TL

 

[Celestial]

Stallone doesn't have a reputation to lose and he was only visiting the country.

Jackman is very much the favoured son and patron of various charities and development programmes for young people. Why would someone with his talents and reputation risk being caught doing something so stupid for the sake of a little muscle development?

 

[antonydelfini]

The picture is SICK! The picture is SICK! The best Jackman as Wolvie pic yet, and one of the best Superhero movie pics yet. The rage and raw power the pic generates is too much for me!

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

Ok Celestial I get your point in the Legal department, but lets hold on for a minute on calling the use of Human Growth Hormone a stupid thing.

If you go back to one of my earlier posts you'll read on how HGH can be a great benefit to men in their 40s. Not to mention that it is the only cure for Andropause - which is the decline in testosterone levels on an older man. Aside from its healing powers, it can also maintain extremely low body fat without the need of excessive dieting. And Celestial, it doesn't just provide a little muscle development. It provides 60% of the gains on the user. Hugh has gained 45 lbs of lean muscle mass in an 8 year period. Some men take 10 years in gaining 20. And these men do not have low body fat throughout the entire year. They stay thick and bulky three quarters of the year to build muscle and finally lean out for the summer. Hugh isn't a mutant. Hugh is a human being, and HGH is a great tool for human beings that wanna look and grow the way he does. The fact that its illegal in Australia is just a real kick in Jackman's nuts.

-TL

 

[Celestial]

All very interesting, but he's not yet in his 40s and he's been training since 1995 when he was 27. Judging from pictures, he started his training for this some time between October 2006 and February 2007 as he went into the filming of Australia (April 2007) a lot bigger than he is normally and seemed to maintain that weight throughout the shoot. To me, that suggests long-term planning.

 

[04nbod]

its a nice photo. I still wish we had a full cast x4 instead

 

[narrows101]

Celestial is correct, plus Hugh works out even when he isn't filming or about to film an X-Men movie - he has always said it's part of his daily routine. He is very dedicated when it comes to a character he plays - he even watched brain surgery on a woman to prepare for his role in "The Fountain." There was a post somewhere on this board about what his exercise regime entailed. Here's a quote from 2006:

http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2006/05/23/hugh_jackman_bulked_up_for_x_men_through

5/23/06
Hugh Jackman Bulked Up For 'X-Men' Through Hard Work, Special Effects

http://www.starpulse.com/Movies/X-Men_3/Hugh Jackman is furious with claims he took steroids to bulk up for his role in the third X-Men movie. The Australian actor changed his shape dramatically to reprise the role of Wolverine in X-Men: The Last Stand - but he insists it was all down to hard work.

Jackman says, "I would never take steroids, I think nothing is worse. I had to do an hour and a half in the gym every morning. But there were some special effects too, They even managed to make Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart look years younger.

 

[Jick]

Don't his claw knuckles look really FAKE???

that's the first thing I said when I saw the pic.
pretty sick, by the way.

I HIGHLY doubt that, keep dreaming. With teens/kids being one of the main draws, Marvel or Fox would never let that happen.

"keep dreaming"?
where did I say that I want it to be Rated R?
read twice, next time.
I'm fine with whatever they're doing.

 

[CeeJay]

That is a freakin' BEAUTIFUL photo!!!!!!!!!!

He looks sexy and probably more ripped than he's ever been for his Wolverine character. I'm so happy with this project so far!

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

Celestial and Narrows101,

Apparently you are not reading my posts.

Jackman is 39 years old. Testosterone begins to decline at 38. Hugh had been training since '95, but not gaining 20 lbs. of muscle per film 'til he started playing Wolverine. Human Growth Hormone is not a steroid. And Jackman would not confirm taking it if asked, because most people (like some here) deem HGH a bad thing. People that don't know the benefits of it will automatically call it a cop-out. "An easy way of gaining muscle". Not true at all. You have to work out just as hard when taking it, yet you don't have to kill yourself dieting and your gains will keep coming in on a weekly basis. One of its greatest benefits is its healing power. Bodybuilding is a sport that will always produce injuries. HGH can speed up the healing process on strained and fatigued muscles, as well as bad joints due to heavy lifting. Recovery with HGH is multiplied by 3.

"Long term planning" unless its 20 years, cannot produce 40 lbs. of lean muscle mass in just 8 years.

Go back and read the posts. Learn about maturity, yearly gains and unnatural lows in muscle mass.

What gives Hugh away in this department is his increased size just for the Wolverine films. Once he's done shooting an X-Men film he drops a significant amount of muscle mass aka the cycle is over.

-TL

 

[X-Maniac]

It wouldn't surprise me if Jackman used something extra to beef up... but he'd never admit it. If Heath Ledger can be allowed to be on six different presciption pills...and if Paula Abdul slurs and totters all over the place in Hey Paula! (she has to be on something!)... then I'm sure a few roids for Jackman wouldn't be too difficult. I'm sure drugs are easy to obtain in the showbiz industry.

Maybe I'll have to try this HGH thing. All the gym work and creatine in the world doesn't give me Jackman's muscles!

 

[danoyse]

Human Growth Hormone is not a steroid. And Jackman would not confirm taking it if asked, because most people (like some here) deem HGH a bad thing.

But it IS illegal (take a look at how great it's worked out for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens so far), and like Celestial pointed out, why would he make such a stupid risk just for a film? The heavy duty action stuff are all special effects, and anything can be enhanced digitally. He plays Wolverine, but he doesn't actually have to be Wolverine.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

that's the first thing I said when I saw the pic.
pretty sick, by the way.

"keep dreaming"?
where did I say that I want it to be Rated R?
read twice, next time.
I'm fine with whatever they're doing.

I read it ten times, it didnt make a difference to me pal

 

[Jick]

I read it ten times, it didnt make a difference to me pal

then you should graduate in school, man. again if you already did.
interpret better next time, ok?

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

Danoyse you are now the second person to call Human Growth Hormone a stupid thing.

This is why Hugh Jackman will never admit it.

-TL

 

[M.O.Steel]

Colossal Spoons and Da-Scribe, I agree with you to a certain degree. Jackman has been working out rigorously since 1999, so with 8 years in the gym he should be looking pretty big. What leads me to bring up HGH is the way Hugh's body seems to change when he does an X-Men movie. I've seen The Fountain, I've seen The Prestige, I've seen Scoop. The moment Jackman begins production as Wolverine, his muscle mass increases amazingly. This for a fact can only be achieved with help. I've been bodybuilding for 5 years and find myself constantly surrounded by fellow bodybuilders both natural and unnatural. Its just not possible to reduce your lean body mass for no reason. Hugh is still in great shape in his other films, just not as big and lean. A cycle of HGH would provide him with an additional 10-15 lbs of muscle in a 9 week period. It would also lower his body fat significantly. The last thing that points in that direction is his maturity. Normal/natural maturity has a distinctive characteristic that is very different from the maturity produced by HGH. Exposure (veins) is equally visible but more obtuse. The neck, and arm areas are affected the most.

I'm sure right after we watch Hugh look GIGANTIC in Wolverine, we'll see him doing Leno promoting the film looking quite normal and nowhere near as big. We'll know he's off the cycle.

-TL

You do realize that even bodybuilders don't look like the way they do while not in competition. They actually look normal also in their regular life. During the competition, they get rid of as much water out of their body as possible, and they use tanning material and oil to emphasize the muscle shapes to make them look more defined. Not to mention they are constantly flexing (even in their relaxed/or transition stances), and part of the art of bodybuilding is knowing how to flex in the best way to emphasize specific muscles the most (that's why you see them doing elaborate motion to end stance). My point is, putting 15-20 lbs of muscle over the course of 9 weeks is extremely difficult, but NOT impossible and not unheard of (specially if the individual is in good shape in general) if undergoing a rigorous training regiment with a very restrictive diet. Also, with the lighting, and the sweat oil, you would be surprised how different an individual can look. I mean, even within the movie, he doesn't look crazy big when he's wearing the jacket, or when he's in the black suit. So, he probably works out to the extreme to film the scenes where he's wearing a wife-beater, and then back to normal for the rest.

While i'm not saying that he does or doesn't take anything, but i'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt. He seems like a nice enough guy, and i can't really picture him taking that stuff. Protein shakes, yeah i can understand, but i don't personally think HGH is invovled.

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

M.O. Steel, I thought your post was great and I agreed with most of it except for your closing statement where you insinuate that "nice enough guys" wouldn't take HGH.

Why can't a nice guy take HGH?

And its not that hard to picture Hugh getting his insulin shots. Its like getting a flu shot. It takes a minute.

-TL

 

[Celestial]

TL, whatever the benefits of HGH it is still ILLEGAL in Australia. Using illegal substances is a pretty stupid thing to do. OK?

 

[THOMAS LOGAN]

Australia needs to get with the program and legalize its use on adult men that need it. Is modern science illegal over there too?

-TL