Hugh Jackman, the Australian actor and global superstar best known, among other roles, for playing Wolverine in the X-Men films, has said he is close to acquiring a stake in Norwich City, the English club currently playing in the Championship, the second tier of English football, and one he has supported “since I was a kid”. Jackman told the story in an interview with talkSPORT, starting, naturally, with how he became interested in English football and the Canaries, hardly one of the country’s biggest clubs: his parents were English migrants who arrived in Sydney before Hugh was born, and Jackman later recalled the nights he spent watching FA Cup matches with his family. His love for Norwich goes back to his mother’s roots. “I asked my dad, ‘Where are you from?’” Jackman recalled. “And he said, ‘London’. And I said, ‘So I support London?’ He said, ‘No, there are a bunch of teams in London.’ So I asked my mum, ‘Where are you from?’ She said, ‘Norwich’. And I said, ‘Is there a football team in Norwich?’ She said, ‘Yes’. And I said, ‘That’s my team’.”
Jackman’s choice follows a trend that began a few years ago. We all know the story of Wrexham, bought in 2021 by a group led by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The Welsh club has gone from the fifth tier to the second division in just a few years, and it is easy to see why that might have caught Jackman’s eye. There is more to it: the Australian actor has decided to take inspiration from Reynolds, while also having a little fun at his expense. “Good for you, Ryan, you do your thing, I’m just thinking about the Canaries,” Jackman said. Reynolds, of course, is also famous for playing another Marvel superhero in several films: Deadpool.
As for the deal itself, Jackman has not offered much information. The actor, who also appeared in Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige, said he was “very, very interested” in a possible investment, before adding that “we’re actually talking about it right now”. Jackman had already come close to becoming an investor in Norwich City. Around 2010 and 2011, when his support for the yellow-and-green club was already well known, he was approached by the owners about buying a minority stake. Jackman did not take the negotiations any further at the time. This time, though, it seems the outcome could be different.