Hugh Jackman AC (b. 1968) is the ultimate triple threat – actor, singer and dancer. Best known for his role as Wolverine in the X-Men movies, Jackman was born to British parents in Sydney and took up acting as a hobby while a student at Knox Grammar in the 1980s. He gained a BA in Communications from UTS in 1991, but afterwards undertook formal study in drama at the Actors' Centre, Sydney. Jackman turned down a role in Neighbours to focus on honing his skills further at Perth's Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. On graduating in 1994 he scored a role in the ABC television drama Correlli opposite Deborra-Lee Furness, who he married the following year, and in musical productions in Melbourne. He made his West End debut in 1998 in the Royal National Theatre’s Oklahoma! In 2000, having appeared in various Australian television dramas including Blue Heelers, Jackman gave his first performance as Wolverine in the film adaptation of Marvel Comics' X-Men, and reprised the role in several sequels and spin-offs between 2003 and 2017. During the same period, he appeared in numerous other films: among them Kate and Leopold (2001), for which he earned a Golden Globe nomination; Van Helsing (2004); The Prestige (2006); Woody Allen's Scoop (2006); the Baz Luhrmann epic Australia (2008) and the PT Barnum biopic The Greatest Showman (2017), for which he won a Grammy; and voiced characters in the animated features Happy Feet (2006), Flushed Away (2006) and Rise of the Guardians (2012). In 2013, he received Oscar and BAFTA nominations and won a Best Actor Golden Globe for his lead role in Les Misérables. Meanwhile, he had forged a towering reputation on Broadway, in particular for his Tony Award-winning role as performer Peter Allen in The Boy from Oz (2003–2004). In late 2015, Jackman toured Australia with his show Broadway to Oz, in which he reprised various musical numbers, backed by a 150-piece orchestra; and during 2019 he undertook his first world tour with The Man. The Music. The Show. Named a Companion of the Order of Australia in June 2019, Jackman has lent his profile and his voice to several charitable and philanthropic causes including World Vision, Global Poverty Project and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
