Darren Aronofsky Isn’t Doing ‘The Wolverine’ After All

Darren Aronofsky's decision to follow up "The Wrestler" and "Black Swan" -- the two films that fulfilled the promise he had shown for the last decade, both commercially and critically -- with "The Wolverine" had always seemed like a strange one. Aronofsky was certainly capable of making a thrilling action tentpole film, but the question, really, was why? Aronofsky's films are inherently too obsessive for the impersonal whiz-bang of a comic book sequel to a franchise he didn't create. Even though he was pals with Hugh Jackman, and even though they changed the name to a More Serious "The Wolverine," it was still an odd fit.

Apparently, Aronofsky now agrees. 20th Century Fox announced this afternoon that Aronofsky is dropping out of the "Wolverine" project. The perpetually scarved director says it's because he didn't want to be out of the country for a year.

"As I talked more about the film with my collaborators at Fox, who have

been totally supportive throughout my work on the movie, it became

clear that the production of The Wolverine would keep me out of the country for almost a year," Aronofsky said in a joint statement with Fox. "I was not comfortable being away from my family for that length of

time. I am sad that I won't be able to see the project through, as it is

a terrific script and I was very much looking forward to working with

my friend, Hugh Jackman, again."

Fox isn't shuttling the project and will search for a new director. Aronofsky's schedule is now mostly clear, though he's still planning his "Machine Man" project. Maybe he'll do "RoboCop," finally. Or maybe he'll just spend a year off, buying scarves.

Darren Aronofsky Bows Out of 'Wolverine' [The Hollywood Reporter]