Farewell Professor X. ‘Logan’ Will Be Patrick Stewart’s Final X-Men Movie

Logan is bound to be a sombre experience. Not only are we saying goodbye to Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, but it’s now been announced as Sir Patrick Stewart’s final X-Men movie as well.

The 78-year-old actor has played the role of Professor Charles Xavier a whopping seven times over a period of 17 years. He recently mentioned that he would continue to reprise the role beyond Logan, but has, unfortunately, changed his mind after an early screening of the film. He broke the news alongside director James Mangold and Hugh Jackman:

“A week ago, Friday night in Berlin, the three of us sat, watching the movie, and I was so moved by it, much more moved than I had been the first time of seeing it. Maybe it was the company of these two guys, but the movie ended and, this is an admission, but at one point [Hugh] reached out, and he took my hand in those last few minutes, and I saw him go [mimes wiping a tear from his eye] like this, and then I realized I had just done the same thing. Then, the movie ended, and we were going to be taken up on stage, but not until the credits were over. So, we had some time to sit there and, as I sat there I realised there will never be a better, a more perfect, a more sensitive, emotional, and beautiful way of saying au revoir to Charles Xavier than this movie. So, I told [Hugh] that same evening, ‘I’m done too. It’s all over.'”

He continued to express this sentiment in an interview with The Independent:

“Hugh was sitting next to me, with James [Mangold] on the other side of him. and the audience were clearly very caught up in it and that was satisfying. It got into the last five or six minutes of the movie and Hugh’s hand came over and he took mine and he squeezed my hand. He looked at me and he had big tears and, of course, that set me off. Here we are, the two X-Men wiping away the tears at our own movie! And then I thought while we were watching, ‘My God, this is a goodbye ending. What could I possibly do that could top this? As I’ve lived with that idea over the past few days, I thought: ‘Yeah, it’s absolutely right that we should both of us just move on now.’ The franchise won’t die [without us].“

It’s a sad day indeed. However, it seems perfectly logical to go out on a high-note. Both actors have done a remarkable job with the characters. Bravo Hugh Jackman! Bravo Sir Patrick Stewart!

Patrick Stewart’s final X-Men movie, Logan, opens around the world next week.