Rogue One isn’t the only blockbuster to lose its composer months before release. Unfortunately, Cliff Martinez has dropped out of scoring the Wolverine sequel Logan, snuffing out what was to be a rather exciting marriage of material and composer. Director James Mangold broke the news on Twitter (via Film Music Reporter) by revealing that Marco Beltrami is handling the composer duties on Logan.
Beltrami is an interesting composer. He’s capable of turning out terrific work on films like The Homesman, but he’s also scored his fair share of forgettable blockbusters (Gods of Egypt, Ben-Hur, Seventh Son). However, he and Mangold have a working relationship dating back to 3:10 to Yuma, and Beltrami scored The Wolverine so he’s no stranger to Hugh Jackman’s superpowered mutant. Still, the prospect of hearing what Martinez might have crafted makes this all a bit disappointing.
Nevertheless, Logan continues to look terrific. The film takes place years after the events of The Wolverine, as we find the titular Logan starting to lose his regeneration powers as he, a sickly Professor X (Patrick Stewart), and a mysterious young mutant (Dafne Keen) navigate a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Logan is R-rated and is intended to be Jackman’s final go-around with the character, and in a new interview (via The Playlist) Mangold went one further by asserting that the film was not made for all audiences:
“Logan is an attempt to bring an end to Hugh’s amazing line of performances as Wolverine. And the ambition of doing that is to try and make an ‘adult film’ about Wolverine. To make a movie for grownups. We’re not trying to make a movie that [satisfies] everyone. We’re trying to make a movie that stands out and is different because it’s kind of a grownup drama that also features intense action.”
Those are bold words, and indeed refreshing when it comes to the superhero genre. As Deadpool proved last year, R-rated superhero movies can be massive successes, but what’s most important is diversifying the genre. It sounds like Logan will do just that when it hits theaters on March 3rd.
