Wolverine’s gonna sink his claws into a meaty part.

Hugh Jackman has signed on to appear in a new musical, reports Variety.

Showman will chronicle—in song!—the colorful life of legendary P.T. Barnum.

The impresario whose talent for giving the people what they wanted led to many entertainment firsts, including the three-ring circus. Barnum is also said to have claimed, “There’s a sucker born every minute.”

The female lead is being written with an actress in mind: Anne Hathaway, Jackman’s Oscar night singing partner.

While the huckster has already been the subject of the Broadway musical Barnum (which starred Harry Potter audiobook legend Jim Dale), this new film will feature contemporary songs, possibly by Mika.

Sounds like a total circus already.

When it comes to campaigning, it’s never too early to get started. Even Hugh Jackman knows that. He’s supposedly (and probably sarcastically) hot to nab the cover of People’s Hottest Man Alive issue next November and remain tops for a second year in a row.

•  Vanessa Minnillo, Nick Lachey’s current girlfriend, and Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, his former sister-in-law, had a meeting of minds at an Eminem concert. The Melrose Place starlet described it exactly as we imagine it: awkward!

• The LeAnn Rimes/Eddie Cibrian publicity stunt affair apparently hasn’t completely gone away just yet. Now the Third Watch star’s wife is calling the songbird a stalker.

• In case you were wondering, Kimora Lee Simmons and Djimon Hounsou named their new son Kenzo Lee Hounsou.

•  Megan Fox finally admits to being hot.

• Dear Denzel Washington: We’re sorry to say that your sadness is well-founded. As handsome as you are, you probably will be too old to play Barack Obama in a biopic by the time the timing is right for it. Love, Rise ‘n’ Shine

Who helps get Denise Richards moving in the morning? Check out our Denise Richards: Idols & Inspirations gallery and see!

Maybe Wolverine should thank the Academy. And Hugh Jackman.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine rose above everything from swine flu to play-off basketball to gross $87 million at the weekend box office, its studio estimated. The debut was the year’s biggest, and the fourth-biggest ever for a summer-season opener. 

“We’ve had a lot of hurdles to overcome with this movie,” 20th Century Fox’s Chris Aronson said today. “At the end of the day, audiences have a huge appetite for Hugh.”

And was that appetite whetted by Jackman’s appearance as Oscar host?

Last year, Iron Man opened the summer box-office season with a $98 million bang—$102 million, if you counted the early-bird sneaks. Come Friday at midnight,  X-Men Origins: Wolverine will kick off Hollywood’s blockbuster months with a…or a.

Well, what exactly?

“Until we open the picture and we see the returns, we’re keeping our fingers crossed,” says Chris Aronson of 20th Century Fox.

The studio behind Hugh Jackman’s fang-and-fur franchise is either being realistic, smart or maybe both to discourage comparisons to Iron Man—and put a big, tight lid on expectations.

“If we can do $70 million this weekend,” Aronson says, “we would be ecstatic.”

Box Office Mojo’s Brandon Gray says a $70 million-$80 million debut, potentially the X-Men series’ third-lowest, would not be unexpected nor a disappointment: “It should still be a huge opening.”

Only three of this decade’s lead-off summer movies have taken in $70 million-plus in their first weekends. Just four years ago, in 2005, Kingdom of Heaven kicked off blockbuster season with a relatively puny $19.6 million opening.

As Wolverine’s ample bad luck would have it, though, it’s the follow-up act to Iron Man. And the comparisons aren’t just unfavorable, they really don’t work.

Iron Man arrived in theaters as a shiny new suit of armor with a killer Super Bowl trailer under its utility belt. Wolverine rolls in as the fourth movie of a decade-old franchise that can’t easily be called—or sold as—a sequel because (a) Jackman is its only returning X-Men star and (b) Fox says the film’s a spinoff.

“I always wonder with this kind of movie,” Gray says. “When I first heard this project announced, my expectations were low.”

Critics are proving to be just as cool to the finished product. At one point today on Rotten Tomatoes, only 42 percent of the early reviews were judged favorable to the film. (By comparison—sorry, Wolverine—Iron Man’s Tomatometer reading was a hot 93 percent.)

Add to this the bad buzz and bad vibes that come from a leaked (unfinished) print and an international swine-flu scare, respectively, and Wolverine has about as much baggage as even a superstrong superhero can possibly carry.

If the movie can avoid a Kingdom of Heaven disaster, then a relieved Hollywood, which so far has bucked the recession, might only have to wait one week to get its all-new Iron Man.

“Star Trek is the X-factor here,” says Gray. “Star Trek does appear to be more akin to Iron Man than Wolverine does.”

Well, Wolverine probably wouldn’t want to be hemmed in by armor, anyway.

Not that we like jumping on the media bandwagon by talking about swine flu or anything, but it does seem to be everywhere at the moment (literally) doesn’t it? Well, so we hear on the news anyway.

As you may have noticed Hugh Jackman is currently trotting around the globe to promote his new film Wolverine.

Last night the cast of the movie were on the red carpet in Arizona, after which Hugh was supposed to be jetting to Mexico for yet another premiere in the city. However under the circumstances the aussie actor has had to pull out of the screening A spokesperson from Twentieth Century Fox said:

Hugh has promised to return to Mexico for the premiere if circumstances change in the future. Oh, this swine flu business really does scare us you know.

Wolverine isn’t taking any chances.

Wednesday’s all-star Mexico City premiere of X-Men Origins: Wolverine has been scrapped due to the region’s deadly swine-flu outbreak, 20th Century Fox confirmed today.

A studio rep said the superhero film is still due to open in Mexico on Thursday.

Now, as for whether there’ll be theaters open in Mexico come Thursday… That’s another matter. And another potential headache for Hugh Jackman’s suddenly star-crossed mutant.

Jackman told E! News Monday that the Wolverine cast still wants to come to Mexico—their appearance has just been delayed. “Hang in there, guys,” he said into the camera.

Hugh Jackman has dismissed rumours he’s gay. The actor, 40, is happily married to actress Deborra-Lee Furness. ‘I’d be happy to go and deny.

The actor, 40, is happily married to actress Deborra-Lee Furness. ‘I’d be happy to go and deny it because I’m not,’ Hugh tells Parade.

‘But by denying it, I’m saying there is something shameful about it – and there isn’t anything shameful.’

Hugh met Deborra-Lee, 53, on an Australian TV series in 1995.

They wed in February 1996 and have adopted kids Oscar Maximilian, 8, and Ava Eliot, 3.

Anne Hathaway’s favorite Oscars moment was being swept off her feet by Hugh Jackman.

The “Rachel Getting Married” star – who was nominated in the Best Actress category – performed on stage with 40-year-old Hugh in a musical tribute to Best Picture nominee “Frost/Nixon” on Sunday (February 22, 2009).

When asked what the best part of her evening was, Anne said: “I’d have to say being in Hugh Jackman’s arms and him carrying me on stage!”

Anne, 26, played the role of former US President Richard Nixon in the comedy routine which the pair had rehearsed the previous week.

She said: “I didn’t really have that much input for what went into it.”

“They just said, ‘Show us what you got, and we’ll work around that.’ I’m a theater-trained actress, so that kicked in for the singing.”

Anne – who lost out on an Oscar to Kate Winslet – admits she was anxious before the ceremony.

She explained: “I think I was nervous for that performance and nervous about the nomination and the two just canceled each other out. But when you have a job to do, you just have to do it well – no time to be nervous.”

The “Devil Wears Prada” actress became rather emotional during the evening when she was praised by former Oscar winner Shirley MacLaine, 74.

She explained: “That was so, so special. Just really touching. Could you tell?”

“I was crying and visibly overwhelmed. As such a powerful actress as she is, that she would say something like that to me, I felt so honored.”

Hugh Jackman made a fan faint when he kissed her.

The “Australia” actor decided to pay the woman – who works as a switchboard operator for US TV program “The Tonight Show” – a surprise visit after he discovered she wasn’t allowed to leave her post to meet him when he appeared on the show.

Her friends told Hugh – who was voted the Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine last year – it was her birthday, so he crept up behind her whispered “Happy Birthday” and then kissed her on the neck.

The girl immediately span round, but upon coming face-to-face with her idol she turned bright red and fainted in his arms.

According to National Enquirer magazine, Hugh screamed: “OH MY GOD! Somebody help me! I think she has fainted!”

The girl was eventually brought round with the aid of smelling salts and cold compresses. Once she had composed herself she happily posed for a photograph with Hugh.

The two were shooting a scene in which they cuddled in sleeping bags in open when a scorpion came dangerously close to the actor.

According to a source, Kidman asked Jackman to stay calm and caught the scorpion with her hat.

“Nicole gasped when Hugh opened the cover invitingly to reveal a poisonous scorpion creeping up his bag,” Contactmusic quoted the source, as saying.

“She calmly told him not to move, squatted down and scooped the creepy crawly into her hat,” the source added.

Nicole Kidman has denied she is pregnant.

The “His Dark Materials” star – who arrived in her home town of Sydney with husband Keith Urban for an Easter family reunion – was rumored to be pregnant after she was seen outside the same California clinic where Mel B gave birth last week.

Nicole’s Australian representative Wendy Day said: “As if she would confirm her pregnancy to a Sunday tabloid.”

“She is about to get on a horse in the Australian outback and will be breaking brumbies, which are untamed horses. I hardly think she will be able to do that if she is pregnant.”

Nicole, 39, flew by private jet to Australia after attending a church service in Los Angeles. She met her new niece, Sybella, for the first time, after her sister Antonia, 35, gave birth two weeks ago.

The star revealed she was pleased to be home. Nicole, who will stay in her home country for eight months to film Baz Luhrman’s new movie “Australia,” said: “It’s really good, really good, exciting about the film too.”

The movie will see her star alongside Hugh Jackman. Filming begins in north Queensland later this month.

On Sunday (April 8, 2007), Nicole and Keith attended the Royal Easter Show at the Sydney Olympic Park accompanied by the actress’ nephew Hamish Hawley, where they watched motocross bikers performing stunts inside a “Globe of Death” sphere.

Keith begins his nine-day European tour on April 19 before returning to Australia to play six concerts in May and then continuing his “Love, Pain and the whole crazy World Tour” in the US.

The singer will take a break in June to celebrate his first wedding anniversary with Nicole.