‘Logan’s screenwriter Scott Frank believes the movie worked because it didn’t "have to connect it to any larger universe".
The 56-year-old writer was thrilled the team got to go in a different direction for the last instalment of the Wolverine franchise as he didn’t want the film to become "another superhero movie with a lot of CGI stuff".
Asked what was different about it this time around compared to ‘The Wolverine’, which Frank also wrote, he told the Hollywood Reporter: "We didn’t have to connect it to any larger ‘universe’. Or, as Jim keeps saying, ‘We didn’t have to sell Happy Meals.’ And so that was great.
"Whereas, the last one, my favourite part is where he’s in the middle of rural Japan and with this woman and being a human being and feeling what it’s like to be a human being. But we’re not there very long before we’re back to giant robots and stuff. And then it becomes just another superhero movie with a lot of CGI stuff.
"And we were trying to avoid that this time around, and the studio had changed studio heads and they were very much into the idea of trying something new, because otherwise, what’s the point? The only way these movies have value is if they become about something else. They can’t all be about saving the world."
Meanwhile, director James Mangold previously revealed he believes the R rating given to ‘Logan’ has been key to the movie’s success.
Speaking about the film – which stars Hugh Jackman as the titular character – he explained: "I knew that if Hugh and I could get an R, then we’ll have the freedom to make an adult film.
"Because the second the marketing arm of a studio realises it cannot market to children, five or six creative things happen. The scenes can go deeper, and can be written for adults. Not just language, not just [violence], as you’re saying, but the themes can be more interesting, the words you’re using can be more complicated. The ideas can be more complicated."
In its first weekend at the box office, studio estimates suggest ‘Logan’ took a massive $85.3m in north America alone.
Logan screenwriter shares reason for film’s success
