Wolverine finally dons his iconic yellow and blue suit in Deadpool & Wolverine, though the film changes the costume’s meaning from the original Marvel comics. Wolverine’s famous yellow suit is as integral to the character’s iconography as his adamantium claws, yet the 20th Century Fox X-Men films did not have Wolverine wear the costume until his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut. While some of the films, like 2013’s The Wolverine, came close to bringing the suit to live-action, Deadpool & Wolverine finally gives Hugh Jackman’s Logan the outfit, changing its backstory in the process.
Custom Image by David Miller
Fox’s reluctance to have Jackman’s Wolverine wear his famous costume has been the subject of mockery in recent properties, with X-Men ’97 having Cyclops parody his cinematic counterpart’s line about “yellow spandex” in 2000’s X-Men. Unsurprisingly, one of Deadpool & Wolverine’s countless references also has Wade Wilson quip about how long viewers have waited to see Jackman in the comic-accurate Wolverine suit. Wolverine’s yellow costume has an interesting history in the Marvel Comics universe, though the suit’s history became far more tragic in its live-action debut, adding yet more weight to the Deadpool & Wolverine movie ending.
How Wolverine Got His Yellow Suit In The Comics
After Logan escaped the Weapon X project – which captured and experimented on him, giving him his adamantium skeleton – he was discovered by Heather and James Hudson of Department H, which oversaw superhero teams on behalf of the Canadian government. Logan joined Department H voluntarily and received his famous yellow and blue superhero outfit as one of their agents. Heather and James Hudson designed the suit, with the latter noting that the color scheme, while eye-catching, does not resemble that of an actual wolverine.
Throughout Wolverine’s comic history, he has worn other costumes – typically color variations of his classic suit – and updated the yellow outfit over time. One such suit was a brown and tan version of his costume, which he wore throughout the 1980s, making it a favorite among longtime readers. Ultimately, however, the yellow suit will always be Wolverine’s most famous outfit.
In Deadpool & Wolverine, Logan’s costume is implied to have been designed by his universe’s X-Men, with Logan revealing that his fellow mutant heroes implored him to wear the suit, but after their deaths, he began wearing it in memory of his fallen friends. This changes the meaning of Wolverine’s yellow suit from the comics. Originally, Logan received the suit shortly after he escaped Weapon X and voluntarily became a hero. In Deadpool & Wolverine, the costume carries a more tragic meaning – yet Wolverine nevertheless rises to the occasion and becomes a true hero by the end of the film.
