Hugh Jackman says he didn't use steroids to get ripped for his role as Wolverine in the 'X-Men' movies: 'I just did it the old-school way'

• Hugh Jackman denied using steroids to get into shape for his Marvel role as Wolverine.
• "No. I love my job. And I love Wolverine," he said on HBO Max's "Who's Talking to Chris Wallace?"

Hugh Jackman said that he took a natural approach to getting ripped for his role as Wolverine in the "X-Men" franchise.

The actor, who made his debut as the Marvel character in the 2000 "X-Men" film, appeared as a guest on season two, episode two of HBO Max's "Who's Talking to Chris Wallace?" released on Friday.

During the interview, Wallace mentioned Jackman's nine appearances as the character and asked, "Over the years people have wondered, did he juice? Did he take steroids?"

"No. I love my job. And I love Wolverine," Jackman said. "I got to be careful what I say here, but I had been told anecdotally what the side effects are of that. And I was like, 'I don't love it that much.' So, no, I just did it the old-school way."

He continued: "And I tell you, I've eaten more chickens — I'm so sorry to all the vegans and vegetarians and to the chickens of the world. Literally, the karma is not good for me. If the deity has anything related to chickens, I'm in trouble."

Jackman has spoken about getting into superhero shape for his "X-Men" role on many occasions, even detailing his extensive 12-week plan in a 2016 interview with Men's Health.

In a cover story for Variety, released in October, the actor said that filming his shirtless scenes for the first "X-Men" movie was delayed because he wasn't ripped enough for his role.

"I'm just a bit flabby," Jackman said. "It took me a while to work that out."

He's set to reprise the role in the upcoming third "Deadpool" film, costarring Ryan Reynolds as the titular character.

Even though his character died in "Logan," the third film in the standalone Wolverine films, Jackman said the upcoming "Deadpool" movie takes place prior to his death.

Jackman told Wallace that he'll be spending six months solely training for his return as Wolverine in the movie.

"I've learned you can't rush it," he said. "I've learned that it takes time."