X-Men's Hugh Jackman & Halle Berry Built Their Own Backstory For Storm & Wolverine

The character of Wolverine, the mysterious vigilante with switchblade knuckles, first appeared in Marvel Comics in October of 1974. He was originally conceived as a foe for the Incredible Hulk, but soon began appearing regularly in the pages of X-Men comics, becoming a core member of the team. Ororo Munroe, a.k.a. the superheroine Storm, first appeared in "Giant Size X-Men" #1 in May of 1975. Storm, true to her name, could control the weather with her mind. It seems to me that, of these two characters, the latter is far more impressive. I would rather have the very elements at my command than mere retractable knives hidden in my forearms. To this day, however, Wolverine remains the more popular character. 

Naturally, both characters — being over 45 years old — have backgrounds replete with complex mythology and specific origin points well-known to superhero fans. Most "X-Men" readers will be able to tell you long and complex stories as to where Storm and Wolverine have both been for the last several decades, not to mention any parallel universe counterparts they may have. 

In Bryan Singer's 2000 film "X-Men," Storm was played by Halle Berry and Wolverine was played by then-newcomer Hugh Jackman. The movie versions of the X-Men were altered slightly from their counterparts on the printed page; the X-Men costumes were changed from colorful velour to hip black leather, and their roles and ages were reworked to make for more interesting friendships and relationships. 

When it came to creating their characters, Berry and Jackman largely eschewed many decades of comic book lore, choosing instead to invent Storm and Logan/Wolverine from scratch. In a 2017 interview with Entertainment Weekly, the two actors revealed their own invented backstories ... including an illicit affair Storm had with Wolverine. 

Some X-Men fans may be shocked to learn that there was a deleted scene in the 2014 sequel "X-Men: Days of Future Past" wherein Wolverine and Storm gave one another a kiss goodbye before the former leaped through a time portal. Berry was a little miffed that multiple other X-Men characters were given romances, but Storm never was. Notably, Wolverine, Jean Grey (Famke Janssen), and Cyclops (James Marsden) were engaged in a torrid love triangle, while Storm never mentioned having a boyfriend or a girlfriend. To rectify this oversight, Berry and Jackman agreed that their characters used to be in love. Berry said:

"Storm and Logan used to be lovers. It's true. Storm and Logan had a thing. [...] I joke in the movies, I'm like, 'How come nobody's loving on Storm?' Like what's wrong with Storm? Nobody is checking for Storm. [...] So, we decided that Storm and Logan had a thing, and then Jean came and messed that up."

Berry even wrote the progress and tone of their relationship, noting that it wasn't the rosiest of romances. It was wonderful but, as Berry said, "only for a time." It seems that when Logan fell in love with Jean Grey, he didn't bother breaking up with Storm. Berry doesn't clarify if Logan longed to be part of a polycule, or that he merely wanted to date two women at once. In the world of the X-Men, this would be notably fraught, as Jean Grey was a psychic. Berry imagined the Wolverine/Storm breakup thus: "When he really decided that Jean Grey was his [love] ... that caused a problem." Berry continued, "The having two girls at once thing? [...] That doesn't work for Storm."

Okay, slash-fiction writers. Get started.