LOGAN director James Mangold crafting spin-off treatment with LAURA creator.

The Hollywood Reporter talked LOGAN director James Mangold, producer Hutch Parker and star Hugh Jackman, as they looked back on the successful film which is (hopefully) primed for the upcoming awards season.

While chatting, Mangold mentioned that he and writer Craig Kyle (Thor: Ragnarok) are in the early stages of crafting a treatment for a spin-off film focusing on Laura aka X-23. The character, portrayed by Dafne Keen in “Logan,” was created by Kyle and Chris Yost in 2003 for the “X-Men: Evolution” animated series. Laura was then successfully brought into the Marvel comic book universe.

“Patty [Jenkins] success with [Wonder Woman] only solidifies more for studios that there’s less to fear with a female protagonist,” said Mangold. “The more that keeps getting hit home, that ends up giving me more space turning around and going, ‘Well, here we are with [Laura,] a female protagonist. That’s incredible. And what are we going to do with her?’ And that’s where we are with that [the Laura script] right now, dreaming.”

In the comics, the character eventually takes the mantle of Wolverine, which could also serve as a natural progression in the film series.

Of course nothing has been officially greenlit, but the fact that Mangold is actively thinking about it is enough reason to be excited. Parker, who recently wrapped production on X-MEN: DARK PHOENIX with director Simon Kinberg, agrees that there could be more to explore with Laura.

“Yes, there are other facets of that character and some others potentially to explore in their own way,” he said when discussing the X-Men film delving into new genres. “It may not be in the same exact tonality or with the same genre orientations as Logan, but I think part of what has been opened up in this universe to all of us now is, drawing on different genre traditions, there are new pathways to be opened for new characters that populate this universe.”

If LAURA becomes a reality, don’t expect Jackman to return as producer. The former Wolverine actor made it clear that he’s concluding his ties with the franchise.

“No, I won’t be a producer on a Laura sequel,” he says. “But I will be lining up on the Thursday night at 10 p.m. to watch it though. She is just phenomenal.”

Whether or not Laura becomes Wolverine remains to be seen, but Jackman says he’s comfortable with someone else being recast as Logan: “I know someone will. I hope it will be recast.”

Click here to read much more from THR, including why Patrick Stewart is due for an Oscar nomination.