Hugh Jackman in Talks to Buy Stake in Norwich City

Hugh Jackman is in talks to buy a stake in Norwich City – and he insists this is the season the Canaries go up.

The Wolverine star, a lifelong Norwich fan through his Norfolk-born mother, revealed on TalkSport that he is negotiating with the club’s board about purchasing shares.

"I'm very, very interested – and talking about it right now," he said. "You're the first one to know that. There's a little exclusive.

"Good on Ryan, you do your thing, I'm all about the Canaries."

From Carrow Road teen to potential shareholder

Jackman’s connection to Norwich runs deeper than a passing celebrity fancy. His mother still lives in the city, and he first visited Carrow Road as a teenager after flying over from Australia to see her.

“I went to Carrow Road a couple of times, and I love the Canaries, and this is the year we’re going to get promoted. That’s my prediction,” the 57-year-old said while promoting his new film, The Death of Robin Hood.

As a boy in Australia, English football was his link back to his parents’ homeland.

"When I was in Australia, growing up, I had English parents who emigrated to Australia. We used to watch the FA Cup. It was the only thing we were allowed to stay up for, 3 o'clock in the morning. We had to go to bed first, and we were woken up to watch it.

"So I was seeing all these teams, Arsenal and all these teams, and I was like, I've got to pick a team.

"I said, 'Mum, where are you from?' She went, 'Norwich'.

"I went, 'Is there a football team in Norwich?' She went, 'Yep'. I said, 'That's my team'.

He has since leaned into that allegiance. Jackman owns a replica of the 1984 Milk Cup commemorative shirt and has been spotted around the city, including a visit to the Waffle House on St Giles Street in 2023. Staff were told he drops in whenever he’s in Norwich.

A second chance to invest

This is not the first time Norwich have tried to bring Jackman on board.

Back in 2011, when Delia Smith was the majority shareholder, the actor received an invitation to become a minor celebrity investor.

"I got a letter about a year ago saying, 'Being such a huge Norwich City fan would I like to be a celebrity investor?', like a small part-owner," he recalled.

"I said, 'I think that's a little stretched; I've been to Carrow Road once, my mum took me', so I decided not to invest."

The mood has clearly shifted. Jackman, now said to be worth around £100m, is in active discussions over a deal that would see him invest directly into Norwich City, not into the club’s parent company, Norfolk Holdings group.

Inside the Norwich ownership picture

Norfolk Holdings, led by American businessman Mark Attanasio, took control of the club from Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones, increasing its stake in March last year.

The group now owns around 85% of Norwich City’s shares. Smith and Wynn-Jones, the celebrity couple who fronted the club for 28 years, retain a 10% holding after stepping back from active leadership in 2024. The remaining shares sit with a cluster of independent fans and small investors.

Attanasio also runs Major League Baseball franchise Milwaukee Brewers, and his arrival signalled a new, more transatlantic era at Carrow Road. A Hollywood name joining that structure would only underline the shift.

Part of football’s American celebrity wave

If Jackman completes a deal, Norwich will join a growing list of English clubs with star-studded investors from across the Atlantic.

His close friend Ryan Reynolds co-owns Wrexham, who now share a division with Norwich in the Championship. That project has become the template for Hollywood-backed football stories, with Wrexham’s rise chronicled on and off the pitch.

NFL legend Tom Brady holds a minority stake in Birmingham City. Fellow American football star JJ Watt has invested in Burnley. Will Ferrell is part of the 49ers-led ownership at Leeds United, while Snoop Dogg owns a slice of Swansea City.

The American celebrity presence in the English game is no longer a novelty. It is a trend.

Jackman, though, is not shopping for a club. He picked Norwich as a teenager, half-asleep in front of a grainy FA Cup broadcast, and never let go.

Now the boy who chose the Canaries in the middle of the night wants a seat at the table. If his prediction about promotion comes true, he might be buying into a club on the rise rather than one dreaming of what comes next.