If you were a fan of The Wolverine this summer, as I was, you should really enjoy The Wolverine Unleashed Extended Edition. I attended a screening of the Unleashed version last night and loved the additions, which add both character and action beats to the film.

Props made for The Wolverine (including a certain costume that ended up in a deleted scene), which were on display at The Wolverine screening.

Running about ten minutes longer than the theatrical version, the Unleashed version, overseen by director James Mangold, is unrated, which stands out in several fight scenes. When Wolverine battles the men trying to kidnap Mariko, there are quick but notable additions, such as seeing Logan’s blades go through someone’s leg, among other noteworthy moments – and yes, that includes more blood. There are also a number of short scenes added that give more texture to the Yashida family, including more flashbacks between Yashida and Logan after the bomb drops in Nagasaki and more time spent with Shingen, showing his anger as he learns his father’s plans for the company.The true geek out scene for fans though will be the Wolverine/Ninja battle. In the theatrical version, Wolverine has an incredibly brief skirmish with ninjas when he’s attacked, before they manage to take him down with a multitude of arrows. But Mangold shot way more than that – there was in fact a major fight sequence that had Wolverine (aided by Yukio) fighting that entire horde of ninjas, that also gives more context for how they finally stop him. While it was ultimately cut from the theatrical version mostly because too much of it was R-rated material -- wait until you see what Yukio does to her enemies -- it’s an incredibly fun and cool sequence that includes a hugely crowd-pleasing moment that will really stand out to comic book fans.Following the screening, I spoke to James Mangold about The Wolverine Unleashed Extended Edition – which is available today via download , before its December 3rd Blu-ray release -- along with some quick thoughts on where he might go next with the character, now that he’s in talks to reunite with Hugh Jackman for another solo Wolverine movie.We also discussed the deleted scene (it's not in the Unleashed version either) where Wolverine is given a costume that comic book fans will find quite familiar.

Tao Okamoto and Hugh Jackman in The Wolverine.

Wanna see a lot more of Wolverine's ninja fight? Check out the Unleashed edition!

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Absolutely. The idea that a movie can live on in different forms is... Obviously, too many of them, it gets ludicrous, but I’ve seen Oliver Stone, Ridley [Scott], different people put out the “very final,” the “extended absolute final,” “the director’s absolute final!” [Laughs] You can say they’re indecisive, or you can say they’re actually really creative and it just doesn’t really stop. You don’t ever stop thinking about your movies and questioning a decision. You never stop pushing and pulling on them, so it’s a joy. It’s a joy to be able to put out different versions of them, yeah.I love when Yukio tells him to stop being a dick in the car. [Laughs] There are sillier things, but maybe not, more subtle things — there’s a piece when Mariko and Logan run in from the rain, where they come in the house and turn on lights, and in the theatrical cut you go right to a teapot boiling. It’s quiet and just behavior, but I like the slower transition through it all. I love the scene between Hal [Yamanouchi] and Hiro Sanada, the old man Yashida and his son, where he tells him he’s been disinherited. There’s a lot of little pieces, little things I love, little things I’m glad to have back.The action’s fun to have back, but for me as a filmmaker, it’s more than that — Also, there’s a sequence when he’s on the rooftop at the Love Hotel, where he gets attacked by these guys, that we had a great deal of question whether we should do or not. It was partly a ratings issue and partly whether it was too much. I think we went back and forth, but I’m glad to see it in, because I think it looks really cool. It’s a cool sequence.One of the things in the movie -- not many people have brought it up, but it’s definitely been there – is this is a movie about Logan being saved by women, particularly, a lot, and I like that. I like that about the movie, I like that for his character. I think there’s something really interesting for him in that.[Editor’s Note: This next question, and Mangold’s answer, regarding the ninja fight, gets a bitin terms of mentioning some aspects of the sequence some may prefer to see in the film first. You may want to skip to the following question if you’re one of those people!]The toughest part to lose was the cigar bit at the end. That was the thing that hurt most. But I was actually conscious enough about the fact that I knew it might or might not make it that when I shot, way earlier in the schedule, Hugh and that scene with Yukio after ripping open his chest and getting up… He grabs this piece of paper off the wall to head out to go get Mariko. In some takes I had him grab the cigar, and in some takes I had him leave the cigar. That was the toughest part. But there’s also conventions in it, you know? I ask myself all these really critical questions. Like, I’m so tired of the mushroom explosion in these movies. So there are certain things, like, it’s really cool and it’s a cool sequence, but at the same time I’m always questioning myself like, “Do we need that? Is this one too many fireballs? Have we seen enough this summer?” I’m always trying to make sure that we’re doing stuff that’s fresh, and I felt like that gag with the cigar was fresh and really cool, and I thought the thing we came up with with the snowplow was really cool. Obviously, all that ninja staging is exceptionally fun to watch, but for me it’s always these dramatic beats that are kind of more difficult to let go of in some way.I made it up on set. Honestly, first of all, I kept hearing and seeing from fans who were just begging to see this wardrobe, and I kept thinking as we were shooting, “How can I do this? How could I ever service this desire for people to see it?” And there was a point where I just asked the prop department to make me a gift box. So when I did that scene on the plane with Yukio, with RIla [Fukushima] and Hugh [Jackman], I had no costume. The studio hadn’t approved of making one or doing anything, but I thought, “Let’s just shoot a couple takes where he opens the box and reacts to it, and I can figure out what to put inside the box later.” There was just a point later in the cutting room where I put it together, and I thought, “It’s kinda sweet.”Yeah, I think the thing I’d love to make sure we do is that we find a way to not to turn it into a “Will the world survive?” movie -- I think that that worked for us here -- but also not to make the same picture again. I think the key thing for me, you heard me talking about how I construct scripts, is just figuring out the key relationships and just what it’s about, what theme the whole thing is going to be about. I’ve got a good angle on it, but I’m not ready to talk about it yet!Of course, of course. Yeah.

One more photo of the costume on display at the screening, because hey, that thing is cool!

The Wolverine Unleashed Extended Edition and the theatrical cut are now available via digital download and will be released on Blu-ray on December 3rd.Eric Goldman is Executive Editor of IGN TV. You can follow him on Twitter at @EricIGN , IGN at ericgoldman-ign and Facebook at Facebook.com/TheEricGoldman