It's not every day that one of Hollywood's biggest stars drops into an isolated Aboriginal community to learn more about bush foods.

But the star of Wolverine is not your ordinary star.

"The students kept touching his hands to see if the blades would come out," La Grange Remote Community School Principal Bronwyn Wright said.

"He hammed it up a bit saying, 'They'll only come out if I get really angry'."

Jackman and his son were visiting Bidyadanga, a coastal community 160 kilometres south of Broome with around 700 residents, to learn more about its bush food plantation.

The gubinge, an Aussie 'super food'. ( ABC Kimberley: Emily Jane Smith. )

Bush plum gets the seal of approval

"Hugh's son Oscar is a very keen horticulturist," Northern Regional TAFE lecturer Kim Courtenay said.

"Last year when they were in Broome they heard about the work we've been doing in communities with gubinge."

A small green plum, rich in vitamin C, gubinge is in high demand for its use in foods, cosmetics and medicines.

The plum is mostly harvested from wild trees but with global demand increasing, TAFE planted seedlings at Bidyadanga a decade ago and trained locals in horticulture.

Jackman described the tart-tasting fruit as an "Aussie super food".

"He saw the community members working in the field with us and Oscar joined in," Mr Courtenay said.

"He's also got interests in fair trade coffee, so to have to have someone of that profile to recognise that this project was worthwhile was great."

Broome TAFE lecturer Kim Courtenay grabs a selfie with Hugh Jackman. ( Supplied: Paul Boon )

Special day for remote students

The 200 students at La Grange Remote Community School were amazed by the celebrity visit.

"We're focused on improving our attendance and having our students there with a reward to meet the Wolverine in person was a great opportunity," Principal Bronwyn Wright said.

"He's a really genuine man, generous with his time and down to earth. He played with the kids."

She said Jackman told students about his movie roles, his interest in the Kimberley and toured the school vegetable garden.

They also loaded him up with some souvenirs — locally-made candles, a Bidyadanga Emus Football Club cap and a card made by the year one-two primary class.

"He basically let everyone line up to take a photo with him, one at a time and he never has a smile off his face," Mr Courtenay said.

Bidyadanga locals Tahlia Badal and Maureen Yanawana grab a selfie. ( Supplied )

He said he was still struggling to believe the actor posted a photo of him in his black hat and orange safety gear to his 24 million Facebook and Instagram followers.

Bidyadanga resident Ronnie Smith, who works in primary health care, was also star-struck by the visit.

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"It's not every day that Hollywood superstar comes to a small community like this, so we really appreciated it," Ms Smith said.

"I had a brief talk about who I am. Hugh has a soft spot for Indigenous communities and wants to make a change, and the people really believe in him."

Starry night in the desert

Broome musician Paul Boon helped organise the trip for his celebrity friend, who he has performed alongside on Broadway.

"As a friend I wanted to share Broome and the Kimberley with him and his family, to connect him to the country, the wonderful people and our lifestyle," Boon said..

"As a creative person the trip to the Kimberley has been an amazing opportunity for ideas and future projects."

For Mr Courtenay it was a remarkable day amongst the gubinge trees.

"He's a lovely man with a great heart and it shows," he said.