Right now, we're guessing that if Hugh Jackman had a pair of adamantium claws at his disposal, he'd probably want to tear apart the imbecile who leaked the X-Men prequel online. As film leaks go, this is massive, especially as it's still a month out from release.
A number of BitTorrent sites currently claim to have the film, including Mininova, who prefer to be known as 100% legal - which in this case, seems a tad hypocritical. At last check, there were more than 50,000 downloaders (leechers) trying to get a copy from one particular torrent.
Those expecting to watch a polished, completed film on their trusty 22" monitors should think again - the film's distributor is taking the leak very seriously. 20th Century Fox have releaed an official statement on movie fansite Ain't It Cool News, stating that the leaked film is only a workprint release, with a number of unfinished scenes, including missing music, un-edited wire stunts and plenty of CGI work left to render.
Fox is actively trying to pursue the leaks, but as most know, once the internet gets hold of something, it dosn't like to easily let go. Many torrent sites are often hosted offshore, making the strong arm of the law difficult to apply in these cases.
It seems incredibly unfair to the filmmakers to base one's critical opinion of a film around an un-finished print. Besides, the cinema experience is often hard to compare to a dodgy internet file.
Looking back, it's hard to remember the last time a film this big was released so early online. The best example would be 2003's Hulk (starring Eric Bana), which was leaked two weeks early and suffered a savage fanboy reaction, partially due to the rough, unfinished CGI appearance of the actual Hulk. The leak is often cited as one of the reasons for that film's softer than anticipated box office gross.
Up until now, the leaking of scripts online has caused the most trouble to unreleased films. The best example is the upcoming Terminator Salvation sequel; the film's ending leaked months early online, forcing a rewrite, while still in production.
The film screens in all its megaplex glory in Australia on April 29th.