Hugh Jackman is People Magazine's 2008 Sexiest Man Alive

If you were one of the guys waiting around for People magazine to call and tell you that you are the sexiest man alive, you can now go on about your daily routine. People.com On-Air Correspondent Michelle Beadle announced on CBS' "Early Show" that People's selection this year was Hugh Jackman. That's right, the Wolverine from "X-Men." That Hugh Jackman.

Beating out James Bond actor Daniel Craig and Disney's Zac Efron, Hugh Jackman replaces Matt Damon at the top of People's Sexiest Man Alive. Matt Damon was just the latest of the "Oceans" stars to become the sexiest man alive. George Clooney and Brad Pitt had both been there twice before him (no one else has ever held the title more than these two).

Cheadle gushed about the 40-year-old Jackman, calling him a "triple threat. Singer, dancer, and actor." She told "Early Show" co-host Maggie Rodriguez: "He's Australian, first of all. He's adorable. He's got one of the best bodies ever. And he's a family man. We all love that. He doesn't -- he's not on the party scene. He loves his kids, he loves his wife. He likes to stay home and make pancakes. He's almost too perfect!"

Jackman has been married to Deborra-Lee Furness for 12 years. When informed that her husband had won the title of People's 2008 Sexiest Man Alive, she said she could have told them that years ago. Then she added, "Obviously, Brad wasn't available this year."

(Brad [Pitt] has been busy rebuilding New Orleans' 9^th Ward, making new movies, taking pictures and helping with that swarm of children he and Angelina Jolie are raising.)

Like Pitt and Jolie, Hugh Jackman and his wife have adopted children, an 8-year-old boy, Oscar Maximillian, and a 3-year-old girl, Ava Eliot.

Besides being the hardbodied Wolverine in the "X-Men" series, Jackman has shown his versatility on stage and screen. And it seems only fitting that a lot of his acting has been done alongside Esquire magazine's 2008 Sexiest Woman Alive, Halle Berry. In addition to the three "X-Men" movies, Jackman played alongside Halle Berry (and John Travolta) in action-thriller "Swordfish." In "The Prestige," he was obsessed with being the best magician, going so far as to employ the help of famed electrical theoretician Nikola Tesla. On stage, he has starred in "Oklahoma!" and won a Tony Award in 2004 for his portrayal of fellow Australian, singer and songwriter Peter Allen in "The Boy From Oz."

Besides the Tony Award, Hugh Jackman won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Performer in a Variety, Musical or Comedy program in 2005 for hosting the televised 2004 Tony Awards ceremony. He was also nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance opposite Meg Ryan in the romantic comedy "Kate and Leopold."

What is he working on now? Jackman is reprising his popular role as the unruly and unpredictable Wolverine in the upcoming movie of the same name. He will also reprise his role as Billy Bigelow in a remake of the movie "Carousel." Jackman sang Bigelow's part at a special performance in 2002 at Carnegie Hall.

Being named People's 2008 Sexiest Man Alive comes at a most propitious time. Hugh Jackman's latest movie, "Australia," is due to hit theatres on November 26. In "Australia," he plays an unnamed drover on an Australia cattle station opposite another Aussie, Nicole Kidman. Set at the beginning of World War II, the two become romantically involved amidst the drama of the threat of the Japanese bombing Darwin (Australia) after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Said Nicole Kidman of Jackman, "Women's jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room."