It seems that the illegally leaked and frequently downloaded X-Men Origins: Wolverine isn't suffering too much from the leak. Entertainment Weekly has tracked consumer research to show that even despite the film's leak to the internet, the film still has a high "wanna see" rating, and is currently the number one choice for young men and males aged 31 and older.

This marks a bit of a turnaround for a film that was considered to be in serious danger when a full-length (though unfinished) copy of the film was illegally loaded onto the Internet and downloaded by somewhere between 100,000 and 1,000,000 users. The initial fear was that the leak would lead to lost ticket sales, and potentially bad hype for the film, if either the storyline or acting were not what fans of the X-Men films and comics were hoping for. This fear was compounded by the fact that the special effects in the download are incomplete, and in a film like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the special effects are clearly a large part of what will make or break the movie.

Those fears now seem to be a thing of the past, and some are speculating that the leak might actually turn out to be a positive thing for the film, as it has generated a significant deal of free publicity. One executive from a competing studio has even said that, while it's impossible to currently predict what the opening weekend numbers for X-Men Origins: Wolverine will be, they're sure to be huge. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine is in fabulous shape," says the source. "They could open today."

Leading up to the events of X-Men, X-Men Origins: Wolverine tells the story of Wolverine's epically violent and romantic past, his complex relationship with Victor Creed, and the ominous Weapon X program. Along the way, Wolverine encounters many mutants, both familiar and new, including surprise appearances by several legends of the X-Men universe. The movie stars Hugh Jackman, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Ryan Reynolds, Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, will.i.am, Dominic Monaghan, and Daniel Henney.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine hits theaters May 1st, 2009.