Hugh Jackman spent Saturday night doing what he does best: performing for a room full of powerful people who adore applause. The setting this time was a lavish 95th birthday party for media baron Rupert Murdoch in New York, where the Wolverine star reportedly serenaded guests with show tunes while a video message from Donald Trump played during the celebration.

And if the guest list felt like a gathering of the global elite, that’s because it essentially was.

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A Broadway Set for a Media Mogul

According to reports first published by People Magazine, Jackman performed several songs during the event at The Grill in Midtown Manhattan. Guests reportedly heard selections from The Greatest Showman before the actor moved into standards like “Fly Me to the Moon” and “New York, New York.”

He closed with Peter Allen’s “I Still Call Australia Home,” a fitting nod to the shared birthplace of both Jackman and Murdoch.

The audience included a strange mix of media power brokers, political figures and entertainment royalty. Among them were composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, former British prime minister Tony Blair, former U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan and U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

Murdoch arrived alongside his wife Elena Zhukova and his son Lachlan Murdoch, who now sits atop much of the Murdoch media empire that includes Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and New York Post.

Ivanka Trump was reportedly cheering Jackman on from the crowd, which makes sense given that the actor has long been friendly with her and her husband Jared Kushner.

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Jackman’s Long and Curious Friendship With Murdoch

If the optics raised eyebrows, they probably shouldn’t. Jackman and Murdoch have been close for decades.

In fact, Jackman has spoken openly about their friendship before. In a 2013 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor described Murdoch as “very caring and thoughtful” and revealed that he became friends with the media mogul through social circles in New York.

Murdoch later asked Jackman to become the godfather to his daughter Chloe. Fellow Australian star Nicole Kidman is also a godparent to Murdoch’s daughters with his former wife Wendi Deng.

That social network also explains Jackman’s long friendship with Ivanka Trump and Kushner. According to Jackman himself, the connection stretches back roughly 15 years. When asked about the politics of those friendships, Jackman once insisted that “we don’t talk politics at birthday parties.”

Which sounds convenient.

Hollywood’s Polite Silence Around Murdoch

Murdoch’s influence in global media remains enormous and deeply controversial. Over several decades, the empire he built has shaped political debate in multiple countries through outlets like Fox News and a tabloid culture that critics say thrives on outrage, division and relentless political campaigning.

Despite that reputation, the Murdoch circle still attracts celebrities, politicians and billionaires with remarkable ease. Lavish gatherings like this birthday party show how power and proximity often outweigh reputational concerns in elite social circles.

Murdoch’s empire and the family struggles surrounding it will soon face renewed scrutiny. From Liz Garbus, the director behind Harry & Meghan, comes a new documentary series, Dynasty: The Murdochs, premiering on Netflix on March 13. The series promises to explore the dynasty’s internal battles, vast political reach and the media machine Murdoch spent decades building.

For critics, the dynamic feels familiar. Publicly, many figures in entertainment speak about ethics, accountability and social responsibility. Privately, when one of the most powerful media barons in the world throws a party, the room still fills up.

A Room That Loves Applause

None of this changes the fact that Jackman remains a gifted performer. Few actors can command a room with the ease he brings to a stage. But there is something revealing about the audience he chose to perform for.

The party celebrating Murdoch’s 95th birthday wasn’t just another celebrity event. It was a gathering of political power, media influence and vast wealth, all wrapped in tuxedos and Broadway show tunes.

Jackman clearly fit right in. And that, for some former fans, says quite a lot.

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