In a press conference ahead of the release of “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige confirmed what had long been speculated: “Thunderbolts*” director Jake Schreier is helming the MCU’s “X-Men” reboot. Now, in a new interview with The Playlist, Schreier told comic book movie fans not to expect a new “X-Men” movie that resembles the previous franchise led by Hugh Jackman.
“Yeah, I think that’s fair to say,” Schreier said when asked if Marvel’s take on the X-Men will be “recognisably different from what came before,” adding as a joke, “There’s that red sniper dot out there somewhere, you know.”
“But to be able to explore all of the ideas that are inherent to that rich source material, but also at the scale inherent to the source material, that’s like a very rare and fortunate opportunity,” Schreier continued. “That’s very exciting.”
The director said earlier in the interview: “What I can say is, it’s just inherently interesting and complex material… The core idea of what ‘X-Men’ is involves complexity. It’s an incredible opportunity with super interesting characters and [much] internal conflict. These characters are wrestling with their identity and place in the world—that’s inherently interesting and complex material.”
Feige let it slip to the press that the MCU’s take on the X-Men would be far different from the previous big screen iteration of the superhero team by saying Schreier is “going to make a youth-focused reboot. That may be reflected in mutant castings, and it’ll definitely be felt in the tone and perspective of the film.”
Just how the new X-Men heroes will be introduced in the MCU remains to be seen. Jackman played his beloved Wolverine from the previous “X-Men” franchise in last summer’s “Deadpool and Wolveirne,” and his original co-stars Patrick Stewart (Charles Xavier), Ian McKellen (Magneto), James Marsden (Cyclops), Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler) and Rebecca Romijn (Mystique) are all set to appear in next year’s “Avengers: Doomsday.”
Schreier’s “Thunderbolts*” is now available to buy or rent from home on PVOD platforms.
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From Variety US