Summary
When Disney took control of 21st Century Fox in 2019, there were two titles Marvel fans were most excited to see brought to life on the big screen once again.X-Menand theFantastic Four. While the latter has already assembled most of its cast and is set to kickoff production this summer, the former is still a ways out from a proper reboot. Although, Marvel Studios hasslowly begun to introduce mutantsto the Marvel Cinematic Universe withMs. Marveland the upcomingDeadpool & Wolverine.
With the recently releasedX-Men ‘97seemingly proving that Marvel Studios seems to know what its doing with theX-Men, it would seem the studio is bound to succeed with its reboot of theX-Men. However, there’s a lot of history behind Fox’sX-Menfilms, and unlike Fox’sFantastic Fourmovies, some fans genuinely liked what Fox did with the X-Men. With some already iconic castings for Fox’sX-Menmovies, Marvel Studios has its work cut out for itself when it comes to getting the mutants right.
Finding the Perfect Cast for the X-Men
There’s no denying that Fox managed to secure great cast members for both the originalX-Mentrilogy, followed by theFirst Classtrilogy. However, with subpar stories and power characterizations, it was hard for fans to appreciate the talent behind some of Marvel Comics’ most poplar mutants. There’s no denyingHugh Jackman’s take on Wolverineis a fan-favorite, so much so that fans have oftenspeculated over who could possibly tackle the rolegoing forward, with most unable to agree on a fan-cast. While Sir Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan are thought to be the perfect Xavier and Magneto, respectively. Unfortunatley, though, for Marvel Studios to make the next X-Men movie truly its own, it’s going to have to bring in some new actors for its cast. That isn’t to say cameos aren’t a possibility still, especially with the Multiverse now a thing. However, like with theFantastic Four, Marvel Studios is going to need to truly start over when introducing its new cast of mutants.
Luckily for Marvel Studios, casting is one of its greatest speciailities thanks to Sarah Finn. Still, even with the studio’s ability to cast up and coming actors early on for its titles, casting the X-Men isn’t going to be easy. There are a lot of roles to cast, and with the X-Men more than likely sticking around for quite some time within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, longevity is going to be important. As it stands, a writer is reportedly set to sign on within the next couple of weeks, suggesting a director and casting are not that far off.
Can Marvel Studios Make the X-Men its Own?
The very firstX-Menfilm was released in 2000. The movie, which was directed by Bryan Singer, featured some of Hollywood’s most impressive talent at the time including the likes of Halle Berry, Famke Janssen, James Marsden, and Rebecca Romijn alongside Stewart, McKellen and Jackman. The film, which was also produced by Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige, managed to do well enough to help Fox build its own X-Men franchise; it earned a Fresh rating of 83% on Rotten Tomatoes and pulled in $296 million at the worldwide box office. While that number is what most superhero movies clear in their opening weekend, it was an impressive feat with a $75 million budget in 2000.
Fox would go on to develop two sequels to the movie withX-Men 2andX-Men: The Last Stand. Along with the original trilogy, Fox would release a trilogy of Wolverine movies, a First Class trilogy,The New Mutants, and the first twoDeadpoolmovies. Over twenty-four years, Fox gave fans over twelve X-Men films, constantly rebooting the franchise as a means to maintain the rights. Whether or not fans loved everything Fox’s X-Men films brought to the table, they are still noteworthy and have left their mark on audiences over the past two decades. Which means, Marvel Studios has some big shoes to fill when it comes to the X-Men.
Thankfully, Marvel Studios has a pretty solid track record. More importantly, though, the studio is coming off the success of Season 1 ofX-Men ‘97. While an animated series, the show has managed tosuccessfully do what Fox’s X-Men has failed to dothus far. It has made the X-Men exciting and, more importantly, showcased how to handle their stories within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Like with theFantastic Fourreboot, Marvel Studios needs to not only nail the casting, but also successfullyfind a director that understands the materialand has a clear-cut vision for these characters. Especially as the X-Men are the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
WithMarvel Studios nearing a writerfor itsX-Menreboot, fans should begin to gather a better idea of how the studio intends to tackle theX-Menfor live-action. Although the cameos of Jackman and Stewart have been exciting, andDeadpool & Wolverinelooks ready to bring audienceseven more Fox X-Men cameos, it’s important Marvel seeks a fresh start for its X-Men movies. The X-Men have already been a mainstay in popular media for well over two decades. The best hope for success is to try and seperate itself as much as possible from what Fox has done with the X-Men already. New faces. New stories. New everything.
For now, fans can enjoy the first season ofX-Men ‘97streaming exclusively on Disney+.
