X-Men series to change creative direction?

X-Men series to change creative direction?

It appears there are some changes afoot for the X-Men series, with words like “soft reboot” surfacing in regards to the films. A combination of factors have merged making the continuation of the series in its current format potentially somewhat difficult, but that doesn’t mean of course that 20th Century Fox are without options.

Leading stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, and Jennifer Lawrence have all fulfilled their contractual obligations to the series so bringing them back for a fourth film would require signing a new deal, additionally Bryan Singer has reportedly indicated he doesn’t wish to return to the series, despite previous comments that he had plans on where to go next with it. Furthermore, the underperforming recent release X-Men: Apocalypse won’t have helped matters, coupled with the fact that Hugh Jackman’s final outing as Wolverine is about to be realised in the upcoming Logan film, meaning that he’s unlikely to lend his star power to another film.

With all that in mind, a new X-Men film is reportedly still being written as a follow-up to Apocalypse, but it seems quite unlikely that this version of the next film will come to fruition. It’s more likely that it’ll undergo some significant changes.

If the X-Men series is anything however it is flexible, and if the current central series of Magneto, and Professor X isn’t to continue there are a number of directions the series could take. There have been previous rumours of Task Force X or New Mutant films being worked on, while the recent Apocalypse film had a number of supporting characters who could be picked up and thrust onto centre stage for a new film.

As for Singer’s departure from the series, he’s obviously been a massive contributor to the series since it started, X-Men 2 remains one of the best in the series, and his creative input since then has been excellent. However, maybe it’s time for him to take a break from the series, as Apocalypse was underwhelming in comparison to his previous efforts. But here’s hoping someone else with as much passion for the setting, and as good a film maker can step up to take the series on its next step.

 

Leith spent most of his formative years growing up on the coastal fringes of Western Australia without a cinema in sight. There he grew up on the wonders of home rentals before relocating to Perth and gaining access to a proper cinematic experience just in time for the Star Wars Special Edition re-releases. From there Leith's love of movies expanded to volunteering on a Star Wars fan film, reviewing films, writing about film news, and attending film and pop-culture related conventions on the other side of the world. Leith's favourite films are too many to mention but all start with the Star Wars saga, Back to the Future, the Dark Knight trilogy, Indiana Jones, Lord of the Rings and all things Kevin Smith. With an insatiable appetite for all things pop-culture related Leith also has an unhealthy addiction to the world of comics and can often be found buried under a pile of unread back issues madly trying to catch up on a number of titles coming out from mostly DC and Darkhorse.