I demand for more things to catch on fire
No one really likesX-Men: The Last Stand—if you do, I don’t believe you. The screenwriter of that film, longtimeX-Menfilm producer Simon Kinberg, is trying that story again in his directorial debut, theApocalypsefollow-up simply titledDark Phoenix. The first trailer debuted during Wednesday night’s episode ofThe Late Late Show, and it shows all of your favorite young mutants returning.
Those familiar with the comics lore (or evenThe Last StandandApocalypse) know that Jean Grey (here played by Sophie Turner) struggles to control the powerful entity known as the Phoenix Force, which the conflict ofDark Phoenixcenters around. Along with the usual Charles/Professor X (James McAvoy), Erik/Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Hank/Beast (Nicolas Hoult), and Raven/Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious alienportrayed by Jessica Chastainacts as one of the many players fighting to control Jean Grey and her enhanced power.
It’s great to see Turner and some of the newer faces fromApocalypse(Tye Sheridan as Cyclops, for example) take leading roles, especially since the subplot with those younger characters was one of the few things I enjoyed about the last movie. But to be fairly honest, afterLoganblew me away, I lack any desire to continue on with the saga started withFirst Class. WithMarvel Studios likely taking control of the franchise soon, the venture seems almost pointless.
Not to mention, theconstant delaysand lack of information about the film from 20th Century Fox haven’t helped to convince me that this movie will work. And with the trailer implying that the Phoenix Force will lead to catastrophe, it feels like this new film is just running the same motions, even though the casts for these films are always strong. But hey, that’s just cynical old me—I’d love to get back to the glory days ofX2.
We’ll see ifDark Phoenixmakes me eat my words when it releases on June 08, 2025, because nothing says Valentine’s Day romance like a cosmic force threatening to murder everyone. Check out our thoughts on the full posterhere.
