With the Disney-Fox merger happening, one of the biggest questions on Marvel fans’ minds (outside of whether the Mouse is the new Thanos, collecting studios and properties like the Infinity Stones) is what this means for the X-Men. Noticeably absent from the MCU except for Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, who aren’t event mutants in that universe, the X-Men are key to a lot of major Marvel storylines, and now they’re finally joining Marvel’s main movie universe due to Disney’s acquisition of Fox.
Legion executive producer Lauren Shuler Donner spoke to reporters during a Television Critics Association press tour panel for the X-Men spinoff show, as the series works towards its conclusion next season. As reported by Deadline, she said of Marvel’s takeover that “Kevin (Feige) and I started the first movie; he worked for me. He has a great story sense when it comes to weaving each world together. I trust him and I trust where he will take it.”
She also warned against too many competing franchises when asked about the other X-Men spinoffs in development, telling reporters, “You cannot have too many Marvel, X-Men superhero movies out there. We’ll cancel each other out. Each one has to be distinctive. You have The Avengers to follow through; there are so many distinctive canons to follow through, and you have to have new ones to focus on. For us, it’s a lot, and people will get sick of them. We have to be careful; he [Kevin] has to be careful. You can’t have more than four (franchises out there).”
This means that Dark Phoenix and New Mutants will probably be the last of the Fox X-Men films, even though a Gambit movie still exists in production hell. The multiple universes and wide array of stories can work for comics or animation, or even television, but for film, it’s easier to have things streamlined for the casual viewer. Continuing Fox’s X-Men universe while introducing other mutants to the MCU would prove confusing; why would there be two Jean Greys, for example?
Things need to be unique enough to stand out from the crowd, but too many cooks will turn into … well, the “Too Many Cooks” sketch. So, as much as there might be fans of the Fox X-Men films, it’s time to let them go and instead focus on a new, Bryan Singer-less take on the franchise.
One character who will probably show up, despite already getting the best send-off possible? Wolverine. Shuler Donner spoke about the possibility of recasting Wolverine now that Hugh Jackman has started to age out of the role. Hopefully, though, when they think about using Wolverine, he won’t dominate the franchise in the way he previously dominated most of the X-Men films. Logan was a triumph, but to recast and get a new Wolverine movie out within five or six years might undercut the success of that film, and there are plenty of other characters who could take the spotlight.
We still know very little about the future of the X-Men, so it’s nice to get to peek behind the curtain somewhat. The X-Men will definitely come to the MCU at some point, and hopefully, Marvel won’t drop the ball with them, because that would be an incredible shame after such a long wait with so much potential.
So … when can we get a Storm movie with Kiki Layne?
(via Deadline, image: 21st Century Fox)
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