New X-Men Movie: Director announces change
There are also hints about the film's narrative direction
There's a change in the works for the new "X-Men" film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Two new writers have joined the team for the planned reboot of the popular superhero franchise: Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo. "X-Men" director Jake Schreier revealed this to Collider.
Schreier had previously collaborated with the two on the Marvel film "Thunderbolts," which he also directed. Aside from that, the writing duo has primarily made a name for themselves through TV series. Lee Sung Jin is best known as the creator and showrunner of the tragicomic Netflix series "Beef." Joanna Calo also worked as a writer on "Beef." She is best known as the co-showrunner of the acclaimed series "The Bear."
New X-Men Movie: Interpersonal drama
Given their previous work, the choice of Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo makes sense. The two series "Beef" and "The Bear" are distinguished not least by the finely crafted conflicts between the characters. This is an aspect that has also been of central importance time and again throughout the decades-long history of the "X-Men" comics. Jake Schreier also emphasizes this, having hinted at the narrative direction of his film in the conversation with Collider:
"When you go back and read X-Men, there's ideology but also interpersonal drama, almost of a soap opera quality. Having writers who understand both how to drive ideology from personal stakes, if we get that right, that's what will feel most honest to what X-Men can be."
Before Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo, other writers had already been working on the script for the "X-Men" reboot. Most recently, Michael Lesslie, who revised an earlier draft by Aaron Rabin and Zach Dean. Lesslie has since joined the "Fast & Furious" franchise to work as a new writer on the upcoming film "Fast Forever."
The X-Men's beginnings in the comics
The "X-Men" are among the most popular superheroes in the Marvel Universe. They made their first appearance in September 1963 in the first issue of the comic book series "The X-Men." The story centers on young mutants who, under the guidance of Charles Xavier—aka Professor X—learn to control their superpowers. The superhero team initially consisted of Scott Summers, aka Cyclops; Jean Grey, aka Marvel Girl; Hank McCoy, aka Beast; Warren Worthington III, aka Angel; and Robert "Bobby" Drake, aka Iceman.
Initially, however, success was limited, leading to the cancellation of the comic series in 1970. Five years later, however, the comic book "Giant-Size X-Men" marked a revival that would lay the foundation for a greater triumph of the "X-Men." This was due in no small part to the fact that the superhero team was expanded to include a number of additional members. Among them were future fan favorites such as Storm, Nightcrawler, and Colossus, as well as Wolverine, who would go on to become perhaps the most popular of all the X-Men.
Deadpool & Wolverine deliver the biggest blockbuster
Starting in the 2000s, there were numerous film adaptations of the Marvel material. On the one hand, there were several films in which an ensemble of multiple "X-Men" members took center stage. Beyond that, however, there were also spin-offs in which individual characters—Wolverine and Deadpool—were the focus. In "Deadpool & Wolverine," the two fan favorites finally shared the spotlight in a joint film.
With overwhelming success: "Deadpool & Wolverine" became the most financially successful "X-Men" film, grossing over $1.3 billion worldwide. It will be interesting to see whether Jake Schreiber's "X-Men" reboot can build on this success. In any case, expectations for the new film are extremely high.
