There have been a lot of bad ‘X-Men’ movies: “X-Men: The Last Stand” (‘06), “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (‘09), “X-Men: Apocalypse” (‘16), “Dark Phoenix” (‘19), “The New Mutants” (‘20) …
Fox has been milking this franchise for a few decades now. Yes, sometimes a diamond in the rough would show up, I’m thinking of three exceptions to the rule: “X2” (‘02), “X-Men: First Class” (‘11) and “Logan” (‘17) — otherwise, this franchise has had its day and I couldn’t care less about any additional movies getting released.
And yet, Deadline reports that Marvel Studios plans to start meeting with writers later this Fall about pitches for its first ‘X-Men’ film. A hiring decision will be done sometime in 2024.
The last few atrocities in the franchise, especially “Dark Phoenix,” have led to no X-Men movie having been released in over four years, a break had to be taken, but Disney has eyed a 2025 launch for this new reboot.
Fox‘s “X-Men” films were their most bankable IP onscreen. Disney purchased 20th Century Fox and its entire library in 2019, so they’re now in charge of the characters and will most likely incorporate them into the latest MCU.
The recent “Ms. Marvel” series teased an X-Men character when they dropped the word “mutant” in a post-credits scene. Also, Marvel will debut “X-Men ’97,” a throwback to the beloved animated series, on Disney+ early next year.
There is almost zero chance we’ll be getting a movie as good as “Logan,” which was rated R and took bold creative leaps with the Wolverine character. What we’ll likely be getting instead is Marvel head Kevin Feige’s wholesome take on the franchise, and that is a major cause for concern.