X-Men (film series)

X-Men
Cover of X-Men: The Cerebro Collection, the 2014 Blu-ray box set of the first seven films
Produced by	Lauren Shuler Donner
Starring	See below
Production companies	20th Century Fox Marvel Entertainment The Donners' Company
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1.083 billion (8 films)
Box office	$3.065 billion (8 films)

The X-Men film series consists of superhero films based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. 20th Century Fox obtained the film rights to the characters in 1994, and after numerous drafts, Bryan Singer was hired to direct X-Men (2000) and its sequel, X2 (2003). Singer left the potential third and fourth films, leaving Brett Ratner to direct X-Men: The Last Stand (2006).

After each film earned higher box-office grosses than its predecessor, several spin-off films were released. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), directed by Gavin Hood, features Wolverine's origin story. X-Men: First Class (2011), directed by Matthew Vaughn, focuses on the origins of Professor X and Magneto. The Wolverine (2013), directed by James Mangold, follows Wolverine after the events of The Last Stand. The seventh film, X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), featured the return of the original trilogy cast and Singer as director, serving as a sequel to both X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men: First Class. Deadpool (2016), spins-off a character introduced in Origins: Wolverine.

X-Men, X2, X-Men: First Class, The Wolverine, and Deadpool were all met with positive reviews, while X-Men: Days of Future Past was the best-received film in the series. In the cases of X-Men and X2, critics especially highlighted their dark, realistic tones, and subtexts dealing with discrimination and intolerance, while Deadpool was highlighted for its faithful interpretation of the source material and for its "R" rating. X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine were met with mixed and negative reviews from critics, respectively.

With eight films released, the X-Men film series is the 14th highest-grossing film franchise of all-time, having grossed over US$3 billion worldwide. It is set to continue with a sequel to X-Men: Days of Future Past, X-Men: Apocalypse, in 2016, and a third Wolverine film in 2017.

Films

X-Men (2000)

The film introduces Wolverine and Rogue into the conflict between Professor Xavier's X-Men, and the Brotherhood of Mutants, led by Magneto. Magneto intends to mutate world leaders at a United Nations summit with a machine he has built, to bring about acceptance of mutantkind, but Xavier realizes this forced mutation will only result in their deaths.

In 1994, 20th Century Fox and producer Lauren Shuler Donner bought the film rights to the X-Men.^[1] Andrew Kevin Walker was hired to write and James Cameron expressed interest in directing.^[2] Eventually, Bryan Singer signed on to direct in July 1996. Although he was not a comic book fan, Singer was fascinated by the analogies of prejudice and discrimination that X-Men offered.^[1] John Logan, Joss Whedon, Ed Solomon, Christopher McQuarrie and David Hayter wrote the script, with Hayter receiving sole credit.^[1][3] Principal photography began in September 1999 in Toronto, Canada and ended in March 2000.^[4] The film was released on July 14, 2000.

X2: X-Men United (2003)

In the film, Colonel William Stryker brainwashes and questions the imprisoned Magneto about Professor Xavier's mutant-locating machine, Cerebro. Stryker attacks the X-Mansion, and brainwashes Xavier into locating every mutant on the planet to kill them. The X-Men must team up with the Brotherhood to prevent Stryker's worldwide genocide.

Hayter and Zak Penn were hired to write their own scripts for the sequel which Singer would pick, with an aim to release the film in December 2002.^[5][6] Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris were hired to re-write the script in February 2002, writing around 26 drafts and 150 on set.^[7] Principal photography began in June 2002 in Vancouver, Canada and ended in November 2002. The film was released on May 2, 2003.^[5]

X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

In the film, a pharmaceutical company has developed a suppressor of the mutant gene, provoking controversy in the mutant community. Magneto declares war on the humans and retrieves his own weapon: Phoenix, who is the resurrected former X-Man, Jean Grey. A final battle between the X-Men and the Brotherhood ensues, and Wolverine must accept that in order to stop Grey, he will have to kill her.

Singer initially intended to shoot the film back-to-back with a fourth film, though he left in 2004 to direct Superman Returns.^[8][9] Penn and Simon Kinberg were hired the following month. Whedon's Astonishing X-Men story "Gifted", featuring a mutant cure was suggested for the primary story. Matthew Vaughn came on board as director in February 2005,^[10] but left due to the rushed production schedule.^[11] Brett Ratner was later hired as director in June.^[12] Principal photography began in August 2005 in Vancouver, Canada and ended in January 2006.^[13] The film was released on May 26, 2006.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

The film is a prequel and a spin-off focusing on the character Wolverine and his relationship with his half-brother Victor Creed, as well his time with Stryker's Team X, before and shortly after his skeleton was bonded with the indestructible metal adamantium.

David Benioff was hired to write the screenplay for the spin-off film Wolverine in October 2004.^[14] Hugh Jackman became producer as well as star, and worked with Benioff on the script.^[15] Ratner was negotiated by the studio to take the helm of Wolverine after directing X-Men: The Last Stand, but no agreement was made.^[16] In July 2007, Gavin Hood was hired as director. Principal photography began in January 2008 in Queenstown, New Zealand and ended in May.^[17] The film was released on May 1, 2009.

X-Men: First Class (2011)

The film is a prequel set primarily in 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and focuses on the relationship between Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr, and the origin of their groups — the X-Men and the Brotherhood, respectively.^[18]

Producer Lauren Shuler Donner first thought of a prequel based on the young X-Men during the production of X2, and later producer Kinberg suggested to 20th Century Fox an adaptation of the comic-book series X-Men: First Class.^[19][20] Singer signed on to direct the film in December 2009, however, in March 2010 it was announced that Singer would be producing instead of directing.^[21] Vaughn, who was previously attached to direct X-Men: The Last Stand became the director, and wrote the final script with his writing partner Jane Goldman.^[20] The film superseded a planned X-Men Origins: Magneto. Despite the script for the film not being used by any of the screenwriters as inspiration, the Writer's Guild of America arbitration still credited Magneto writer Sheldon Turner for the film's story.^[22] Principal photography began in August 2010 in London, England and ended in December. The film was released on June 3, 2011.

The Wolverine (2013)

Set after the events of X-Men: The Last Stand, the film features Wolverine heading to Japan for a reunion with a soldier named Ichirō Yashida whose life he saved years before. Wolverine must defend the man's granddaughter Mariko Yashida from all manner of ninja and Yakuza assassins.^[23][24]

Christopher McQuarrie, who went uncredited for his work on X-Men, was hired to write the screenplay for the second Wolverine film in August 2009.^[25] Darren Aronofsky was chosen to direct the film, though bowed out, stating the project would keep him out of the country for too long.^[26] James Mangold was later chosen to direct the film.^[27] Mark Bomback was then hired to rewrite McQuarrie's script.^[28] Principal photography began in August 2012 in Sydney, Australia and ended in November.^[29] The film was released on July 26, 2013.^[30]

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Set after the events of The Wolverine, the film features the cast of the original X-Men trilogy and X-Men: First Class.^[31] The story, inspired by Chris Claremont and John Byrne's X-Men comic book storyline "Days of Future Past", features Wolverine going back in time to 1973 to prevent an assassination that, if carried out, will lead to the creation of a new weapons system called the Sentinels that threatens the existence of mutants — and potentially, all of humanity.^[32]

Matthew Vaughn was attached to direct the film, but left in October 2012 to focus on the film Kingsman: The Secret Service.^[33] Singer, who directed the first two X-Men films and produced X-Men: First Class, replaced Vaughn as the director of the film.^[34] The screenplay was written by Kinberg.^[35] Principal photography began in April 2013 in Montreal, Canada and ended in August.^[36] The film was released on May 23, 2014.^[37]

Deadpool (2016)

In the film, former Special Forces operative Wade Wilson is subjected to an experiment that leaves him with new abilities. He adopts the alter ego Deadpool to hunt down the man who nearly destroyed his life.^[38]

In May 2000, Marvel Studios attempted to produce a Deadpool film as part of a distribution deal with Artisan Entertainment.^[39] However, by 2004, Marvel was developing the film with New Line Cinema. David S. Goyer was set to write and direct and courted actor Ryan Reynolds for the lead role, but lost interest within months in favor of other projects.^[40][41][42] 20th Century Fox acquired Deadpool the following year after New Line placed it in turnaround, and was considering the spin-off in the development of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, with Reynolds being cast for the role.^[40] After the opening weekend success of X-Men Origins: Wolverine in May 2009, Fox lent Deadpool out to writers with Donner acting as a producer.^[43] Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick were hired to write the script in January 2010.^[44] Robert Rodriguez was sent a draft of the screenplay the following June, but did not pursue it, and Adam Berg emerged as a top contender to direct.^[45][46] In April 2011, visual effects specialist Tim Miller was hired to direct.^[47] Principal photography began in March 2015 in Vancouver, Canada and ended in May.^[48][49] The film was released on February 12, 2016.^[50]

Future

X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)

In the film, Apocalypse, the first and most powerful mutant awakens after thousands of years. He is disillusioned with the world as he finds it and recruits a team of powerful mutants to cleanse mankind and create a new world order, over which he will reign. As the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance, Raven, with the help of Professor X, must lead the X-Men to stop their nemesis and save mankind from destruction.^[51]

In December 2013, Singer announced the upcoming X-Men film, titled X-Men: Apocalypse, a sequel to X-Men: Days of Future Past. Directed by Singer from a script by Simon Kinberg, Dan Harris, and Michael Dougherty, the film is said to focus on the origin of the mutants.^[52][53] Kinberg said that it will take place in 1983 and will complete a trilogy that began with X-Men: First Class.^[54][55] Principal photography began in April 2015 in Montreal, Canada and ended in August.^[56][57] The film is scheduled for release on May 27, 2016 in North America.^[58]

Untitled third Wolverine film (2017)

By November 2013, 20th Century Fox had begun negotiations for the treatment for another solo film starring Wolverine with director James Mangold while Donner is attached to produce.^[59] Mangold has said that it will be inspired by other Wolverine stories from the comic books and it will be made after X-Men: Apocalypse.^[60][61] In March 2014, David James Kelly was hired to write the script. In April 2015, Michael Green was hired to work on the film's script.^[62][63] The film will star Hugh Jackman in his final performance as Wolverine, with Patrick Stewart as Professor X.^[64][65] Principal photography will commence in early 2016 for a March 3, 2017 release.^[66]

Other

• In July 2013, 20th Century Fox hired Jeff Wadlow to write a film adaptation of the X-Men spin-off comic-book series X-Force, with Donner attached to produce.^[67] Mark Millar, the creative consultant for 20th Century Fox's Marvel Comics based films, stated that the film will feature five characters as protagonists.^[68] After the release of Deadpool, Reynolds felt that Deadpool would soon be in an X-Force film,^[69] and Kinberg stated that there was potential for X-Force to be R-rated like Deadpool in contrast to the PG-13 "mainline X-Men movies".^[70]
• In October 2014, Josh Zetumer was hired to write the screenplay for a film about the character Gambit based on the treatment by comic-book writer Chris Claremont. In June 2015, Rupert Wyatt was hired to direct but left in September due to schedule conflicts.^[71] In November, Doug Liman was in final negotiations to direct the film.^[72] The film will star Channing Tatum in the lead role. Donner, Kinberg, Tatum and Reid Carolin are attached as producers.^[73] Kinberg said that he hopes to start filming in spring 2016.^[74]
• In May 2015, Josh Boone was hired to direct and write a film adaptation of The New Mutants comic-book series. Acting as a spin-off to the X-Men film series, the film will be written by Boone and Knate Gwaltney, while Donner and Kinberg are attached to produce.^[75] In October, Boone had finished the script for the film.^[76]
• In September 2015, Kinberg said that a sequel for Deadpool was in development.^[77] By the release of Deadpool, 20th Century Fox had already greenlit the sequel, with Rheese and Wernick returning to write, and Miller being looked at to return as director.^[78]

Recurring cast and characters

List indicator(s)

• This table only shows characters that have appeared in two or more films in the series.
• A dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the film or that the character's presence in the film has yet to be announced.
• A ^Y indicates a role as a younger version of the character.
• An ^O indicates a minor or uncredited role as an older version of the character.
• A ^C indicates a cameo role.
• An ^A indicates an appearance through archival footage.

Crew

Home media release

20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released the first seven films on DVD, Blu-ray and digital download.^[79] The first two films were also released on VHS.^[80] The films were also released on VHS, DVD and Blu-ray box sets:

As of May 2014, the DVD and Blu-ray sales of the first six films in the United States earned more than $620 million.^[92]

Reception

Box office performance

The first three X-Men films set opening records in North America: X-Men had the highest July opening yet,^[102] while X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand earned the fourth highest opening weekends yet.^[103][104] All of these records have since been surpassed. The next three X-Men films after X-Men: The Last Stand opened lower than their predecessor and didn't set opening records.^[105] In North America, X-Men: The Last Stand has the highest opening weekend and is the highest-grossing film in the series. Worldwide and outside North America, X-Men: Days of Future Past has the highest opening weekend and is the highest-grossing film in the series.^[101]

The X-Men film series is the second highest-grossing film series based on Marvel Comics characters after Marvel Cinematic Universe.^[106] In North America, it is the thirteenth highest-grossing film franchise of all time, having grossed over $1.299 billion.^[107] Worldwide, it is the fourteenth highest-grossing film franchise of all time, having grossed over $3 billion.^[101]

Critical and public response

Wesley Morris of the Boston Globe praised the first three X-Men films as "more than a cash-guzzling wham-bang Hollywood franchise... these three movies sport philosophy, ideas, a telethon-load of causes, and a highly elastic us-versus-them allegory." Morris praised X-Men: The Last Stand for "put[ting] the heroes of a mighty summer blockbuster in a rare mortal position. Realism at this time of year? How unorthodox!"^[125] Roger Ebert gave the films mostly positive reviews, but criticized them for the amount of mutants, stating "their powers are so various and ill-matched that it's hard to keep them all on the same canvas."^[126]

The first two films were highly praised due to their cerebral tone. However, when director Bryan Singer left the series, many criticized his successor, Brett Ratner. Colin Colvert of the Star Tribune felt "Singer's sensitivity to [the discrimination themes] made the first two X-Men films surprisingly resonant and soulful for comic-based summer extravaganzas... Singer is adept at juggling large casts of three-dimensional characters, Ratner makes shallow, unimaginative bang-ups."^[127] James Berardinelli felt, "X-Men: The Last Stand isn't as taut or satisfying as X-Men 2, but it's better constructed and better paced than the original X-Men. The differences in quality between the three are minor, however; despite the change in directors, there seems to be a single vision."^[128] David Denby of The New Yorker praised "the liquid beauty and the poetic fantasy of Singer's work", but called Ratner's film "a crude synthesizer of comedy and action tropes."^[129] Singer's third film in the series, X-Men: Days of Future Past was also highly praised. Alonso Duralde of The Wrap felt that "Singer keeps things moving along briskly enough that you can just go along with the ride of Superhero Stuff without getting bogged down".^[130]

The X-Men films were well-received by fans of the comic books, but there was criticism of the large cast, and the limited screentime for all of them. Richard George of IGN praised the depictions of Wolverine, Professor X, Magneto, Jean Grey, Storm, William Stryker, Mystique, Beast and Nightcrawler; however, George thought many of the younger X-Men characters, such as Rogue, Iceman, Pyro and Kitty Pryde were "adjectiveless teenager[s]", and was disappointed by Cyclops' characterization. He observed the filmmakers were "big fans of silent henchmen", due to the small roles of the various villainous mutants; such as Lady Deathstrike.^[131] Spider-Man director Sam Raimi said he was a fan of the series, particularly Singer's films.^[132] Film historian Kim Newman also tonally compared Batman Begins to Singer's films.^[133]

Impact

Richard George of IGN stated that the success of the first X-Men film paved the way for comic-book film adaptations such as the Spider-Man series, Fantastic Four, V for Vendetta and Singer's Superman Returns.^[131] Chris Hewitt of Empire magazine called the first X-Men film as the "catalyst" for films based on Marvel Comics characters stating "Singer’s 2000 movie is the catalyst for everything that’s come since, good and bad. Without it, there’s no Marvel Studios."^[134] Comic-book writer Mark Millar said that Singer's X-Men "revolutionized" superhero films.^[135]

Tie-in material

Books

In June 2000, Marvel Comics published a comic book prequel to the first film, titled X-Men: Beginnings, featuring the back-stories of Magneto, Rogue and Wolverine.^[136] A novel adaptation for the film was also released.^[137] In 2003, Marvel released a comic-book for X2, which contained prequels detailing Nightcrawler's backstory and Wolverine's time searching for Alkali Lake.^[138] Del Rey Books also published novelizations for the first three films; the latter two were written by Chris Claremont.^{[139][140][141]}

Television series

Hellfire, a television series set in the continuity of the X-Men films was announced by Marvel Television in October 2015.^[142] The series is in development with Fox Broadcasting Company and will be produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Marvel Television. Set in the late 1960s, the show will follow an agent who learns that a power-hungry woman with "extraordinary" abilities is working with a clandestine society of millionaires, known as the Hellfire Club to take over the world. Evan Katz, Manny Coto, Patrick McKay and JD Payne were to be credited as the co-creators of the show while McKay and Payne were hired to write the pilot, based on a story by Katz, Coto, McKay and Payne. Katz and Coto were also hired to act as showrunners but left along with McKay and Payne in January 2016 to focus on 24: Legacy. Lauren Shuler Donner, Bryan Singer, Simon Kinberg, Jeff Loeb and Jim Chory are attached as executive producers.^[143][144]

Video games

In July 2000, X-Men: Mutant Academy was released for PlayStation and Game Boy Color. It shared the title fonts and costumes from the first film. The game also contains behind-the-scenes material from the first film.^[145] In April 2003, X2: Wolverine's Revenge which served as a tie-in to X2 was released for GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox.^[146] Patrick Stewart served as the voice actor for Professor X. In May 2006, X-Men: The Official Game was released for GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360. The story was set between X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand and also explained Nightcrawler's departure from the X-Men.^[147] In May 2009, the video game X-Men Origins: Wolverine based on the film of the same name was released for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii and Xbox 360.^[148] All four videogames were released by Activision.

References

External links

• X-Men film series at AllMovie