X-Men: First Class | |
---|---|
File:Firstclass.jpg | |
Directed by | Matthew Vaughn |
Screenplay by | Jane Goldman Ashley Miller Zack Stentz Jamie Moss |
Story by | Bryan Singer |
Produced by | Gregory Goodman Simon Kinberg Lauren Shuler Donner Bryan Singer |
Starring | James McAvoy Michael Fassbender Kevin Bacon January Jones Rose Byrne Nicholas Hoult Jennifer Lawrence Oliver Platt Zoë Kravitz Caleb Landry Jones |
Cinematography | John Mathieson |
Edited by | Eddie Hamilton Lee Smith |
Music by | Henry Pryce Jackman |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | TBD |
Language | English |
Budget | $120 million[1] |
X-Men: First Class is an upcoming American superhero film, directed by Matthew Vaughn, based on the characters appearing in Marvel Comics. The film is the fifth installment of the X-Men film series and a prequel to the first three movies. X-Men: First Class is scheduled for release on June 3, 2011.
Premise
The film is a prequel to the first three movies,[2] set during the 1960s, with John F. Kennedy as president of the United States. X-Men: First Class parallels the history of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. The villains of the film will be the Hellfire Club.[3] The plot is as follows:
"Before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Before they were archenemies, they were closest of friends, working together, with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop the greatest threat the world has ever known. In the process, a rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men."[4]
Cast
- James McAvoy as Professor Charles Xavier: Leader and founder of the X-Men and one of Magneto's best friends until conflicts of opinion create a rivalry between them and their teams.[5]
- Laurence Belcher as a young Charles Xavier.[6]
- Michael Fassbender as Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto: Leader and founder of the Brotherhood of Mutants and one of Professor X's best friends until conflicts of opinion create a rivalry between them and their teams.[7]
- Bill Milner as a young Erik Lehnsherr.[8]
- Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw: Leader of a secret society bent on taking over the world called the Hellfire Club.[9][10]
- January Jones as Emma Frost / White Queen: A mutant telepath who can also change her body into diamond form and member of the Hellfire Club.[11] Alice Eve was originally announced to play Emma Frost.[12]
- Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggert: A scientist and an authority on genetic mutation and love interest of Charles Xavier.[13] Rosamund Pike was previously up for the role.[14]
- Nicholas Hoult as Hank McCoy / Beast: Beast is a former scientist who transformed into a frightening looking mutant, but is kind at heart. In the film X-Men: The Last Stand he is shown to turn out to be a political activist.[15] Broadway actor Benjamin Walker was previously cast as Beast, however he dropped out of the role to star in the Broadway musical Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson.[16]
- Jennifer Lawrence as Raven Darkholme / Mystique: A dangerous shapeshifting mutant.[17]
- Morgan Lily as a young Raven Darkholme.[18]
- Oliver Platt as "The Man in Black": A character who is not a mutant.[19]
- Ray Wise as the United States Secretary of State[20]
- Zoë Kravitz as Angel Salvadore: A mutant with insectoid physiology.[8]
- Caleb Landry Jones as Sean Cassidy / Banshee: An Irish mutant with the ability of sonic screaming.[15]
- Lucas Till as Alex Summers / Havok: Cyclops' brother who has the ability to absorb cosmic energy blasts.[21]
- Edi Gathegi as Armando Muñoz / Darwin: A mutant with the power of "reactive evolution."[22]
- Jason Flemyng as Azazel: Nightcrawler's father who has the ability to teleport.[23]
- Álex González as Janos Quested / Riptide: A mutant with the ability to spin his body at an incredibly fast rate.[24]
- Andy Callaghan as a member of the Hellfire Club.[25]
- Tony Rich as Thomas: A mutant with the ability to duplicate other mutant powers within a specific range.[26]
Singer tried to cast Taylor Lautner in a role, but the actor was unavailable due to other commitments.[27]
Production
Development
In April 2006, one month before the release of X-Men: The Last Stand, writer Zak Penn revealed he was contracted to write and direct a spin-off.[28] He later explained in 2007 that "the original idea was to have me do a young X-Men spin-off, a spin-off of the young X-Men characters. But someone came up with a pretty interesting idea [...] it was this guy who worked with me named Mike Chamoy, he worked a lot with me on X3. He came up with how to do a young X-Men movie which is not what you'd expect."[29] Penn compared the idea to the comic book series X-Men: First Class,[30] and Josh Schwartz was writing the screenplay in May 2008.[31] Schwartz's writing assignment also included the possibility of directing of X-Men: First Class,[32] but Fox approached Bryan Singer, director of X-Men and X2, in October 2009.[33] The original idea was to green-light the film depending on the success of X-Men Origins: Magneto,[34] but Singer added elements of the Magneto spin-off, merged into a new script by Jamie Moss.[33] In addition to Moss, Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz were hired to rewrite the script. Miller compared it tonally to Singer's work on the first two X-Men films.[35] Singer dropped out of the director's position in March 2010 due to his commitment to a Jack the Giant Killer adaptation. He formalized his duties from director to producer.[36][37] Matthew Vaughn signed on as Singer's replacement in May 2010. With his hiring, Fox announced a June 4, 2011 release date,[38] and Jane Goldman was hired for another rewrite.[39] Vaughn wanted to model X-Men: First Class after the 2009 Star Trek film, taking the franchise in a new direction with a fresh, young cast.[40] An action scene that was to have been set in a dream sequence with revolving rooms was scrapped after the release of Inception.[41] The 1960s setting of X-Men: First Class will be technologically inspired by the James Bond films of that era, also adding to the international feel of the characters. The X-Men costumes will look much more as they did in the original comics compared with the first three films.[3]
Filming
Principal photography began on August 31, 2010, in Oxford, England, which included St Aldate's street and the University of Oxford's campus, lasting for two days.[1][3] Production then moved to Pinewood Studios in Iver,[42] and to Georgia in October, including Jekyll Island, Thunderbolt and Savannah,[43] after sites in Louisiana, North Carolina[44] and West Michigan were considered.[45] Jekyll Island was chosen over Tybee Island after a producer reviewed the locations on Google Earth and thought the water near Jekyll looked bluer.[44] Additional location shooting will take place in Russia.[3]
Sequel
Fox envisions X-Men: First Class as the first film of a new trilogy.[37] Donner compared the franchise plans to the darker, more mature content of the Harry Potter film series.[46]
References
- ^ a b Lees, Rebecca (2010-10-07). "When the X-Men met the Ox-Men". The Oxford Student. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
- ^ Marshall, Rick (2010-08-03). "'X-Men: First Class' Director Isn't Worried About Too Many Mutants, Says Film Is 'Absolutely' In Continuity". MTV. Retrieved 2010-08-03.
- ^ a b c d Knowles, Harry (2010-08-20). "So Bryan Singer just called regarding Matthew Vaughn's X-Men: First Class... I'm quite excited now". Ain't It Cool News. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
- ^ "Plot Details Revealed for X Men First Class". The Film Stage. June 21, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2010.
{{cite web}}
: External link in
(help)|work=
- ^ "James McAvoy Cast as Charles Xavier". Superhero Hype!. 2010-05-28. Retrieved 2010-11-22.
- ^ Johnston, Rich (2010-09-07). "SCOOP: Laurence Belcher Cast As The Young Charles Xavier". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
- ^ Friedman, Roger (2010-06-24). "Michael Fassbender to appear in "X Men: First Class"". hollywoodnews.com. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
- ^ a b McClintock, Pamela (August 17, 2010). "January Jones joins 'X-Men'". Variety. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
- ^ Kit, Borys (2010-07-15). "'Winter's Bone' star cast in 'X-Men: First Class' (exclusive)". Heat Vision. Retrieved 2010-07-16. [dead link]
- ^ "KEVIN BACON Playing SEBASTIAN SHAW in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS". forcesofgeek.com. 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
- ^ Lesnick, Silas (2010-08-18). "January Jones Joins X-Men: First Class". Superhero Hype!. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
- ^ Keyes, Rob (2010-06-28). "Alice Eve Will Play Emma Frost in 'X-Men: First Class'". screenrant.com. Retrieved 2010-11-22.
- ^ Keyes, Rob (2010-08-16). "Rose Byrne To Play Moira MacTaggert in X-Men: First Class". screenrant.com. Retrieved 2010-11-22.
- ^ "Amber Heard Shapeshifts into Mystique for X-Men: First Class?". UGO. 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
- ^ a b "Beast and Banshee Cast for X-Men: First Class". Superhero Hype!. 2010-07-08. Retrieved 2010-07-08.
- ^ "Benjamin Walker to Star in Broadway Transfer of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson". Broadway.com. 2010-07-15. Retrieved 2010-10-06.
- ^ Wells, Jeffrey (2010-10-24). "Lawrence on the Line". Hollywood elsewhere. Retrieved 2010-11-22.
- ^ Alex Dorn (August 16, 2010). "Oliver Platt will be The Man In Black in 'X-Men: First Class'". HitFix.com. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
- ^ Fleming, Mike (August 16, 2010). "Oliver Platt Joins 'X-Men: First Class'". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2010-08-16.
- ^ Goldman, Eric (2010-11-30). "Wise Casting for X-Men: First Class". IGN. Retrieved 2010-12-01.
- ^ Sperling, Nicole (2010-07-08). "'X-Men: First Class': Matthew Vaughn fills his cast with up-and-comers". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2010-07-08.
{{cite news}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=
(help) - ^ Fleming, Mike (July 27, 2010). "'X-Men: First Class' Drafts Twilight Vampire Edi Gathegi To Play Biracial Mutant Darwin". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2010-07-28.
- ^ Mortimer, Ben (2010-08-15). "Jason Flemyng Joining X-Men: First Class". Superhero Hype!. Retrieved 2010-08-15.
- ^ Keyes, Rob (2010-09-19). "Relative Unknown Mutant Named Riptide Joins X-Men: First Class". screenrant.com. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
- ^ Filipponi, Pietro (2010-12-14). "Andy Callaghan Joins the Hellfire Club in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS". dailyblam.com. Retrieved 2010-12-15.
- ^ "Tony Rich to play "Thomas" in X-Men: First Class". comicbookmovie.com. 2010-09-20. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
- ^ Mike Szymanski (2010-07-18). "Bryan Singer talks to us about those Taylor Lautner X-Men rumors". Blastr. Retrieved 2010-10-23.
- ^ Douglas, Edward (2006-04-11). "Zak Penn on His Potential X-Men Spin-off". Superhero Hype!. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
- ^ Davis, Erik (2007-05-01). "Zak Penn Talks X-Men Spin-Off, Incredible Hulk Casting". Moviefone. Retrieved 2008-02-09.
- ^ Ullrich, Chris (2008-04-15). "Interview: Zak Penn on The Grand, X-Men Fans and Co-Writing Hulk". ComicMix. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
- ^ "Young X-Men Get Gossip Girl Scribe?". Superhero Hype!. 2008-05-02. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
- ^ Siegel, Tatiana and Marc Graser (2008-11-18). "Fox, Josh Schwartz mutate 'X-Men'". Variety. Retrieved 2008-11-19.
- ^ a b Fleming, Michael (2009-12-17). "Bryan Singer to direct 'X-Men: First Class'". Variety.
- ^ Spelling, Ian (2009-04-22). "Magneto prequel still possible, depending on Wolverine". Sci Fi Wire. Retrieved 2009-07-10.
- ^ Pirrello, Phil (2010-05-06). "Inside X-Men: First Class". IGN. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
- ^ Boucher, Geoff (2010-03-18). "Bryan Singer on 'X-Men: First Class': It's got to be about Magneto and Professor X". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-03-20.
- ^ a b Fleming, Mike (March 26, 2010). "Bryan Singer Producing 'X-Men: First Class'". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2010-07-09.
- ^ McClintock, Pamela (2010-05-05). "'X-Men' prequel to open June 4, 2011". Variety. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
- ^ McClintock, Pamela (2010-07-08). "Fox cast 'X-Men' mutants". Variety. Retrieved 2010-12-11.
- ^ White, Cindy (2010-08-02). "X-Men Following Star Trek's Lead". IGN. Retrieved 2010-08-03.
- ^ Boucher, Geoff. "'Inception' wake-up call -- 'X-Men: First Class' director jettisons similar dream-time scenes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
{{cite web}}
: Text "date-2010-08-02" ignored (help) - ^ Dawtrey, Adam (2010-11-27). "Snaring the big Hollywood pictures". Variety. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
- ^ Conn, Lesley (2010-09-09). "X-Men may be landing in Savannah". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2010-12-11.
- ^ a b Conn, Lesley (2010-10-20). "X-Men pick Jekyll Island over Tybee Island". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2010-12-11.
- ^ "X-Men: First Class Scouting Locations in Michigan". Superhero Hype!. 2010-06-07. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
- ^ De Semlyen, Nick (2009-10-16). "The Future of the X-Men Franchise: X-Men: First Class". Empire. Retrieved 2010-12-18.