Sure to get lost in the run-up to Avengers: Endgame is the latest – and last, we can safely assume – entry in Fox’s pre-Disney X-Men franchise, Dark Phoenix (as opposed to X-Men: Dark Phoenix). It’s kind of the little movie that could, trying to put its best foot forward against a culmination film over a decade in the making and the growing feeling that, since Marvel’s Merry Mutants are now under Mickey’s thumb, it doesn’t much matter in the grand scheme of things. Still, the final trailer has been released and hopes to entice audiences to show up in June and say goodbye to one of superhero cinema’s most important stepping stones. Check out the Dark Phoenix trailer below:
Endgame is at the forefront of my mind like everyone else, but I’m still looking forward to this. With a couple of exceptions, I like the X-Men movies very much, and love a few of them. I also really liked X-Men: Apocalypse, and was hoping to see the younger X-Men develop into a cohesive unit (even if it would’ve been with Jennifer Lawrence’s much-less-fun Mystique as their leader; Fox giveth and Fox taketh away). Now, we’re going to see a likely lengthy hiatus followed by an all-new cast; I feel bad for these guys, who are getting screwed out of a franchise – and the cachet that brings – with the merger. To make matters worse, the Dark Phoenix trailer is very good. They’re going cosmic with the Phoenix Force’s origins, as opposed to making it a part of Jean’s mutation like in X-Men: The Last Stand, and it looks like they’re going to use her ascension to explore some of the series’ regular themes, like intolerance and fear of the unknown. Interestingly, it’s Magneto who wants to kill Jean, meaning he has become what he’s beheld in the humans who’ve persecuted his kind since he was a child. It’s still unclear who Jessica Chastain is playing; my first thought was Emma Frost, till I remembered X-Men: First Class rung the Hellfire Club bell for the last time (and she wouldn’t have been a good fit for the character anyway; Alice Eve, please). While this will be her last performance as Jean, Sophie Turner looks like she’ll get to really stretch her talents in this one; hopefully, that will help her find some good roles once Game of Thrones ends. When June rolls around, I’ll be ready to see the Phoenix rise.
What did you think of the Dark Phoenix trailer? Are you bummed that this will be the last in the current X-Men series? Do you still cling to the hope that they’ll find a way to get Hugh Jackman involved? Let us know in the comments and stick around Geeks + Gamers for more superhero shenanigans!