Cast Party: Who Should Star In An ‘X-Men’ Reboot? Part Two: ‘Dark Phoenix’
Welcome to Cast Party, the feature that imagines a world with even more live action comic book adaptations than we currently have, and comes up with arguably the best casting suggestions you’re ever going to find for the movies and shows we wish could exist. This week is the second of a four part series spanning the month of May, which envisions a full reboot of the X-Men movie franchise.
The same X-Men series has been running (with some timeline jumps) since 2000, and it’s been a mixed bag at best. Even as people are excited for X-Men Apocalypse, I hear a lot of fans suggesting that it might be time to shake things up. So what would an X-Men reboot look like? That’s the challenge I’ve set for myself this month. There are a lot of actors in the current series that I love, but I’m not letting myself use any of them — at least, not in the same roles!
For ths second movie in the series, Adam Scott and Bryce Dallas Howard will reprise their roles as Cyclops and Phoenix, obviously. Beast, Angel, and Iceman may have cameos, but the focus here will be on the new team.
The second film will introduce the team from Giant-Size X-Men #1, and then become a Dark Phoenix Saga adaptation. When the new X-Men recruit young Kitty Pryde, they become aware of a rival organization, the Hellfire Club. These powerful mutants have been manipulating things behind the scenes, and one of their members, Mastermind, has his sights set on Jean Grey. But when he helps her unlock her full potential, her dark side turns out to be more than the Hellfire Club or the X-Men can handle.
Lupita Nyong'o as Storm
Marvel/StudioCanalMarvel/StudioCanal The lack of lead roles for an actress as amazing as Nyong'o is a Hollywood tragedy. She'll be a fantastic Storm.
Christian Kane as Wolverine
Marvel/TNTMarvel/TNT X-Men X-Plainer Jay Edidin pointed out to me that Kane basically already played Wolverine on Leverage, and I think he'd do a pretty amazing job as the genuine article.
Adhir Kalyan as Nightcrawler
Marvel/FoxMarvel/Fox Kalyan's British, but I've seen him do an excellent American accent, so I'm betting he can handle a German one as well.
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson as Colossus
Marvel/HBOMarvel/HBO Björnsson is very intimidating on Game of Thrones (and was even before he got turned into a Frankenstein), but he's still in his 20s, and I think if we shave his beard and give him a Colossus-looking wig, he can cut a much more sensitive (while still enormous) figure.
Kevin McKidd as Banshee
Marvel/ABCMarvel/ABC Banshee's pretty optional to the story, but I included him mostly because of how good I think McKidd could be at playing him. McKidd's Scottish, but he does other accents all the time, so he can definitely handle being Irish. And he looks great in a turtleneck sweater.
Brian Tee as Sunfire
Marvel/NBCMarvel/NBC At some point in the movie, Sunfire will quit the team. Then, if there's time, he'll rejoin and quit again.
Amandla Stenberg as Kitty Pryde
Marvel/UniversalMarvel/Universal Stenberg is a promising young performer who radiates intelligence, and I love the idea of them as the youngest X-Man.
Rosamund Pike as Emma Frost
Marvel/FoxMarvel/Fox Pike already played a master manipulator in Gone Girl, but this time she'll have psychic powers.
Dave Bautista as Sebastian Shaw
Marvel/WWEMarvel/WWE Bautista did a great job in Guardians of the Galaxy, so I think he can probably handle playing a human character who's dialogue is a little more complex. Plus, we'll get that moment from the comics where he takes his fancy shirt off and is totally jacked.
Brad Pitt as Jason Wyngarde
Marvel/ParamountMarvel/Paramount Wyngarde's appearance is a fantasy designed to be attractive to Jean Grey. That's why Pitt is perfect, plus you know he can be really creepy when he needs to be.
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