At last here’s your Marvel Comics mutant destroyer of worlds, courtesy of the first trailer for the latest “X-Men” film, “Dark Phoenix.” Watch it above.
Set a decade after the events of “X-Men: Apocalypse,” in “Dark Phoenix” the X-Men are now national heroes. But when a solar flare hits them during a rescue mission in space, Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) loses control of her psychic abilities and becomes a terrifying and overwhelming threat.
For those who don’t know, the film is based on the highly celebrated and influential “X-Men” storyline of the same name by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, as detailed in “Uncanny X-Men” #101-108 (1976-1977) and “Uncanny X-Men” #129-138 (1980). In that story, Jean Grey accidentally merges with the Phoenix Force, a cosmic entity that embodies the universal energy of creation and destruction. This gives her vastly enhanced psychic abilities that eventually overwhelm her, transforming her into “Dark Phoenix,” a genocidal force of unimaginable power.
It gets worse from there. Jean leaves earth and ends up destroying a star system to feed her power, which kills billions. (No, really.) This provokes intervention by an alliance of interstellar empires (no, really) who demand she be captured and executed for the good of the universe. After a series of trials, Jean briefly regains her faculties and commits suicide to prevent further destruction.
Of course, comics hardcores know Jean is later revealed to be innocent, and still alive. (No, really.) It turns out that Dark Phoenix had only been impersonating her while she was being healed after a terrible accident, and came to believe it really was her. (It’s weird — look, comics are weird, guys).
It’s unlikely the film will go that far — things look decidedly earthbound, aside from that shuttle mission. But as you can see from the trailer, Jean Grey is still an enormous threat to the “X-Men” universe.
“Dark Phoenix” was previously adapted for television on the 1990s “X-Men” animated series, the 2009 animated series “Wolverine and the X-Men,” and very loosely in the 2006 film “X-Men: The Last Stand.”
This version was written and directed by Simon Kinberg, who also wrote “Last Stand” as well as the two most recent “X-Men” films. “Dark Phoenix” also stars Jessica Chastain, Michael Fassbender, Tye Sheridan, Olivia Munn, James McAvoy, Nicholas Hoult, Evan Peters and Alexandra Shipp.
It hits theaters on Feb. 14, 2019.
Beatrice Verhoeven contributed to this post.
All 12 'X-Men' Movies Ranked, From Worst to Best (Photos)
The superhero film franchise is still going strong after two decades. TheWrap's film critic Alonso Duralde ranks all the "X-Men" movies and their spinoffs from worst to best.
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12. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" (2009)
It’s incumbent on prequels to have enough vitality to keep us from noticing that we’re heading to a pre-determined destination, but this listlessly written ordeal -- loaded with terrible effects and horrible misuse of future franchise savior Deadpool -- ranks as the hottest mess of the mutant adventures.
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11. "X-Men: Apocalypse" (2016)
There are many sins we can forgive in a superhero epic, but dullness is not among them. Director Bryan Singer, usually adept at creating these movies, shockingly drops the ball here, with a who-cares world-domination plot from the titular villain (played by an unrecognizable Oscar Isaac) and more characters than he apparently knows how to handle.
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10. "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006)
Brett Ratner has reimagined himself as a successful producer of blockbusters and documentaries of late, and if that means he won’t be directing any more movies like this one, more power to him. Ratner threw out all the characterization from the previous two films and crafted a thud-and-blunder action epic that emphasized cacophony and spectacle over story. It wasn’t enough to kill the franchise, but this one definitely counts as a stain on its reputation.
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9. "Dark Phoenix" (2019)
What would appear to be the series' final entry takes the X-Men saga out with a whimper rather than a bang. Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) absorbs an alien force-blob that juices up her powers beyond her control, but the film is far more interested in CG mayhem than in characters or plotting. The whole movie is stolen by the hair and makeup on Jessica Chastain, who has been made to look eerily like music legend Edgar Winter.
8. "The Wolverine" (2013)
Something of a mixed bag -- we get two powerful and captivating female leads for Hugh Jackman to play against, before the film gets mired in corporate intrigue and Japanese sightseeing -- but it’s a huge improvement over the previous Wolverine solo vehicle. Jackman promises one more of these, and then he’s done, so let’s hope the upward trajectory continues.
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7. "X-Men" (2000)
Here’s where it all began, and a case can be made that the success of this 2000 film, alongside 2002’s “Spider-Man” and 2005’s “Batman Begins,” laid the groundwork for the modern superhero ubiquity. The film cagily presents friends-turned-enemies Magneto and Professor X as the Malcolm X and MLK of mutant liberation, giving this Bryan Singer-directed tale more heft than just dudes in spandex whomping each other.
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6. Deadpool 2 (2018)
Ryan Reynolds retains his commitment to the bit in a sequel that neither betrays the first film's promise, nor does it kick things up a notch. As a joke told a second time, however, it's a pretty fun sequel, thanks to the extension of some beloved bits and the addition of zesty new cast members like Zazie Beetz and Rob Delaney.
5. "Logan" (2017)
It's 2029, and an aging Wolverine and 90-something Professor X are hiding out from the world at large -- until they're called to help a new mutant find her way to safety. On the heels of "Deadpool," this R-rated entry allows for bloodier violence and saltier language, and if the storytelling doesn't find new levels of maturity, "The Wolverine" director James Mangold makes the most of his new freedoms, resulting in a rousingly fun character-capper (or is it?).
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4. "X-Men: First Class" (2011)
British action director Matthew Vaughn (“Layer Cake”) gave the series a much-needed jolt of adrenaline with this prequel, taking us back to the beginning of the story and showing how a young Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Magneto (Michael Fassbender) joined forces before tragically parting ways and pursuing differing philosophies.
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3. "X-Men: Days of Future Past" (2013)
After a lengthy absence, director Bryan Singer returned to the mutants, juggling multiple timelines and characters in a saga wherein Wolverine must return to the groovy Paris of the early 1970s to change history and stop the deadly Sentinels from being created to capture and destroy all mutants. This one’s almost as overcrowded as “Apocalypse,” but at least the characters still get some breathing room.
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2. "Deadpool" (2016)
The overinflated superhero genre has been overdue for a popping, and this breezy action comedy provided the much-needed pin. Making up for the misuse of the character in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” a returning Ryan Reynolds turned the comics’ legendary “Merc with a Mouth” into a human Daffy Duck, bouncing back from every explosion and injury while simultaneously shattering the fourth wall and mocking the franchise in the most R-rated way possible. These movies had it coming.
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1." X2" (2003)
Still arguably one of the best superhero films ever made, this entry enjoys all the second-time-around benefits of any franchise where the first movie had to lay all the groundwork and tell all the origin stories. Smart and politically provocative, featuring strong performances by actors who have been given real characters to play, and loaded with plenty of satisfying action, “X2” remains the gold standard -- and Singer's best entry -- for this series.
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Twenty years after the original ”X-Men“ hit theaters, how does the franchise stack up?
The superhero film franchise is still going strong after two decades. TheWrap's film critic Alonso Duralde ranks all the "X-Men" movies and their spinoffs from worst to best.
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