A mild background focus on Magneto, Xavier, and the formation of the original 5 and newer recruits propels this movie into the action that follows.
Keeping in mind that Yul Brenner, the man that Xavier was based on, was unoriginal, although perfect when used in my Rivalries Fancast.
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/ager/news/?a=38074
As well, Robert De Niro was my Wolverine in said cast and, although one of my favorite choices as an older Magneto, Clint Eastwood, did not fit here, in his younger days, as good as in my Recast Fancast
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/ager/news/?a=47647
That being said, this cast is set 8 years or so after the formation of the TRUE FIRST CLASS. I've tried to be original and accurate.
****They must already have been an established actor in order for me to choose them
****Also, although I've listed the ages, the ages of Hollywood actors tend to be fluid so, although some within the First Class are older and some younger, imagine they meet somewhat in the middle as far as age goes. Keep in mind, It's 8 years after the teens begin.
****This movie never sees the departure of any of the 1st Class in the beginning, instead they stay together to form one huge team.
The year is 1978
You may notice the absence of Poloris, and a few note worthy villains. I did not want to over-saturate the story. Also, the abnormal affiliation of Havok.. I've also tossed Blob in their as a founding member of the Brotherhood, a direct contradiction to the comics, as I felt they needed more members and he was one of the earliest foes.
The Plot...
X-Men 1
The 1st movie starts with a voice over. Cyclops intros himself and Xavier, defining their mission statement as X-Men. He explains what a mutant (in that, defining them as Homo Superiors) is and describes the other 4 members of the X-Men. He says that over the past 8 years they have faced many threats, both human and mutant, the least of which is prejudice. Up until now (the screen shows Cyclops at the head, with Xavier behind him and to his right, as if talking to a small group) Magneto, a mutant terrorist who hellbent on eradicating or enslaving Homo Sapiens, was our greatest threat (a muted flashback of the 1st Class battling Magneto).
3 days ago, my teammates encountered something far more dangerous. Boliver Trask has developed near-indestructible, mutant-hunting robots called (another muted flashback of the licensing, creation and unveiling, with public approval, of the robots) Sentinels. At the behest of my team, I escaped. Myself and the professor have gathered you 6 to save my team from death.
The roughest looking member, chomping on a cigar delivers a harsh reality by stating "If their even alive."
Cyclops retorts, "That is a chance I'm willing to take. If the 7 of you agree, then, from this point on, as X-Men, you will go by code names when on patrol. (as each is intro'd, they are shown on screen followed by the moment in which Cyclops and Xavier enlisted them)
It is felt that Banshee and Xavier know each other. Later, Blob remarks that Banshee is his old running buddy, much to the dismay of Banshee.
Storm, Thunderbird, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Banshee, Sunfire and Wolverine.
The new team trains for a few days then heads to the home base of the Sentinels, fighting nearly 100.
At the big battle the X-Men are overwhelmed. Magneto rushes in to save the day. he swiftly thrashes several dozen and human solders are dispatch to take out he and the X-Men. Mastermind warps the reality and confuses the humans long enough for the X-Men to safely defeat them as well. Toad frees the original 4 and 3 other mutants as well, twins Pietro and Wanda and the enormous Fred Dukes.
Close to 200 more Sentinels fly in each member shows off his or powers to take them out. In the end, Magneto offers a place on Asteroid M for all of them. While the X-Men decline, the twins, feeling a debt of gratitude accept, as does Dukes.
Magneto leaves with parting words, "Charles, Homo Superior will rise up soon. The brotherhood will head the revolution and all that oppose will pay with their lives.
To be continued in
Uncanny X-Men 2
X-Men vs The Brotherhood. Of note is the love triangle between Wolverine Cyke and Jean as well as Scarlet Witch, Cyke and Jean and the triangle of jealousy between Cyke, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (who are dubbed such, as well as Blob, in this movie): Thunderbird's death:
The tension over Miora between Xavier and Banshee, who leaves the team, albeit on somewhat good terms: Sunfire leaves as well, feeling Japan needs a great hero there, more than America needs one more
Additional Notes... The tension the wins feel by siding with Magneto, only to eventually cause his downfall, and leave altogether: Beast's transformation: Toad's self esteem and his kinship with Blob: Jean powers going crazy due to her psychically tried to guide Thunderbird's spirit immediately following his death disastrously aided by the illusionist, mastermind, her mind broke, the movie ends with a comatose Jean Grey and Iceman, Beast and Angel leaving the team, emotionally spent. The newer members get costumes, each take an individual costume relating to their pasts
To be concluded in
X-Men: Phoenix 3
The movie opens with a broken and beaten team. Everyone is at a loss. A captured Magneto psychically offers his condolences to Xavier. Days later, still trying to gather their senses, they are attacked by the Juggernaut, who is shouting obscenities at his "little bro." As he lays waist to the flustered and mourning team he and Xavier argue, somewhat explaining their history (Marko also brags about the psychic barrier that doubles as his helmet)
Without notice, Jean's body is suddenly set aflame and she slowly rises, and does what no other member could do, she uses Telekinesis to effortlessly remove his helmet, leaving him easy prey for her teammates before she flies through the school and into space without ever saying a word.
Weeks later, Xavier is sent psychic images of pleas for help by Lilandra.
The X-Men must fly to space to save Jean who is being targeted by the Shi'ar Emperor, D'Ken and hid Imperial Guard. His sister, Lilandra, a renagade, must align herself with the X-Men to stop D'Ken from defeating Jean, who has now become the Phoenix Force (she explains what that means) because he will attempt to control her and rule the world. She, along with her Starjammers, is also trying to kill the force.
The X-Men and the Shi'ar Imperial Guard battle, with the victors deciding the fate of Phoenix. The Imperial Guard, led by Gladiator, was able to defeat all of the X-Men, leaving Cyclops and Phoenix alone to make a final stand against them. When a stray bolt of energy hit Cyclops, Jean Grey's panic overrode the psychic circuit-breakers Xavier had placed within her mind and the full might of Phoenix's powers was once more unleashed. At this point, Lilandra abandoned the delicate approach and ordered Plan Omega, which would consist of destroying the whole solar system in hopes of eliminating Phoenix in the process. With events spiraling out of control, Xavier ordered the X-Men to subdue Jean to preempt Lilandra's emergency measure. The team battled her until she regained her senses. Jean, struggling to keep control, disintegrated herself after an emotional good-bye to Cyclops.
Lilandra remarks "Jean Grey could have lived to become a god. But it was more important to her that she die...a human."
Additional notes... Xavier and Lilandra's love for one another: Cyke's loss is Wolverine's as well: the discovery of Corsair's and Havok's relation to Cyke. Havok's membership as a Starjammer is explained in his bio.
The End
The Cast...
First Class
Professor X
Alan Arkin
Age: 44
You may know him from: Little Miss Sunshine
Why: Aside from an uncanny resemblance, Arkin is a New Yorker with an edge. He could play the role with such belief. It takes a powerful actor to convince 5 youngsters to fight a megalomaniac and his disciples, and then convince another group to risk their lives in order to save a few strangers. If Yul is out of the equation than Arkin is the man for the job. P.S. I like Xavier to be younger than the ancient Patrick Stewart, it makes more sense that he start young and that is the way he was/is in the comics.
Cyclops
Dennis Quaid
23
The Day After Tomorrow
Dude's a beast of an actor and cut as hell. Cyke Rival's Cap as Marvel's greatest leader and I, personally, would tip the scale towards the mutant leader. Quaid has qualities that make him a star by appearance alone, those same qualities make him an apt leader as well.
Marvel Girl
Jane Seymour
26
Wedding Crashers
The Bond girl is stunning. Was. Is. Was is the focus here. Not many women stole the camera the way the Medicine Woman did/does. If you've seen her in Smallville or Dr. Quinn (more so) than you know she is capable of being the Xavier's most trusted student.
Beast
Sam Neill
31
Jurassic Park
Sam Neill has an elegance that, I'm sure, most are aware of. His face, too, is beastly. Neill would have to Americanize his accent and he would ace the pre-blue Beast.
Angel
Richard Dean Anderson
27
Stargate
MacGyver has the soap opera looks and the cool attitude to play the Avenging Angel. At this point, he has already grown out of the role as antagonist within the group.
Iceman
Kevin Bacon
19
X-Men 1st class (ironically)
Being mush younger than the others works well here. Hypothetically, if Cyke was 16. Jean 17, Beast 18 and Angel 19, than Booby could've been 14 or 13. That's helps sell his behavior. While he may have matured over the 8 years, he's still seen as being young and brash, not helping the matter is his baby face. Bacon's smarmy attitude is perfect for the young Drake.
Giant-sized additions
Wolverine
Ian McShane
36
Pirates of the Caribbean
Having prohibited the use of De Niro, I looked towards using similar character and deeply committed actors that are also slightly diminutive such as Harvey Keitel and Al Pacino, born 1939 and '40 respectively, thus making them slightly older than my preference. Sure, Bob Hoskins is runt enough, as well as an amazing actor that could nail the attitude of Patch but he is too rotund. Stallone was another I keyed in on as a backup however, his imperfect speech detoured me. At this point very little is known about the wild Wolverine. His defining attributes are his height and temper. McShane's background in acting serves him well here. Mcshane is 5'9" and maybe, with camera angles could appear shorter.
Storm
Pam Grier
29
Jackie Brown
The only suitable choice for my second favorite Marvel heroine is my favorite action starlet. There really is no other explanation needed.
Colossus
Arnold Schwarzenegger
31
Terminator
Yeah I know he's Austrian but c'mon. It's 1978 and Colossus was not the layered character that he is now. I'm not saying I want him as a mute, but the barbarian-like Arnold would be perfect in my eyes. Much in the same way they shrink Wolverine they can lift the govenator to make him the perfect ruskie.
Nightcrawler
Brad Dourif
28
Star Trek
Billy Bibbit in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the voice of Chucky in the Child's Play franchise, Gríma Wormtongue inThe Lord of the Rings, the homicidal Betazoid Lon Suder in the TV series Star Trek: Voyager, serial killer Charles Dexter/Brother Edward in the TV series Babylon 5, and Doc Cochran in the HBO television series Deadwood. My point is. he is full of geek cred. Although he is seemingly a seedy character actor, I see no reason why not to believe he would not be remarkable as the fuzzy elf.
Thunderbird
Don Shanks
28
Urban Legends: Bloody Mary
Stuntman turned actor, Shanks has the perfect steely-eyed look for the Giant-size d-bag of the group.
Banshee
Ryan O'Neil
37
Malibu's Most Wanted
Always a decade or so older than the rest, Malibu's Bill Gluckman was made for this. The 70's were filled with nominations for him.
Sunfire
James Saito
23
TMNT (Shredder)
An established actor among very few Asian-American actors. Normally, if you were not aware, in this era, Asians were given the shaft and, similar to Native-Americans, many "white" actors were cast as Asians.... Not cool, especially for a multi-cultural team such as the X-Men.
The Brotherhood
Magneto
Lee Marvin
54
The Dirty Dozen
Having already used him in the aforementioned Rivalries Fancast, I saw no reason to change what I felt was dead-on casting. He is the perfect age in this era, slightly older than Xavier and young enough to rough someone up.
Mastermind
Harry Dean Stanton
52
Alpha Dog
I packed this cast with several A-listers, on top of that list sits this man. Stanton has graced the small and silver screens for over 50 years,. That, alone, sells him.
Scarlet Witch
Isabella Rossellini
26
Alias
Her exotic look and legendary acting status were reason enough to make her my first choice, locating a Pietro close to her age.
Quicksilver
Ray Liotta
24
Goodfellas
Admittedly, the one casting I just flung in there. Although, he is great for the part, I wound up here as a result of Rossellini being close to the same age.
Toad
Danny DeVito
34
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
This is the original , Quasimodo-esque Toad who was the bullied stooge of Magneto. DeVito may not have been agile, but that is hard to find when you look like Toad. DeVito has more than proved himself an amazing actor. ranging from the serious to the twisted to the comical; attributes necessary for this version of Mortimer.
Blob
Larry Drake
28
Darkman
Built like a linebacker and the look of a backwoods killer, Dr. Giggles would make one hefty Fred Dukes. He could bring layers of emotions to a character that could get overlooked easily. The clear cut power of the bad guys, Drake could handle the pressure in spades.
Loner Villains
Juggernaut
Clint Walker
51
Cheyenne
He stood 6'6" with a 48-inch chest and a 32-inch waist. The perfect older bro to Charlie Xavier. Old enough and damn near as powerful as Marko himself, Walker was the "big guy" everyone used to talk about. A minor role, and if not for Walker, I wouldn't have even had him in the story.
Trask
Oliver Reed
40
Gladiator
My original choice for Beast, not realizing his age. Reed is a natural for Trask. This guy is as tough as they come and can convincingly hang alongside the most deadly mutants and look, perhaps, more intimidating than the company he keeps.
Shi'ar
Starjammers
Lilandra
Diana Rigg
40
The Avengers
No stranger to action, one of the most famous sex symbols of the 60's and early 70's, Rigg could have stayed heavy in the limelight with this huge role.
Corsair
Steve McQueen
48
Bullitt
The King of Cool deserves this role. I tried not to use any actors I previously used in Avengers 1970
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/ager/news/?a=22813
or JLA 1973
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/ager/news/?a=23427
even though it doesn't matter, I still tried to use a large variety. Either way, McQueen would make Corsair as cool as he was supposed to be and not the joke he actually is .
Havok
Michael Biehn
22
Terminator
Biehn, a popular choice for Cable, would play great as Cable's uncle, the young Havok. Keeping in mind, in this universe, Havok is captured along with his father and only Cyclops parachutes to safety. Huge amounts of weirdness and tension when Cyke discovers that they are who they are and it's all around weird when Corsair is overcome with happiness, weird for the jealous Havok who finds it hard to adjust.
Anyway, there's a toughness to Biehn, McQueen and Quaid that I think would take well on the screen.
Hepzibah
Susan Sarandon
32
Speed Racer
I originally had Sigorney Weaver but I never thought she was attractive, just built for an ass kicking role. I've always had a crush on Sarandon and she is a much better actor to me.
Empire
D'Ken
Dennis Hopper
42
Speed
Committing the same crime I did with McQueen, Hopper was used in the aforementioned JLA '73 Fancast. However, it is perfect and I dare not take this back. McQueen may be the king of cool but Hopper is the baddest of the bad and the only man that could rival McQueen as Corsair's nemesis D'Ken.
Gladiator
Richard Kiel
29
The Spy Who Loved Me
The surprisingly (if I can be a bit judgmental) well spoken, highly tuned actor, Kiel, Bond's super strong enemy, is the most spot on casting here. At 7'2", Kiel makes the Juggernaut fiasco seem tame. That's the idea. Having just barely survived the Sentinels, not without the help from the brotherhood, then barely edging out the Brotherhood themselves they literally run head on into the Juggernaut and only survive that thanks to the emergence of Phoenix.
When they think they've seen the worst of this world, the galaxy proves that much worse is out there in the form of Gladiator and his Guardsmen.
********The X-Men have to finally prove themselves a worthy team, rather than being saved by others, the pattern that has formed over the 2 movies and beginning of the finale.
they, of course, do.