20th Century Fox is enjoying a pretty lucrative and critically acclaimed summer.
X-Men: Days of Future Past is the first
X-Men film to cross the $500M USD global box office benchmark and currently sits at $726M USD.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is currently enjoying very positive reviews from film critics and weekend box office estimates have the film earning as much as $70M USD. But the proverbial dark cloud, hanging over the studios' success, is Singer's teen sex abuse scandal, which is currently still under investigation. A few weeks back, Fox President of Production Emma Watts told
The Hollywood Reporter, "Right now we are totally at the outlining phase [on X-Men: Apocalypse]. But nothing would make me happier than if it all worked out. It's always been the intention for [Bryan] to do it." Reading between the lines, "if it all worked out", means if Singer is found innocent. As the weeks have gone by, there's been some pretty damning evidence submitted by Singer's lawyers which have poked some substantial holes in the Michael Egan case. Still, there's always the court of public opinion, which has led many to make kneejerk reactions without learning all the facts.
The outcome of the lawsuits could impact not only Singer's X-Men future but also the
news from The Tracking Board, which says that Singer and his production company, Bad Hat Harry Productions, have secured the rights to the '90s
Image Comics series
The Age of Heroes and have hired Alex Hollister to write the script. With X-Men: Apocalypse set for May 27,2016, that would ideally be Singer's next film. However, if Singer's legal troubles take a turn for the worse, perhaps he helms Age of Heroes next instead?
AGE OF HEROES SYNOPSIS: When the gods were born, they remade the world in the image of their dreams. This was known as the Age of Gods. When man was created along with other races of beings, fantastic cities were raised, insane magics were forged and unimaginable wars were fought, as the gods battled for supremacy over all creation. This was known as the Age of Wonders. When the gods fled and man was left to make his way in a world full of monsters and arcane magic, some rose up to right wrongs and create justice. This was known as The Age of Heroes.
Seven misfits and outcasts were brought together by fate. They are presented with a problem the gods themselves can't solve. For the gods are no longer in the world. They are Drake, the blind bard. Conor, a one-armed sell sword. Glinda the weaver. Mael, knight of the burning crystal. Wex, a Dalen monk. Luko and Aerwyn, clever thieves. The actions of these seven will usher in a new age. The Age of Heroes.
"James Hudnall has been years ahead of his time for the entire time he's been writing. There are a handful of people today taking credit for things that James Hudnall did decades ago. By buying this book you are supporting a true comic futurist." ---Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spiderman, Marvel Comics)
The Age of Heroes comic book series was published by Image and written by James Hudnall and illustrated by John Ridgway in January 1996. The series lasted five issues, ending in January 1997. Three, stand-alone, special edition volumes were published in 1997 and 1998. Hundnall also converted the comic into a novel, which was recently published last October.