Sadie Sink's mystery role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day was perhaps the biggest talking point heading into the movie, and the earliest reports that she'd play Jean Grey were ultimately proven correct.
Now, after exploring Marvel Girl's origin story alongside Tom Holland's web-slinger, Sink is set to return as Jean in Jake Schreier's X-Men reboot. That's expected to kick off the next Saga in 2028, with the mutant team a focal point of the MCU moving forward.
Talking to Entertainment Weekly, the Stranger Things alum was asked where she turned to for inspiration when preparing to play the fan-favourite mutant.
"I looked at everything just to see what the throughline was and also the physicality of it. It looks different in each version, too, how she uses the powers. I was like, I gotta figure something out and stick with it," Sink explained. "But this version that they were writing just felt so different from what we’d seen."
"I was more focused on the version of her that was on the page for this moment in her life and in this universe and what I could bring to that...It’s a different actor, so it’s inherently just gonna be a different take, but especially for this, it was a different side of her," she continued. "But yeah, the powers were something [where] I was like, 'Okay, wait, how do I do that?'"
Asked if there were ever conversations about putting her fingers to her temple, Sink explained why the decision was made not to borrow that classic pose from the comics. "I remember it not really being much of a conversation at all," she said. "There was a pressure that I felt of, whatever I land on, I have to stick with. But it can evolve, too, because her powers evolve and it’ll just change as it goes."
"But what I landed on was not looking like much effort at all...It’s more in the eyes because her power is, at least in this movie, invisible. So when she’s using them, it should also be invisible."
In a separate conversation with Vanity Fair, Sink—who confirmed that X-Men starts filming next year—was asked about whether she had any doubts about agreeing to take on a role that will likely dominate her career for years to come. "Of course, with anything you do have to stop and consider," she admitted. "For me, it felt like a character that would have a lot to offer over however many times we see her."
"And also the idea of returning to something or having a consistent character that you’re playing is something I’m also familiar with. I like that structure," Sink added. "So it felt like a no-brainer to me. It’s a great character to spend some time with."
"I think the timing of it is so exciting, and the way they planned it out is really clever just with introducing one of the mutants, a very important mutant through Spider-Man," the actress teased. "I think a great cast is coming together, and I think people are going to be really excited about it when it’s all announced."
That announcement is expected to be made at D23, which takes place next week. Whether Marvel Studios will have closed enough deals to unveil the full X-Men cast remains to be seen, but it won't be long until we have a much better idea of what to expect from the reboot.