6 Foolproof Ways To Reboot The X-MEN Franchise After The APOCALYPSE
X-Men: Apocalypse was a critical and commercial disappointment, and so it's no real surprise that Fox is looking to reboot the series. These are the best (and most likely) ways they can actually do that!
As of right now, we don't really know. The studio is hoping to bring back the same cast, but with Bryan Singer hard at work on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and a Freddie Mercury biopic, he won't be returning to take the helm. It also definitely sounds like Fox wants to make some significant changes to the franchise, and from a soft to full on reboot, there are many ways that they could achieve that.
What you'll find here then are what I believe to be the six foolproof ways for Fox to reboot the X-Men. From ditching certain creative voices to teaming up with other studios, any one of these options could be what these characters need to return to their glory days as some of cinema's most popular heroes.
6. Team Them Up With The Fantastic Four
How would the X-Men benefit from it? Well, a new adventure for the team where they head into battle against a cosmic villain like Galactus would give the franchise the kick in the ass it needs, especially as taking the heroes into space could leave us with a Guardians of the Galaxy style adventure which would make the next movie truly different to anything we've ever seen from the X-Men before. If Fox were to play their cards right, this sort of reboot could even leave the door open to a brand new Fantastic Four movie as well.
5. Dump Simon Kinberg
Whether the original cast returns and we get some sort of loose continuation or an entirely new start, having the same writer working on the screenplay feels counter-intuitive to shaking things up, especially when Kinberg has arguably dropped the ball with three iconic storylines now (as good as Days of Future Past was, the Sentinels didn't exactly live up to expectations). Bryan Singer being too busy to return is definitely for the best when it comes to ensuring that the next instalment in the franchise feels like a fresh start for these characters, but it's essential that a different writer is hired in order to truly help these characters move on.
4. A "Soft" Reboot
That means it would be better to kick things off with a new adventure which doesn't really reference anything that's come before in too direct a manner (like The Incredible Hulk's relationship to Ang Lee's Hulk). If that means making the now heroic Magneto the leader of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants and ditching Mystique as the leader of the X-Men, so be it, but perhaps the best way Fox can achieve this is by focusing on some new characters and making the trio of actors listed above supporting players and nothing more.
3. Make A Deal With Marvel Studios
For that, they would need a really significant big bad, and that takes me back to Galactus. The problem here is that it's hard to say what Marvel Studios would gain from taking on a struggling franchise like the X-Men, but if there's one person capable of fixing these characters, it's Kevin Feige. That's something Fox must realise, but whether or not they'll take advantage of it is hard to say at this stage. Avengers Vs. X-Men would be a guaranteed hit though!
2. Recast Wolverine
Someone like Sabretooth could even be utilised as the big bad, and there's so much that Bryan Singer got wrong with Wolverine as a member of the X-Men, it really wouldn't be too soon to bring him back here. Alternatively, the studio could focus on a new version like X-23 or even Daken, but it's fair to say that X-Men: Apocalypse suffered without the character, and it would actually be better to concentrate on his story again rather than continuing to delve into Erik and Charles' relationship. That's a story arc which has been fully played out, but there's lots Wolverine could still do in this world.
1. Set It In A Present Day Shared Universe
Logan will more than likely tell the story of how the X-Men came to an end, but there's really no need to build to what is essentially just one possible future. These movies need to stop getting wrapped up in their own convoluted timeline and just kick things off with a fresh slate thanks to a next instalment which borrows from the Marvel Cinematic Universe in respect to teasing fans with a shared world for these heroes.
How do you think Fox should go about rebooting the X-Men franchise? Do you agree with these points or do you have your own ideas? As always, share your thoughts in the usual place.