Dark Phoenix was Fox's final
X-Men movie and, quite fittingly for a franchise which frequently divided fans with its creative decisions, it was a disaster. Originally set to be a two-part movie similar to
Avengers: Infinity War and
Avengers: Endgame, it instead was condensed into one and major issues with it led to Fox ordering a significant number of reshoots.
Now, thanks to concept artist Phil Boutte, we've learned that there were quite a few characters who were set to make an appearance in an earlier version of
Dark Phoenix.
He's shared concept art featuring a fresh take on The Hellfire Club, including characters like Shinobi Shaw, Harry Leland, the Red Lotus Gang, Freidrich Von Roehm, The Twins (Andrea and Andreas von Strucker), and Emma Frost. Sebastian Shaw is nowhere to be seen, presumably because he died at the hands of Magneto decades earlier...which doesn't explain Emma's return!
Then again, continuity has never really mattered much to Fox's
X-Men movies and there's no denying that it would have been fun seeing this lot back on the big screen and no doubt attempting to manipulate Jean Grey and the Phoenix Force for their own nefarious means!
To check out what might have been, hit the "View List" button below for the entire gallery!