Well, it appears there is some movement on “The New Mutants,” front, the “X-Men” spin-off that featured young, teenage mutants introduced in the comics after the original X-team started to grow older. This morning word came from X-Men Cinematic Universe gatekeeper Simon Kinberg that “The New Mutants” would take on a YA-vibe given its younger actors. He also said the script, being co-written by “The Fault In Our Stars” director Josh Boone and Knate Gwaltney (“Bad Grandpa”) was being penned as we speak. But is it closer to completion than the producer intimated? Or are just the main characters nailed down and Fox knows who they want?
According to a HitFix report, 20th Century Fox has set their sights on two new actors, Maisie Williams from “Game Of Thrones,” and up-and-comer Anya Taylor-Joy from the indie horror “The Witch,” to start alongside Alexandra Shipp from “X-Men: Apocalypse” who will apparently reprise her role as Storm.
The Game Of Thrones star is being pegged for the werewolf-like character Wolfsbane and Taylor-Joy is being reportedly being sought after for the role of Illya Rasputin, aka Magik. Cannonball, Sunspot, and Mirage are also apparently characters that will soon be cast and that’s basically the original classic New Mutants line-up as it was in the initial run of 1980s comics.
The publication also says James McAvoy’s Professor X will play a significant part in the movie which makes sense given the character is the mainstay teacher in the comics (this also bodes well for the idea that McAvoy is staying with the series beyond his three-film contract that ends with ‘Apocalypse’). There’s no official word or comment, so don’t rejoice yet, but “X-Men: The New Mutants” is currently eyeing a 2018 release date, so perhaps we’ll receive confirmation soon.