Were we not one of the first sites that actively said Michael Fassbender would make a great Magneto in Matthew Vaughn’s upcoming mutant reboot, “X-Men: First Class”? It was rumored last week that 20th Century Fox were pursuing the actor for the role of the X-Men nemesis and that Sony was after him for the villain role in Marc Webb’s “Spider-Man” 3D reboot and according to several sources, including EW, Deadline and THR, this all seems to be true. Adding to all this, Showbiz 411, who broke the original Fassbender news, says 28-year-0ld actor Ben Walker (“Kinsey,” “Flags Of Our Fathers”) has been cast as the brainy and brawny hero Hank McCoy otherwise known as the Beast (his role was unwisely played by Kelsey Grammar in the unfortunate Brett Ratner film, “X-Men: The Last Stand”). The New York Times actually mentioned this earlier in the week, but did not say which role. (Deadline, incidentally, say that Walker is being mentioned for the project, but for a role other than McCoy.)
Fox has evidently formally offered Fassbender the role and it’s his for the taking if he wants it. Actors who are reading for the part that seem like locks (or are already locks essentially) are Aaron Johnson (“Kick-Ass”) and Andrew Garfield (the “Red Riding” trilogy). As already reported, Rosamund Pike (“An Education”) and Amber Heard are also names being thrown around for roles, the former being linked to Moira MacTaggert, the scientist working under Professor X, who is being played by James McAvoy.
Other actors who are in the mix for possible roles are Frank Dillane (also up for the Peter Parker role in “Spider-Man” along with Garfield and Aaron Johnson; there’s been a lot of incestuous casting possibilities between both super hero projects), Jack Huston (“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”) and Eddie Redmayne (“Savage Grace”) who recently was provisionally cast as the lead in Spielberg’s “War Horse” before the director changed his mind.
We should all know by now that anyone Tweeting about a casting audition will never get the role, but in doing so, actress and model Jasmine Dustin may have inadvertently revealed that a young Mystique from the Brotherhood of Evil (Magneto’s cronies) will also have a role in the film (Heard was mentioned earlier in the week for that role, originally played by Rebecca Romijn).
Though seemingly more of a thespian than a Hollywood actor, Fassbender is in high demand in Tinseltown, but after the abomination that was “Jonah Hex” hopefully he’ll think twice before jumping on to another super villain role. Though presumably “X-Men: First Class” is a cut above the about-to-be-released Warner Bros. embarrassment. Let’s hope so anyhow, the talent involved so far is solid. If they’re going to cast Garfield btw, we totally see him as Angel. The picture shoots this summer in London.