1 Mutant Team From Fox’s X-Men Franchise Deserves Redemption In The MCU More Than Any Other
Summary
- Marvel Studios could redeem the New Mutants alongside the X-Men in the MCU's future.
- Fox's The New Mutants was a disappointing end to the X-Men franchise, though it did include some moments of potential that could be capitalized on by Marvel Studios.
- The New Mutants' horror style fits perfectly into the MCU's recent supernatural and horror-focused storylines, involving the likes of Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night and Blade.
Alongside the X-Men, the titular mutant team of 2020's The New Mutants also deserves redemption in the MCU. While 20th Century Fox's X-Men franchise certainly paved the way for the MCU to become so successful, there is a huge amount of excitement at the prospect of mutants and the X-Men to be reinvented by Marvel Studios, and hopefully be adapted more faithfully. The central X-Men team will surely be the focus of the MCU's upcoming mutant storylines, but other mutant teams could also seek justice after being mishandled by Fox.
Marvel Studios has already set to work on the MCU's X-Men reboot, hiring The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes writer Michael Lesslie to pen the script. The development of Marvel Studios' X-Men is incredibly exciting, though little is known about the movie's story or, indeed, which mutant characters will be included in the X-Men's first line-up in the MCU. However, the X-Men aren't the only team from Fox's franchise that should be reimagined for the MCU, as the New Mutants also need some serious redemption.
Your browser does not support the video tag. The New Mutants Team Was Wasted In Fox’s X-Men Franchise The New Mutants Was The Final Movie To Release As Part Of Fox's X-Men Franchise Close Production on 20th Century Fox's The New Mutants started in 2015, with director Josh Boone and his childhood best friend Knate Lee leading the charge. All seemed to be going well, with principal photography starting in July 2017, but a series of delays and then a period in production limbo during Disney's acquisition of Fox made The New Mutants' future uncertain. Boone returned after the acquisition was completed to finish The New Mutants ahead of its 2020 release date, but with no reshoots and incomplete visual effects, which contributed to a lackluster debut for the young mutant team.
The New Mutants were a popular addition to Marvel Comics following their debut in 1982, being praised for focusing on the dark and traumatic impact of some mutations. The live-action adaptation didn't receive this praise, however. The New Mutants' rushed completion, unfinished concepts, generic narrative and poor visual effects didn't do the debut of its interesting and complex characters any favors. Even the New Mutants' Marvel Comics co-creator Bob McLeod expressed his disappointment at the treatment of these characters in live-action (via Facebook).
The New Mutants Team Member
Actor
Illyana Rasputin's Magik
Anya Taylor-Joy
Rahne Sinclair's Wolfsbane
Maisie Williams
Samuel "Sam" Guthrie's Cannonball
Charlie Heaton
Danielle "Dani" Moonstar's Mirage
Blu Hunt
Roberto da Costa's Sunspot
Henry Zaga
MCU’s New Mutants Could Introduce Little-Known Mutants Alongside The X-Men Marvel Comics' New Mutants Team Comprised Smaller-Scale Mutants Compared To The X-Men Although there were some issues and controversies concerning the casting of the five core members of The New Mutants' titular team, the introduction of these lesser-known mutant characters into live-action was still a huge development for the X-Men franchise. This is something that Marvel Studios should repeat in the MCU, as a whole world of mutants should be introduced to the franchise, not only the X-Men. Perhaps the New Mutants' original line-up in Marvel Comics, comprising Mirage, Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane and Xuân Cao Mạnh's Karma could be introduced to the MCU, too.
Other members of Marvel Comics' New Mutants team have never been adapted into live-action before, so Marvel Studios has the opportunity to develop some characters that audiences may never have heard of. This includes the likes of Cypher, Magma, Warlock, Boom-Boom, Skids and Feral, among others. While the MCU debuts of iconic X-Men heroes such as Professor X, Cyclops, Jean Grey and Storm are highly-anticipated, Marvel Studios would benefit from bringing fresh faces, new perspectives and diverse voices into the MCU, and reinventing the New Mutants would be perfect for this.
Related 10 Lessons The MCU Needs To Learn From Fox’s 10 Top Rated X-Men Movies & Shows Despite containing many disappointing installments, Fox"s X-Men franchise also featured several high-rated projects that the MCU can learn from.
4 The New Mutants Would Fit Into The MCU’s Growing Horror Repertoire Marvel Studios Has Been Experimenting With Horror In Recent Projects While some criticized The New Mutants' use of horror, as the original Marvel Comics storylines had dealt with more fantasy, coming-of-age and science fiction elements, this style actually worked well for the team in live-action. The core of stories focused on the New Mutants is the team's handling of personal traumas, mental health issues and growing pains as they realize and learn about their mutant abilities. It was clever to use a horror style to depict this, and this could be repeated in the MCU, given the fact that Marvel Studios has been experimenting with horror more recently.
Recent projects such as Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness began to touch on horror as a genre in the MCU. Upcoming movies and shows such as Blade and Agatha All Along will develop this even further, so debuting the New Mutants as a team within this corner of the MCU would be an inspired choice. While the X-Men may focus on more lighthearted stories, though still dealing with themes such as discrimination and racism, the New Mutants could handle darker and perhaps more supernatural stories.
Marvel Comics' The New Mutants ran for 100 issues between 1982's The New Mutants #1 and 1991's The New Mutants #100.
Marvel Studios Would Benefit From Re-Doing Some Aspects Of Fox’s The New Mutants Not All Of Fox's The New Mutants Movie Was Bad Close Evidently, most of The New Mutants would be better left forgotten, with the team being completely reinvented for their possible MCU debut. However, not all of Josh Boone's X-Men franchise installment was bad, as The New Mutants contained some moments of potential that deserve to be developed further and explored in more detail in the MCU's future. Most notably, Anya Taylor-Joy received huge praise for her performance as fan-favorite Illyana Rasputin's Magik, and there have been calls for her to reprise the role in the MCU proper.
Related Everything We Know About Mutants In The MCU Now After Disney"s 2019 acquisition of Fox, mutants have finally been making their way to the MCU. Here"s everything we know about the MCU"s new heroes.
The introduction of the terrifying Smiley Men, the exploration of LGBTQ+ themes, the depiction of Roberto da Costa's abilities and the in depth analysis of these characters' traumatic histories were also effective in The New Mutants. Marvel Studios would benefit from continuing some of these elements in potential future stories focused on the New Mutants team, though there's no doubt the team and its themes would be handled better in the MCU. Reimagining The New Mutants would allow all corners of the MCU's mutant world to be explored, which can only be a good thing.
The New Mutants (2020) PG-13 Science FictionHorrorActionMysteryAdventure Where to Watch stream rent buy Not available
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Director Josh Boone Release Date April 2, 2020 Cast Blu Hunt , Maisie Williams , Anya Taylor-Joy , Charlie Heaton , Henry Zaga Runtime 94 Minutes Upcoming MCU Movies Captain America: Brave New World
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