A Geeky Viewpoint

X-Men Top 50

We know that the following movies have been announced by 20th Century Fox for the X-Men Universe are:

• Deadpool - February 2016
• X-Men: Apocalypse - May 2016
• Wolverine 3 - March 2017
• Untitled Marvel - July 2018

In addition we have heard from multiple sources, aka Lauren Shuler Donner and Simon Kinberg that two additional movies are in the works but the release dates have not been official announced.

• X-Force
• Gambit

Just for clarity purposes 20th Century Fox has also announced the dates for the two Fantastic Four Movies, also licensed by Fox but not apart of the X-Men Universe.

• Fantastic Four - June 2015
• Fantastic Four Sequel - July 2017

Let us add in the rumors that have some validity based upon what Lauren Shuler Donner and Simon Kinberg have suggested that they are looking at.  A Mystique standalone film and a film starring the Original Cast.   I put more validity in the Original Cast reuniting as Ellen Page (Kitty Pryde) and Patrick Stewart (Professor Xavier) are both on the record indicating they have already had contract discussions.

Several things stand out when looking at this schedule.

Hugh Jackman as Wolverine

• Wolverine 3 most likely will take place in the near future to be continuous with the X-Men, X2, X3 (which didn't happen), The Wolverine time line.
• Gambit is introduced in X-Men: Apocalypse suggesting that his feature film will be set in the near past (90's) rather than in the present.   Not saying they won't move them forward to the near future rather it makes the most sense to position the movie historically slightly before the X-Men time line. 
• There is a gap in the movie release schedule from March 2017 to July 2018...  (Note: FF2 July 2017)
• There has been a lot of talk from 20th Century Fox and Lauren Shuler-Donner about a Mystique standalone film with the statement clearly made that Jennifer Lawrence is not signed for such a film and talks will progress at some point in the near future.
• X-Force has been announced but we haven't really heard a great deal about this movie since it was announced, only that with the X-Men: Days of Future Past storyline that the plot/story for X-Force needed to be reworked. 

When you look at the rival Marvel Cinematic Universes the X-Men Universe has few of the problems that exist in the MCU, Spider-Man and Fantastic Four universe.   Namely that there is a balance between heroes and villains.  Spider-Man has one hero and several dozen villains, MCU proper has dozens of Heroes but the number of villains is extremely limited, and Fantastic Four has well two villains and one of them eats planets.  
That may seem like a bit of an exaggeration, but Sony controls the rights to 50 to 60 villains but leases the rights to Spider-Man and have suggested that Black Cat could become a heroine.  
The Fantastic Four have about six villains that are clearly in the FF IP but the rest of the hundred or so others the super group has faced in the comics belong in other IPs.  
The MCU proper has a few super villains Thanos, Kang, but most of the Villains are from other IPs, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, X-Men.   That's not saying you don't have individual villains in the MCU (Mandarin, Loki, Red Skull) but the biggies are few and far between.

Here is my take.

• X-Force in its current incarnation will be absorbed into the Deadpool film featuring Cable (rumored to be played by Stephen Lang) in kind of the same way the X-Men Origins: Magento became X-Men: First Class.   Cable and Deadpool have been linked in the comics for years and this is a great opportunity to link them together (as opposed to Colossus who has been long rumored to be good cop/crazy cop partner ala Lethal Weapon Danny Glover and Mel Gibson).
• There will be a film announced around the holidays to fill the slot for November 2016.   My Guess will be the Gambit standalone film.   The question is how do you want to move Gambit along the time line and where does him film fit into the X-Men Universe.
• The stand alone Wolverine film will feature X-23, Laura Kinney, a female genetic clone of Logan (James Howlett).   While their are other interesting Wolverine story lines, Old Man Logan for example, they do little to advance the X-Men Universe on film.  
• At San Diego Comic Con or shortly before another film will be announced for a November 2017 release date having some sort of ensemble cast.    My guess on this film right now it is more of an X-Factor (Gambit and Quicksilver joined by Polaris and another mutant to be named, cough X-23 cough.)
• The July 2018 Film will star the original cast and will feature the death of Hugh Jackman's character Wolverine.    

Various Members of X-Force

I do not hold out much hope for the Fantastic Four version of the Marvel Universe, I am actually quite shocked that 20th Century Fox is moving ahead with production, almost every rumor and posting by people either in the know or more specifically should be in a position to be in the know has been anything but positive.  In my mind their are too many radical changes to the story line to make it believable even for a super hero story.

20th Century Fox desperately wants to do a female super-hero movie, Mystique is the obvious choice with Jennifer Lawrence, but lets face it she won't come cheap and time for the number 1 female star is going to be difficult.   Adding in X-23 Laura Kinney gives 20th Century Fox another option, played by a raising star or another likeable young star does just that provide a solid option.   Kristen Stewart to me seems like the perfect.

What do you think?

At this point I cannot find my post where I specifically wrote back in early 2012 (I will find it and I will post it) that I expect Hugh Jackman and Andrew Garfield to reprise their roles of Wolverine and Spider-Man respectfully in the Avengers 3 movie scheduled for 2018.

Back in July 2013 Hugh Jackman was quoted with suggesting Wolverine should be in a Avengers film.

Mate, I ask the same question.  I literally asked the same question the other day to Tom from Marvel who works with all the other studios, he works with Sony and Fox, that’s his job to liaise.  I said, 'Man, can this happen?' and he goes 'Look, it’s not gonna be easy because you’re working with different studios and they’re their properties.'  But I believe—maybe I’m optimistic, I understand at Marvel they’ve got The Avengers, they’ve got a lot of big things going on, but at some point I just find it almost impossible that there’s not a way to bring Iron Man, all the Avengers characters, Wolverine, the X-Men characters, Spider-Man, and somehow get them in together.  

Last year at Comic Con in San Diego Andrew Garfield stated he would love to see Spider-Man in an Avengers Film.   "I’d love to see [Spider-Man] with The Avengers,” Pause for dramatic Effect “Wouldn’t that just be awesome? Just saying.”
This same tone has been heard recently from not only Andrew Garfield, but Marc Webb, Director of the Amazing Spider-Man movies, “I would love that, as a fan, I think that would be great,” he continued with “I don’t know how that would happen, but I certainly would be supportive of it.”

Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios, has been constant with his message down playing and making it sound like it is going to be impossible.   "Their are so many stories to tell." "We have our stories."  "They have their stories"

That message change ever so slightly while he was promoting Thor: The Dark World "I would say, not anytime soon would we be in a position to team up with other studios who [have] a few of our characters, because we have so many characters ourselves," he added "I would never say never."

Moving further back, prior to the release of Marvel's Avengers during a Marvel UK panel in April 2012 Kevin Feige stated "Avengers 3 might be a good movie for the Civil War story line"

Lauren Shuler Donner, Producer of the X-Men movies, was quoted in July 2013 as saying “I would love it. I would love it. I personally have close ties to Marvel because of Kevin Feige, because Kevin worked for me. But to take our characters and mingle them in the way that they were written, yeah, absolutely.”

Yesterday Greg Silverman, President, Creative Development and Worldwide Production Warner Bros. Pictures confirmed in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that Warner Bros. has plans for a Justice League movie for sometime in 2018.  
The Justice League movie will be set after Batman vs. Superman set for release in May 6, 2016.   With plans to add a new Green Lantern (suspected to be Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) as well as Flash and Aqua Man.  
Even this early in the development cycle and less than 48 hours after first breaking the news many DC fans are speaking in terms of worried and low expectations.
Even though I don't expect to hear directly from Marvel Studios on the topic its another shot from Warner Bros. directly at Marvel Studios.   I wouldn't be surprised to hear Marvel Studios announce a release date to plant a flag for this movie.

So with a Justice League movie coming Marvel Studios needs to kick it up a notch to make sure they continue their roll as leading Super-Hero film studio.

It's not so easy when you have so many egos, personalities, and studios involved, but I think we will see a clear catalyst for one hold-out to change their tune in the near future.

The release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 [TASM2 for short] is next weekend, back a few weeks ago posted a box office project which was not so rosy for the Movie.   Currently many of Sony's biggest defenders are suggesting a $95 million domestic opening there are many projections of a much lower total, like mine of $72 million.  I won't get into the weird view points of the "Avengers Bounce" for X-Men: Days of Future Past but not The Amazing Spider-Man 2 the real problem is for Sony and Columbia is decreased revenue, especially the all important opening weekend.   IF The Amazing Spider-Man 2 falls short of Sony's revenue projections (approximately $90) Sony will have to take steps.  
Let's assume that TASM2 does fall short, an $80 million opening and $200 domestic total, that would provide only about $150 million in revenue for Sony compared to approximately $140 in the previous installment, which had a $62 million opening weekend.   Those numbers are not going to pay the bills for Sony.
One rumor that keeps appearing on the inter-web is that Sony sells the rights or transfers them to Marvel Studios, a figure roughly of $2 Billion, that's with a B boys and girls, and points on future Spider-Man films.   To me the problem with this rumor is timing, if we see TASM 2 tank and TASM 3 truly tank I think Sony would be far more apt to move along this path.  One less than great movie in terms of revenue does not make a sinking ship, three on the other hand...
The second option is work at getting an Avenger's Bounce.   In the first Amazing Spider-Man film their are dozens of supposed links to the Marvel's Cinematic Universe.   You can all make your own judgments, none the less TASM did not get a bounce.  To get that bounce you need a better connection, I honestly believe had Oscorp Tower appeared in Marvel's Avengers we would not be having this discussion as it would have clearly setup the connection and the bounce would have occurred.   Who failed in those negotiations, while we don't know who wouldn't blink we know that Sony Failed to get the benefit.
The third and final option would be to allow Andrew Garfield to appear as Spider-Man in Avengers 3.   Trust me a substantial bit of money will be involved $30 to $50 millions and points.

A lot of the focus lately is getting Spider-Man into the MCU, its important to look at 20th Century Fox X-Men series of movies.
X-Men: Days of Future Past is scheduled to open in less than a month, even though it has no ties to the MCU its expected to get a Avenger's Bounce, one that The Wolverine did not get last fall.   Yet in the Thor: The Dark World we see series of potential easter egg connections.   The Maruaders, a band of mutant assassins, appear as a rag-tag band of mercenaries.  While Erik Selvig is giving his talk on the interconnection of the worlds, on the black board dozens of easter eggs appear in the writing, including the fault (Thanos Reference), as well as X-Force reference, Yost and Kyle (last names of the creators of the X-Force). 
Factoring in a more friendly relationship between Lauren Shuler Donner and Kevin Feige, who used to work at Donner along with Avi Arad, add in that multiple people are talking about it and I smell at least strong discussions on bringing Wolverine to the MCU. 

I should point out that 20th Century Fox and Marvel Studios current friendship was not always the case and a contentious court battle occurred in 1999/2000/2001 between the two over a potential TV series called Mutant X.   

So that said, unless TASM 2 blows away box office sales this weekend I suspect that more pressure will be added to bring these two characters to Avengers 3.    It appears to be a situation where everyone could win.