The first trailer for the newest X-Men film, Dark Phoenix, has been released by 2oth Century Fox. This is the fourth film in the latest series of the franchise. It was preceded by X-Men: First Class, Days of Future Past, and Apocalypse. The film will be released February 14, 2019.
The trailer for Dark Phoenix was revealed during The Late Late Show with James Corden. It showcases the troubled times the X-Men will face when Jean Grey (played by Sophie Turner) eventually turns to the dark side, a dramatic shift possibly fuelled by the Phoenix Force. The footage mainly focuses on how Jean may come to this murderous conclusion. It does this by hinting at a tragic past for the Marvel mutant and the fact that Professor Xavier (James McAvoy) may have suppressed these memories. The trailer also features the various returning characters from this recent series such as the aforementioned Charles Xavier, Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), among many others.
The official synopsis from 20th Century Fox reveals more of the details for the film. It will feature the X-Men facing “their most formidable and powerful foe: one of their own.” It will begin with a mission into space for the mutants, where Jean will be hit by “by a mysterious cosmic force.” When the team returns to earth, the “force not only makes [Jean]… infinitely more powerful, but far more unstable.” It is unclear from this trailer whether this film will be the last in the current run of X-Men films or how the Disney acquisition of 21st Century Fox will change the franchise. However, it is intended as the first in a new trilogy of films.
Dark Phoenix will be adapting Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum, and John Byrne’s critically acclaimed Dark Phoenix Saga. It began in the pages of Uncanny X-Men issues #101 to #108 between 1976 and 1977 with the Phoenix Saga. The storyline was then concluded in the Dark Phoenix Saga in 1980 in issues #129 to 138. This arc was previously adapted for the screen in 2006 with X-Men: The Last Stand.
