It was only a matter of time before X-Men would be rumored to getting a reboot. With the not-as-successful-as-it-could-have-been release of X-Men Apocalypse, it’s clear the X-Men movies are in need of an upgrade. But the question is: how does FOX plan to tackle this much needed reboot?
We can’t ignore the fact that it’s very possible FOX may cave and pull a deal with Marvel much like Sony did with Spiderman. Given that their current X-Men projects are slowly falling off the rails, FOX may just decide to call it quits. After all, reseting the timeline in X-Men: Days of Future Past was a reboot to a degree. It started the story all over again with an endless amount of possibilities as to where it could go from there. This was FOX’s second chance at the X-Men and, let’s face it, they blew it.
However, at the same time, FOX may want to give the X-Men another go and especially with the highly successful Deadpool movie. Exceeding expectations and with an “R” rating, Deadpool has turned everyone’s world upside down when it comes to comic book films. It’s very possible the Deadpool franchise will become the dark, edgy comic book films Warner Brothers is currently struggling to make. Instead of sealing a deal with Marvel, FOX may attempt a slightly edgier reboot of the X-Men. There’s certainly room for it especially now that Deadpool is hopefully here to stay. Even if Deadpool 2 falls, the X-Men can easily be FOX’s backup of an edgier comic book movie. Granted, it’s very unlikely the series would be rated “R” but, at the very least, we’d be given a hard “PG-13”.
Regardless of how this rumoured reboot plays out, there’s also a good chance that the reboot may depend on the success of one film: Logan. Judging by the first trailer alone, Logan appears to offer a tone very similar to the most recent DC films. Is it possible Logan‘s overall story and tone is being used as an experiment for future films? If Logan is successful, could this mean we’ll get dark, gritty X-Men stories? Or, if the film proves to be a disappointing flop, will FOX finally hand over the reigns to Marvel? It’s hard to tell exactly what FOX’s plans are but the apparent tonal shift in Logan may be the only clue to the future of the X-Men as of right now. And the fact that Logan has a completely different feel to it than other X-Men movies means that FOX is working behind the scenes to either give us something really special or finally give their franchise to someone who can.
The premise of Logan is a perfect way to end this current run of X-Men films and allow FOX to undergo a true reboot. We began this series of adventures with Logan in the first X-Men film. And now, it looks as though we will end with him. With this final performance from Hugh Jackman, we can finally start over.
What do you think of the rumoured X-Men reboot? Should FOX be given another chance or say goodbye to this beloved franchise? Where could the story go from here? Share your thoughts in the comments below or on Twitter!