The X-Men franchise has had its fair share of drama in the past, and it looks like the behind the scenes drama will continue with X-Men: First Class. Mere days ago in an interview with Hero Complex Bryan Singer and producer Lauren Shuler Donner were talking about the film, saying how it would focus on the relationship between Xavier and Magneto and the formation of the X-Men. There were also hints that Singer was interested in directing X-Men 4, although that would be a few years away yet.

Also mentioned in the interview was that Singer has a fairly ‘large problem’ before he can head back to Xavier Mansion: Jack the Giant Killer. The fantasy film is already in pre-production and it is unlikely Singer could simply drop out, which means the earliest he could begin work on X-Men: First Class would be late 2011/2012. And just like with X-Men 3, it appears 20th Century Fox may not be willing to wait for him.

From HitFix:

HitFix has exclusively learned, from multiple sources, that Bryan Singer may not be directing “X-Men: First Class” despite recent press reports to the contrary, and that 20th Century Fox is actively searching for directors to step in and helm the film, with discussions with at least two other filmmakers as recently as last week.

The filmmakers that they’re approaching now about directing “X-Men: First Class” are good names, guys who either have real experience in the comic book movie medium or who have heavy credibility with fan audiences. Names that would make fanboys happy from the first moment they’re announced. I’m curious to see who else they meet with in the next few weeks now that their first few choices have passed. Those meetings, exclusively reported by HitFix, make it seem like no matter what public face they’re putting on things, Fox is making plans as if Singer will not be free.

Oh dear. I was looking forward to Bryan Singer returning to the X-Men franchise, considering how great X-Men 2 was (and still is). I suppose 2 years is a long time for Fox to wait, especially if they could begin filming late 2010/2011 with another director on-board. I guess we’ll be able to get a better idea of the situation if/when Fox hire a new director. Singer isn’t the only guy would could potentially create a great film with First Class, so if they get a capable director on-board I won’t have that big of an issue. Just keep the Brett Ratner types away please.

What would you like to see happen? Should Fox wait till 2012 for Singer, or should they get another director on-board so we can actually see X-Men: First Class in 2012?

It’s been just over 3 months since Bryan Singer announced he would be returning to the X-Men franchise to direct X-Men: First Class, which he said will focus on the friendship between Xavier and Magneto and the formation of the X-Men. Before things can gear up Singer has to direct Jack the Giant Killer for Warner Bros, which is expected to go into production later this year.

Singer still has the X-Men in his conscious though, as he is working on the First Class script with Jamie Moss, and in a recent interview with Hero Complex both he and producer Lauren Shuler Donner spoke about the past and future of the X-Men franchise.

The article begins by looking back at the release of X-Men in 2000, commenting on how it has spawned the current superhero genre we have today and how during production they weren’t sure if it would be a success or failure. It then goes over the trilogy trivia, Singer leaving to direct Superman Returns, X3 and X-Men Origins: Wolverine being disappointments etc. Then the interviewer turns the attention back to the present, and what Singer and Donner have in-store for the future.

First they addressed why Singer chose to return to the franchise:

“I genuinely like the people, and my personality meshes more with this universe than it does with other universes, I think; I see that now at this point,” Singer said. “I feel a connection to the X-Men characters and also the ensemble nature of the films. If you look at ‘Usual Suspects” or my last film, ‘Valkyrie,’ I feel especially comfortable with ensemble juggling. In the space between all the characters you can disguise a central thought that’s hidden in all the discourse. I missed that with the singular relationship story of Superman. And, well, it always gives you something to cut to…”

Singer then briefly discussed the story for First Class:

The premise has compelling elements to it, Singer said. “Just doing younger mutants is not enough. The story needs to be more than that. I love the relationship between Magneto and Xavier, these two men who have diametrically opposite points of view but still manage to be friends — to a point. They are the ultimate frenemies.”

Now that Singer is back with the X-Men it seems people are keen to have him make as many X-Men movies as humanly possible:

Shuler Donner also has pitched Singer on doing a fourth instalment of the previously established “X-Men” franchise and Jackman had that lunch with Singer to coax him into a project as well, which may or may not be a “Wolverine” film, which Jackman has said will be set in Japan and released in 2011. “I wish I could be four people,” the director said with a moan. “I could make everybody happy.”

Singer turned to Shuler Donner and said of “X-Men 4″: “Hold that one off for just a little, I’m fixated on the other one right now.” She nodded and answered, “I will, I will … I’m holding it open with high hopes. It’s totally different [from 'First Class'] and it will be so interesting for you.”

With Singer’s commitments to both Jack the Giant Killer and X-Men: First Class he won’t be able to direct Wolverine 2, which he would be quite suited too considering X1 and X2 were when Wolverine was at his best. 20th Century Fox are aiming to shoot the Wolverine sequel in January, and it looks like they are still looking for a director.

While I would be interested in seeing an X-Men 4, I think they should stick with First Class and make a trilogy of it rather than hopping from prequels to distant sequels within the space of a few years. Fox won’t be letting go of the X-Men rights anytime soon, so heading back into the future after all these prequels and spin-offs may be their best move.

Back in November 2008 Gossip Girl and The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz was hired by 20th Century Fox to write the script for X-Men: First Class. As the film would focus on the X-Men as teenagers it seemed Schwartz was the right guy for the job, as he’s written and produced a few different teen-orientated TV shows.

However a few months ago it was announced that Bryan Singer would be returning to the franchise to direct the film, and as a result Schwartz’s script was pushed aside and Singer hired Jamie Moss to write the screenplay for his vision. We haven’t heard anything from Schwartz on the matter for a while, but MTV managed to ask him about it recently.

“I finished my draft,” Schwartz told MTV News. “Bryan Singer came onboard the movie, who’s the best possible guy to direct the ‘X-Men’ movies, and he wanted to make a very different kind of movie.”

“He’s Bryan Singer. If he wants to make an X-Men movie, they make his X-Men movie,” said Schwartz. “But it was a great experience and it was an honor to work on it.”

Pressed for more information about the “First Class” script that almost made it to the screen, Schwartz said he’d be endangering his life if he let any details slip. “I cannot. It’s on lockdown,” he said. “Sworn to secrecy. I swear to god, there’s a sniper with a gun pointed at me from that building.”

I guess there will forever be a ‘what if’ now with First Class, adding to the ‘what if’ Singer directed X-Men 3.

From the small bits of info we’ve received over the past year or so it seemed Schwartz was heading in an interesting direction. Producer Lauren Shuler Donner said they “want it to be like the recent, darker Potters. It should not be a kiddie movie – we’re in the X-Men world so you can’t suddenly change the tone.” She also mentioned Schwartz reviewed his script following the release of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, so the actors who played Cyclops and Emma Frost could have appeared in First Class also.

Singer’s version will focus more attention on the relationship between Xavier and Magneto (who probably wasn’t in Schwartz’ script) which I’m looking forward too. We will also see the formation of the X-Men, so they will probably be looking for some young kids/teens to play Cyclops, Storm and Jean. Beast will be slightly older if his appearance in The Last Stand is anything to go by.

It looks like Singer will be directing Jack the Giant Killer for New Line sometime this year, so X-Men: First Class will likely go into production in 2011, depending on Singer’s schedule.

The casting of Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier for X-Men over a decade ago was probably the best casting in a superhero movie there has been, and will ever be. Ever. So the thought of another actors cheeks warming up that wheelchair isn’t something I’ve wanted to think about, until now. Last month Bryan Singer announced his return to the franchise and said that X-Men: First Class would revolve around “the formation of the X-Men, how they began, and the relationship between a young Xavier and a young Magneto”.

This won’t be the first time we’ve seen a young Xavier and Magneto. We saw Stewart and Ian McKellen all youthful during the opening scenes of X-Men: The Last Stand, and last year producer Lauren Shulder Donner said that “you can’t do X-Men: First Class without Patrick [Stewart]“, so one assumed they would be going for the de-aging technique again. However since Donner made that statement the original script by Gossip Girl writer Josh Schwartz has been pushed to the side, and Singer is worked on a brand new script which, from what we have heard, focuses more on Xavier and Magneto than the previous treatment. This means de-aging two 70+ year old actors for a two hour movie might not be viable. Unfortunately.

Patrick Stewart recently spoke to TrekMovie about First Class, and said:

…working on X-Men with Sir Ian McKellen was “one of the best and most fun experiences” he has ever had, and that it was “the best job in the world” because every day he got to go to makeup and say good morning and give a kiss on the cheek to Halle Berry, Rebecca Romijn, Famke Janssen and Anna Paquin (and even Hugh Jackman). As for the future of X-Men, Stewart talked about the upcoming young Magneto & Xavier film (joking they were going to hire 8-year olds), but he doesn’t expect to be involved. However, Stewart did note that “working with Ian again would be wonderful.”

Singer is expected to make Jack the Giant Killer before heading back to the X-Universe, so they might not have got round to rounding up the cast yet. Although it is looking likely that we will be seeing new actors playing Xavier and Magneto. I saw Ralph Fiennes’ name suggested somewhere, and I think he’d be a good Xavier if they will be needing actors in their 40’s. Do you have any suggestions?

X-Men: The Last Stand may have been less well received than X2, however one thing it did get right was the display of powers. While Bryan Singer nailed the story, the mutants were a bit lame when it came to their abilities (something I hope isn’t the case with X-Men: First Class).

Fans had been waiting throughout all three films to see Iceman do something other than make things a bit chilly, and in X3 they got it. Not only was there an Pyro vs. Iceman face-off, fans also got to see Iceman ‘iced up’ which he was known for in the comics. It’s a shame 20th Century Fox didn’t carry on with an X4 in that respect, as Iceman was just getting interesting.

Shawn Ashmore, who played Iceman in the trilogy, recently spoke to Movieline about the franchise and gave his thoughts on Bryan Singer returning to direct X-Men: First Class.

As a veteran of three X-Men films, how do you feel about Bryan Singer returning to the franchise to direct X-Men: First Class?

I’m so excited. There was a weird transition between X-Men 2 and X-Men 3 because Bryan left and Brett Ratner came on. Ultimately it turned out to be a great thing, but it was kind of bizarre because Bryan had cast everyone and we’d all done two movies with him. It was bittersweet — it was nice to see Bryan go on and make Superman, and it was nice to have new blood and a new perspective from Brett coming in to work on the film. Bryan is clearly very, very passionate about the X-Men films and the characters, so you know he’s going to a good job with whatever the story’s going to be.

Are you bummed that it’ll be a prequel, since that means there probably won’t be any Iceman?

Yeah, yeah. Of course. Those films are always a blast to make, and working with Bryan is amazing. It’d be awesome to do another X-Men film, and it’s too bad that there probably won’t be a role for me, but who knows? The universe is huge and they keep making those films. You never know — hopefully, I’ll get the chance to play Iceman one more time.

Fear not Shawn! I’m sure after Fox have done with the past they’ll take the X-Men franchise back into the future again (they have to keep the rights somehow). I suspect we may see Iceman again in around 2020, give or take a few years depending how this First Class trilogy works out.

X-Men: First Class will most likely begin production after Singer has made Jack the Giant Killer which is expected to be released in 2011. This could mean we see First Class in 2012, along with Wolverine 2, The Avengers and the Spider-Man reboot. It’ll be quite a year for superhero films!

The inevitable ‘Avatar effect’ is taking…effect. Jon Favreau plans to film Cowboys and Aliens in 3D, Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg shot Tintin in 3D, and now in an article by the NY Times we get names of a few more movies that might be adopting the technique.

Bryan Singer, who in the past directed summer blockbusters like “X-Men” and “Superman Returns,” asked New Line to consider using 3-D in filming his planned fantasy “Jack the Giant Killer.” The debate continues, according to people who have been briefed on the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity because of studio policy.

Katie Martin Kelley, a spokeswoman for Paramount, said that studio had made no decision about whether its planned “Transformers” and “Star Trek” sequels would make the leap to 3-D, possibly giving the audience another sampling of the kind of immersive world devised by Mr. Cameron.

J. J. Abrams, who is developing another “Star Trek” film to be shot in the next couple of years, also declined to be interviewed about his plans for that franchise. But Paramount executives have already begun debating whether to shoot the next film in 3-D, even if that increases the cost and production difficulty, according to one person who was briefed on the talks but spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment.

Bryan Singer became a fan of 3D after seeing Avatar (he announced he would be directing X-Men: First Class at the Avatar premiere) and he mentioned he would like to use the technology for Jack the Giant Killer.

Micheal Bay, on the other hand, has previously expressed his dislike for 3D, saying “it’s a pain in the neck to shoot…I’ve heard that some people can’t even see 3-D and, moreover, that a major side effect of watching it is feeling exhausted. Can you imagine how you’d feel watching one of my movies in 3-D?”. Whether Bay likes it or not Paramount may be interested thanks to Avatar’s box office takings. 3D was a big factor in the film grossing over $1 billion.

I guess if the films mentioned above are shot in 3D then it will give people an option as to which format to see it in. Just because it’s shot in 3D doesn’t necessarily mean people have to see it that way, although Avatar showed that people don’t mind donning the glasses.

Would you want to see Transformers 3 and Star Trek 2 in 3D? Or aren’t you bothered either way?

Last week the X-Men franchise got a bit of a lift as Bryan Singer, director of one of the best superhero movies of the 00’s, X2, announced he would be returning to direct X-Men: First Class.

Since then we leaned that he’s hired Jamie Moss to write the script, and yesterday Heat Vision posted an interview with the director and he spoke a bit more about the film. Those who were disappointed to hear that X-Men Origins: Magneto was at the back of the pile in terms of priority at Fox may be interested in First Class, as it will feature some of the master of magnetisms’ back-story.

Heat Vision: So how did you end up coming back to “X-Men”?

Bryan Singer: It started with a conversation between (Fox co-chairman) Tom Rothman and I some time ago. We not only concluded a deal, but I’ve written a pretty concise treatment. There’s a story that I really want to tell.

Heat Vision: What is the story?

Singer: I can’t tell you that; it’s secret. But it’s basically about the formation of the X-Men. How they began and the relationship between a young Xavier and a young Magneto.

Heat Vision: I remember when you left “X3″ to do “Superman Returns.” It wasn’t under the best of circumstances.

Singer: A lot of that was comical and exaggerated. When you set up a rather lucrative franchise and produce one of the company’s biggest television shows (“House”), I think there is a lot of good energy on a business level.

But also, Tom Rothman and I have a very strong relationship from those early days of “X-Men 1″ when he ascended to the chairmanship and I was involved in this very important movie for the studio. We bonded then. So I think he was frustrated then, as was I, because I couldn’t do a third “X-Men,” but that moment of frustration passed.

We have always looked at different projects to do together, but the timing was never right to do something like this. But now, it’s been about 10 years since the first “X-Men,” and this is a nice opportunity to look back at the origins of that universe.

Heat Vision: Do you think the X-Men can exhaust themselves? You’ve got the original three, you’ve got “Wolverine,” you’ve got a “Deadpool” and “Magneto” in the works …

Singer: This story would probably utilize some of the Magneto story because it deals with a young Magneto, so it might supersede that because this would explore that relationship between a young energetic professor and a disenfranchised victim of the Holocaust.

But no, I don’t see an exhaustion. The X-Men universe is boundless. These are great characters. And as young characters, they are quite different than the characters we have seen in the contemporary movies.

Heat Vision: Would you do “Jack the Giant Killer” first?

Singer: Right now that is the plan. Unless there’s a problem in the development process. There is a script for “Jack”; we’re in visual development. We’ve got artwork and pre-viz that we are doing. But you never know how things go.

I have a writer named Jamie Moss working on “First Class.”

Heat Vision: Why did you choose to work with him?

Singer: He’s a really good writer, and of the writers I met with, he interpreted my story the best and brought the most to it. Because I’m so actively involved in the script development of my movies, I’m very hands-on, I need a certain kind of writer and a certain kind of availability to me. And he fit that bill. He’s quite talented.

The opening scene of X1 is what I hoped the Magneto movie would be like, so now that isn’t happening I’m actually looking forward to Singer’s take on a younger Magneto.

We know who’s directing, we know who’s writing, now we just need to know what X-Men: First Class will involve. Variety recently interviewed Singer after he confirmed he would be directing and he spoke about what his version will be (Josh Schwartz’ script has been pushed to the side).

Singer had been flirting with the project since last summer. Deal was made after the studio sparked to a detailed treatment he wrote for the film. Jamie Moss was hired to write the script, and the studio will move aggressively.

Singer told Daily Variety that he thought long and hard about returning to the franchise he launched until he found a storyline that would stand on its own. “This is the formative years of Xavier and Magneto, and the formation of the school and where there relationship took a wrong turn,” Singer said. “There is a romantic element, and some of the mutants from ‘X-Men’ will figure into the plot, though I don’t want to say which ones. There will be a lot of new mutants and a great villain.”

In the film, Xavier and Magneto will be twentysomething, and the film sounds similar in construct to the J.J. Abrams-directed “Star Trek.”

“Whether it’s ‘Batman,’ ‘Lord of the Rings’ or ‘Star Trek,’ if the characters are good, you want to see them on their journey even if you know their destiny,” Singer said. “I put myself in the fan’s position, and I think this story is something I would want to see, and so will they.”

Fox has launched the “Origins” project by hiring Josh Schwartz to write the script. Singer went back to the drawing board but feels so in synch with the concept and the writer that he feels the project can come together quickly.

So despite X-Men Origins: Magneto not moving forward we will still see the character on-screen in the near future. We don’t know yet whether they will get Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart back, or whether they will re-cast. Those de-aging effects aren’t cheap, especially if they will be needed throughout the whole movie.

Regarding the ‘romantic element’ I think it’ll be the Cyclops/Jean/Emma Frost love triangle that featured in the comics. Again, no information has been given about whether they will use the same actors who played the characters in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, or whether they will be casting younger actors.

It’s good to hear that 20th Century Fox will be moving forward ‘aggressively’ on the film considering it’s been floating around in the scripting stage for a year, but we don’t want them rushing it. Singer’s next film could be Jack the Giant Killer, however if things develop with First Class filming could begin sometime next year.

Yesterday Bryan Singer announced that he would be directing X-Men: First Class, and now according to Heat Vision Singer has brought Street Kings writer Jamie Moss on-board to work on the script.

Gossip Girl and The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz was hired to write the script back in 2008, however producer Lauren Shulder Donner said in October that the script wasn’t finished and they weren’t where they wanted to be.

Here’s what Shulder Donner had to say about the film earlier this year:

“Harry Potter is a bit of a role model for us, absolutely. But we want it to be like the recent, darker Potters. It should not be a kiddie movie – we’re in the X-Men world so you can’t suddenly change the tone. The First Class comics are really fun – they’re funnier than any other comics I’ve read. Basically in each one the kids are fighting strange villains, sometimes it’s aliens, sometimes it’s monsters. I want to get a flavour of that world. Occasionally the kids will be in class, but more often they’ll be off on adventures. Which Professor X isn’t too happy about! There’s nothing more interesting than a bad kid, and this is full of naughty children. Cyclops, for example – he’s a tough kid that bobbed from foster home to foster home, until he ends up at the school and becomes the leader. There’s also still an element of friction between the mutants and the outside world. Remember that this will be set way back before anyone knew mutants existed.

We want to make this a franchise, following these kids at the school, so the casting of the child actors will be all-important.”

Back in October Bryan Singer said that he had been talking with 20th Century Fox about possibly returning to the X-Men franchise, although it was assumed it would be for Wolverine 2 as he was evidently fond of the character as we saw in X-Men 1 and 2. However according to FlickChart Singer announced that he will be directing X-Men: First Class while on the Avatar ‘blue carpet’.

Bryan Singer just leaked that he’s directing the next X-men Origins film on the AVATAR “blue carpet”. What do you think about that?

Yep. “X-Men First Class” will be an “Origins” film. He said he just sealed the deal with the studio.

We weren’t AT the premiere. It was streamed live to 80,000+ people on Ustream/MySpace when Singer made the announcement.

If this is true then this is very good news for X-Men fans. The franchise peaked nearly 7 years ago with X2, and since then we’ve just been given popcorn fluff. Singer brought logic and depth to the story and he created a realistic and believable universe, which isn’t easy to do when you have people running around with mutant powers. My only problem with Singer’s films was that they were basically Wolverine movies. Characters such as Storm and Cyclops got shafted to make way for the clawed one, however as far as we know Wolverine will be going nowhere near First Class. Not if they want to keep continuity anyway.

All we know about the film so far is that it will take place during the first year at Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, and Chuck writer Josh Schwartz has been working on the script. Now that Singer has signed up he will probably do his own re-writes.

Update: Here’s the video

It’s official!

From the sounds of things he will be directing Jack the Giant Killer for Warner Bros first, so it’ll be a while before X-Men: First Class starts production.