The Beef team isn’t just bringing the drama to the X-Mansion; they’re bringing a specific, fan-favorite era of the comics with them. As part of his Collider sit-down, director Jake Schreier has finally revealed the North Star for the MCU’s X-Men reboot: The 1980s Chris Claremont Uncanny era.
Famous for turning the X-Men into a serialized drama where the characters’ interpersonal lives were just as high-stakes as their battles with Sentinels, the Claremont era not only saved the book but also elevated it. Whether through the creation of hundreds of characters–dozens of which have stood the rest of time–or simply enriching the fan favorites who already existed, Claremont cemented Marvel’s mutants and heroes as a brand that resonated with fans then and still does so today.
In talking to Collider, Schreier explained that he’s been searching the source material for a way to tell a story that feels “new” and sets itself apart from Fox’s “incredible cinematic tradition.” And it seems that, at least in part, Claremont’s seminal run provides that opportunity.
I also think just having the time to kind of sit back, and I’ve just been digging into so many of the old comics and the entire Claremont run, and just going through stuff and really trying to think about what can we do well that feels new and feels different, and that hasn’t been done well before? Obviously, there’s such an incredible cinematic tradition of these comics, but what can we do? And how can we put our own spin on what that is?
-Jake Schreier
Claremont spent 16 years building the X-Men into a global phenomenon by focusing on their humanity. By choosing this as the blueprint, Schreier is signaling that the MCU mutants won’t just be another hero team. They will be a complex, diverse family dealing with societal prejudice and internal heartbreak—the exact kind of storytelling that made the Infinity Saga so resonant.
Using the Uncanny run as inspiration allows the studio to focus on some heroes who were never really given a fair shot in Fox’s Wolverine and Friends films; it also provides the opportunity to select wildly different villains instead of another round of Magneto. While Mister Sinister and Apocalypse have been rumored to play major roles in the MCU Mutant Saga, other villains such as the Brood, Mojo, Nimrod, the Phalanx or the Reavers could also be lifted from the pages of Claremont’s work. There’s also plenty of room for Alpha Flight, the Braddock family, the Shi’ar and the Starjammers to be weaved into the narrative tapestry being spun by Schreier and the Beef-ed up writing team.
While Jonathan Hickman‘s recent run thrilled longtime fans of the comics, Claremont’s run is THE standard and if the creatives behind Marvel Studios X-Men choose wisely, MCU fans could find themselves back on top.
Source: Collider
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