“Dark Phoenix” is “Grounded,” Director Says

Simon Kinberg, the writer and director of the upcoming movie X-Men: Dark Phoenix, described his movie as more “grounded” than other films in the X-Men franchise.

Some fans might find that a strange term to use, given that the comic book version of The Dark Phoenix Saga includes some pretty out-there events (like a genocide against some asparagus aliens). However, it seems that he means the film will be more focused on the characters and their relationships, describing it as “less operatic” and “more intense, and it’s more real and grounded, and hopefully more relatable.”

However, it seems that the sci-fi weirdness will not be completely absent. Specifically he compared it to the third X-Men movie, X-Men: The Last Stand, which included a loose adaptation of this story that could be called “grounded” (i.e., they stay on Earth the whole time).

“It’s a movie that involves extraterrestrial characters, which is not something that we’ve done in the X-Men franchise before, and is something that is a huge part of the Dark Phoenix saga in the comics,” he said.

X-Men: The Last Stand was not very well-received, but thanks to the wonky and confusing time line of this franchise, Fox can justify telling the same story again. This time, main character Jean Grey will be played by Sophie Turner, with Tye Sheridan as her boyfriend Cyclops. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender will play Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto, respectively.

The comic book story (more or less, as the details have been retconned several times) is that Jean Grey is possessed by a cosmic entity called the Dark Phoenix, a being of both creation and destruction. It magnifies her psychic powers to immense levels, but also takes control of her, bringing her on a murderous cosmic rampage. Her loved ones, particularly Cyclops, try to stop the Phoenix, but its power is so great that there is little that they can do.

As for alien characters, it is known that Jessica Chastain will play an extraterrestrial who manipulates the Phoenix for her own reasons. Many believe that it will be the comics’ Shi’ar Empress Lilandra, but she has denied this. Set photos suggest that the shapeshifting aliens called Skrulls may be involved, despite not appearing in the original comic story.

The movie’s release is scheduled for February 14, 2019.