The untitled X-Men television series from Fox just keeps adding to its impressive cast!
More mutants! That's the order of the day when it comes to Marvel TV shows. Marvel Television is co-producing a new, still-untitled mutant-centric series with 20th Century Fox television. The series is about "two ordinary parents who discover their children possess mutant powers. Forced to go on the run from a hostile government, the family joins up with an underground network of mutants and must fight to survive." (This sounds an awful lot like the Morlocks to us).
The untitled X-Men series will be written and executive produced by Matt Nix (the creator of Burn Notice). The other execs involved are a wonderful mixture of Marvel and 20th Century Fox talent including Bryan Singer, Lauren Shuler Donner, Simon Kinberg, Jeph Loeb, and Jim Chory. Fox is excited enough about the pilot script that they've ordered it to production. And Bryan Singer is excited enough about it that he's going to direct it. That's one way to get people to pay attention, and I imagine this is a surefire sign that this has a series order in its near future.
Casting news just keeps coming.
Fox X-Men TV Series Latest News
Coby Bell is the latest addition to Fox’s small screen X-Men ensemble, becoming a casting choice that sees showrunner Matt Nix calling back an old colleague from his Burn Notice days. Bell, who reportedly rounds out the inaugural main cast players, is set to play a character named Jace Turner, an emotionally-conflicted man who apparently, “quietly wrestles with the moral ambiguities of a job that regularly requires cold-blooded, calculating efficiency on a day-to-day basis.” While the nature of the role isn't confirmed, it does sound as if Bell is playing a reluctant antagonist to the show’s embattled and on-the-run group of mutants.
Bell is no stranger to long-term television gigs, since he’s probably still best known from his nine-year run on the BET dramedy series The Game and notably fielded a six-year run on NBC first responder drama Third Watch. However, in a series that’s slightly closer to home for genre fans, he’s also known from his three-season run on USA’s levity-laced crime drama Burn Notice. Bell will next be seen on the Amazon series Hand of God in Season 2, which premieres on March 10.
Fox X-Men TV Series Cast
Amy Acker is the show's second lead, playing Kate Stewart, described by THR as"a woman who is struggling with her separation from her husband, Reed...and her increasingly challenging teenage children. When her family situation takes a dark turn, she finds that she's stronger than she thinks."
We have more on the Reed character, played by Stephen Moyer, below.
But there's another fun piece of news that goes along with this. Emma Dumont will play a more recognizable Marvel character, Lorna Dane/Polaris, described as "a strong-willed, brave and loyal mutant who has the ability to manipulate magnetism." Will she have green hair? We hope so!
Natalie Alyn Lind has joined the ensemble as Lauren, one of the two mutant children in the central family. According to Variety, Lind's Lauren is "smart, pretty, popular, organized and already ahead on her college applications, she is the model of a perfect kid." You probably last saw Lind as the conflicted Silver St. Cloud on Gotham, or before that as Dana inThe Goldbergs.
Sean Teale will play a mutant created specifically for this show, known as Eclipse, who can "absorb and manipulate photons." Eclipse's real name is Marcos Diaz, described by Deadlineas"a natural rebel compelled by circumstances to cooperate with others, Marcos is a passionate and strong-willed fighter who sometimes lets his emotions overrule reason." Teale's time on Syfy's Incorporated just ended, as that show hasn't been picked up for another season.
Mr. Teale joins a cast that includes some other genre TV veterans. Stephen Moyer, no stranger to genre work thanks to his time on HBO's True Blood, will play someone named Reed. No, they aren't talking about Reed Richards, either. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Reed is "an ambitious attorney trying to balance the demands of his job at the DA's office with his responsibilities to his family." Is this ringing any bells for any of you?
He joins a cast that includes Jamie Chung as Clarice Fong, aka the mutant Blink. The character is a popular X-Man that first appeared in the "Age of Apocalypse" event comics series from the 1990s. She also memorably appeared in X-Men: Days of Future Past where her mutant powers of neon-tinged teleportation were one of the visual highlights during the "future sequences." In that film, she was played by Chinese movie star and muscian, Fan Bingbing.
In the Fox series, a press release from Marvel Television describes the new version of Blink as possessing a naturally strong exuberance that has "taken a hit after a sudden and traumatic upheaval of her life. As she adjusts to the new people and places that are suddenly ‘home,’ Clarice is slowly becoming herself again."
Chung is no stranger to appearing in recast comic book roles, having previously taken over the part of Miho in Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller's belated Sin City: A Dame ot Kill For sequel. She's also provided the voice for Gogo Tomago in Disney's Big Hero 6 and appeared as Valerie Vale on Fox's Gotham TV series. She's also been in Sucker Punch, The Hangover sequels, and played Mulan on ABC's Once Upon a Time.
Entertainment Weekly broke the news that Blair Redford (Switched at Birth) will play someone named "Sam" (don't be surprised if this isn't the character's actual name) who is described as “the strong-headed Native American leader of the underground network.”
That whole "strong-headed" thing makes us wonder if he might be playing John Proudstar, known by his mutant codename of Thunderbird, and one of the founding members of the "new" X-Men of the early '70s. His brother, James "Warpath" Proudstar briefly appeared in X-Men: Days of Future Past. This is just speculation, though, and we probably won't learn more until May when Fox gives this an official series order.
Fox X-Men TV Series Story
Matt Nix revealed some other details to reporters at the TCA Winter Tour (quotes via The Hollywood Reporter). For one thing, the show does exist in the larger X-Men movie universe, while Legion (which will premiere on FX in February) does not. "It's designed to sidestep questions like, 'Where is Wolverine?' You have to answer those questions," Nix said. "It exists in a world where those questions are answered without needing to name a lot of names or spend a lot of time dwelling on that issue. Within that, there are a certain amount of [familiar] characters that I can use and am using and then other characters I'm inventing — but everything is invented with a nod toward the existing mythology."
“Developing a Marvel property has been a top priority for the network — and we are so pleased with how Matt Nix has led us into this thrilling universe,” said David Madden, president, entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company in a statement when the project was first announced. “There’s comic book adventure, emotional and complicated relationships and a rich, existing mythology from which to draw. With the brilliant production crew behind this project, it has all the makings of a big, fun and exciting new series.”
“Marvel Television is thrilled to be co-producing with 20th Century Fox Television on our first project," added Jeph Loeb. "Matt’s a huge fan of X-Menand his take on the X-Men universe, with its rich characters and high-stakes adventure, is exactly the show we want on Fox. It’s a great team of creative producers who will be making something entirely unique.”
The still-untitled series has a put pilot commitment from Fox, which makes it a little more likely to be brought to series than other projects might be. We'll update this article with more as we get it.
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According to My Entertainment World, the show has a working title of "Heaven" (this won't be its final name), and it will start shooting in Dallas in March.
