Disney rocked the entertainment world a few days ago by dropping $52 billion on 21st Century Fox and an insane number of beloved pop culture institutions. Chief among these acquired pieces of intellectual property is the X-Men universe, which may soon experience some serious changes as it inches closer to integration with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In fact, as new details begin to flow in, it's starting to look like the future of New Mutants sequels, Gambit sequels, and the X-23 film could now be in jeopardy.
No definitive decisions have been made yet, but in the world of X-Men, it might be time to start worrying about future installments in the New Mutants franchise, as well as Gore Verbinksi's Gambit. Josh Boone's first New Mutants movie is already in the can and expected to debut in April, but these massive behind-the-scenes changes could have an impact on his planned trilogy of horror-themed mutant films. Then there's Gambit, which is aiming to shoot in February 2018 and release in 2019. It looks like the Channing Tatum-fronted film is still going to hit theaters, but its success or failure will play a significant role in whether or not it becomes a franchise.
Folks with insider knowledge of the deal have thus far compared these properties to star athletes. If New Mutants or Gambit prove financially viable for Disney, then they may still have the chance to stick around. If they don't, then they likely won't make the cut on Disney's already-crowded upcoming slate.
However, as far as the X-23 movie goes, the future of Dafne Keen's Laura seems a bit less set in stone. That film will likely require an R-rating to live up to the character's introduction in Logan, and the fact that it's so early in its development could make it a natural choice to receive the ax from the folks at Disney.
This THR report about possibly "casualties" in the X-Men world also raises some clear-cut questions about the X-Men universe's best R-rated cash cow: Deadpool. However, as of right now, the evidence seems to point towards the Merc with the Mouth's franchise being safe from any possible changes or significant creative overhauls. Disney's Bob Iger recently came out and admitted that he would be open to keeping the franchise R-rated as long as the Disney marketing team can make sure to let audiences know what they're getting into with the project.
That point about Deadpool seems indicative of how we should approach these changes in the X-Men franchise moving forward. As of right now, no definitive decisions about the franchise have taken shape, which means many of these concerns are speculative at the moment. Certain franchises and potential franchises are expected to be affected by the Disney acquisition of 21st Century Fox, but the 18-month period leading up to the transition could see a considerable number of changes take place.
CinemaBlend will keep you posted with more information related to this Disney-Fox merger as new details about the behemoth business decision are made available to us. Until then, you can catch the next installment in the current incarnation of the X-Men universe when New Mutants debuts in theaters next year on April 13, 2018.
