It’s safe to say that X-Men: Apocalypse’s titular villain may very well be the most powerful single being the X-Men have ever faced in the film series. The millennia-old mutant has antagonized the superhero team time and time again in comic books, animated shows and video games, and now he finally gets the chance to shine on the big screen. Although the film doesn’t start shooting until next month, actor Oscar Isaac already has a good handle on what makes Apocalypse unique, such as his charisma and powers.
Isaac told IGN that Apocalypse’s recruitment of the Four Horsemen, i.e. his four mutant servants, will be very cool, and compared the villain to a cult leader in how he gets these people to join him. As Isaac puts it:
It's very interesting the way that he does that. You know the idea of - the way that cult leaders do - they find people that are in need of something and try to fulfill that thing in them - as it relates to every one of the Horsemen.
It’s been implied that Angel will follow in his comic book incarnation’s footsteps and join Apocalypse in the film, but there’s no word yet on who the other three Horsemen will be. In the comics, Apocalypse brainwashes these mutants so they will be completely loyal to him. He also genetically enhances their abilities for maximum power, and occasionally endows new abilities.
One of Apocalypse’s other most notable aspects is his ability to control all his molecules, which not only allows him to alter his physical form, but consequently gives him access to a variety of other superpowers. Isaac admitted he’s excited about the prospect of seeing multiple versions of the character, specifically his limits and how it costs him.
So to be able to sit with [writer/producer] Simon Kinberg and - as a fan - just go through it and be like, 'Well what about this!?! You know, this is something that he does in the comics and is there a way to incorporate this? Or if he has this power suddenly how do we make that not come out of nowhere?' So it's really fun to map that thing out. But yes, the nature of how his powers manifest themselves is, to a certain extent, quite open to interpretation. Because there are so many, and they are so vast.
The X-Men: Days of Future Past post-credits scene showed the teenage Apocalypse using telekinesis to put the Egyptian pyramids together, but that was only a small demonstration of what he is capable of. The amount of abilities that he’ll throw at the superheroes could fill a small mutant army. Yeah, he’s that powerful.
You can see Apocalypse battling the X-Men when X-Men: Apocalypse hits theaters on May 27, 2016.
