After a series of reboots, recastings, and significant creative overhauls, the X-Men franchise is about to once again dive headfirst into The Dark Phoenix Saga for a redo of 2006's lackluster X-Men: The Last Stand. Many fans have wondered how X-Men: Dark Phoenix's new take on the classic story could look after the seeds were planted during the events of X-Men: Apocalypse, but few concrete details have been revealed about Simon Kinberg's film. On that note, it looks like significant narrative details have finally hit the web, and they tease a somewhat more cosmic take on the story than anything seen in The Last Stand.
In keeping with the current trend in the X-Men movies, X-Men: Dark Phoenix will be set a decade after the events of X-Men: Apocalypse. Taking place in 1992, the film will catch up with the X-Men team as Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) has grown increasingly bold and brazen in the missions that he sends them on. When the film's story kicks into high-gear, Professor X sends the team into space for a rescue operation -- which goes awry when a solar flare hits the X-Jet. From there, the radiation exacerbates the already unstable issues with the power inside of Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) and turns her into the malevolent force known as The Phoenix.
As far as fidelity to the source material goes, it seems that X-Men: Dark Phoenix is definitely leaning closer to the comics than X-Men: The Last Stand. The 1990s setting, as well as the fact that it will actually go into outer space should make fans very happy. That said, the synopsis doesn't say anything about whether or not the film will go fully cosmic, so it remains to be seen whether or not rumored alien plot elements like the Shi'ar Empire will appear. The emphasis on the emotional connection between Jean and Charles Xavier also seems like a significant point to focus on, as the chrome-domed leader of the team will likely feel a deep sense of remorse and regret over what eventually happens to her in that storm.
In addition to a description of the X-Men: Dark Phoenix plot offered up by EW, the first look at what Sophie Turner's version of The Phoenix has also dropped online. Check it out below to see for yourself.
At this point, it's worth taking that picture with a grain of salt. The image of Sophie Turner as Jean Grey definitely has many of the hallmarks of what fans can expect from The Phoenix, but it doesn't explicitly confirm if that's what she will look like. We will just have to wait and see what the modern incarnation of The Phoenix will look like when X-Men: Dark Phoenix finally hits the big screen.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix will debut in theaters next on November 2, following the April 13 release of New Mutants and the June 1 release of Deadpool 2.
