While superhero movies pop up every few months, there was a time when the genre was relatively new. Bryan Singer's 2000 blockbuster X-Men in many ways started the current trend of comic book flicks, proving they could be massively popular and profitable. The X-Men franchise is still going strong today, with both spinoffs and main installments hitting theaters.
Dark Phoenix will continue the primary narrative of the X-Men franchise, focusing on Sophie Turner's Jean Grey and the dark power that take hold of her. Most of the cast from Apocalypse are set to reprise their roles, but it looks like there's another face we won't be seeing: Olivia Munn's Psylocke. As The Newsroom alum recently revealed:
I can’t say anything because last time I said a little bit they sent me a note. But I’m not in it. I was filming Predator at the time so there wasn’t time for me to film it and so I’m not in it.
Womp womp. Despite making a badass first impression as one of Apocalypse's Four Horseman, we shouldn't expect Psylocke to pop up during the course of Dark Phoenix. But let's hope that doesn't mean the character is gone forever, since she's typically a fan favorite among comic enthusiasts.
Olivia Munn's comments to ET Canada are sure to be disappointing to X-Men fans who were hoping Psylocke would become a larger part of the greater universe. She only just debuted in Apocalypse, and was mostly a silent-but-deadly type. While she didn't have a ton of dialogue, the character was thrilling in the action sequences, and was fiercely loyal to Oscar Isaac's titular villain throughout the course of the somewhat disappointing blockbuster.
While Olivia Munn wasn't given much to say in Apocalypse, there was hope for the future. Psylocke managed to survive the final battle with Apocalypse without being apprehended by the X-Men or becoming a good guy like Alexandra Shipp's Storm. This surely left the door open for her to return, although it looks like her leading role in The Predator prevented her from returning to the mutant-centric property.
Still, it was thrilling to see Psylocke adapted into live-action, and her powers were thrilling to watch when she faced off against heroes like Beast and Nightcrawler. And since she made it out of Apocalypse unscathed, there's a chance we could see her in a future X-Men installment. Fingers crossed.
Of course, the possibility of Olivia Munn once again squeezing into her iconic X-Men costume has another potential roadblock: the merger between Disney and 20th Century Fox. While comic fans are eager to see the mutants finally incorporated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the studio's plans are unclear. And given the long tenure of the X-Men franchise, it may be easier to start all over and bring a new cast to the MCU.
Dark Phoenix will arrive in theaters, sans Olivia Munn, on June 7th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
