Just what is going on with those X-Men: Dark Phoenix reshoots? In March this year, X-Men fans were taken aback when Fox chose to push back the release dates for both X-Men: Dark Phoenix and New Mutants - in spite of the fact that promotion and marketing for the two films was already underway. Both films needed to undergo reshoots and additional photography, which isn't unusual in the post-production phase, but it is unusual for reshoots to be so extensive or complex that the film has to be delayed.
Since then, the internet has been buzzing with rumors and speculation about the scale of these reshoots. This speculation hasn't exactly been charitable, since Fox's X-Men movies have generally been hit-and-miss, often struggling with behind-the-scenes drama. Given Disney's proposed merger with 21st Century Fox, audiences can be forgiven for assuming that these last two troubled productions will be the end of the X-Men franchise, which will then be folded into the MCU.
Related: Dark Phoenix and New Mutants Are Lame Duck Tentpole Movies
But is production of X-Men: Dark Phoenix really quite so troubled as is commonly assumed? With the recent announcement that reshoots have begun, now is the perfect time to try and separate fact from exaggeration. Here's what we know.
- This Page: Dark Phoenix's Reshoots Are Not That Extensive
- Page 2: Dark Phoenix Was Delayed By Scheduling Conflicts
Dark Phoenix Was Pushed Back for Reshoots
X-Men: Dark Phoenix was originally scheduled to release on November 2 this year, but in March Fox made the unexpected decision to push back the release date to February 14, 2019. This served as something of a PR disaster for the studio at the time - not least because there was also news of a far more dramatic delay to Josh Boone's New Mutants.
It's generally believed there are two reasons for the delayed release of X-Men: Dark Phoenix. The first is simply a matter of timing. There had long been rumors that director Simon Kinberg wasn't comfortable with the November release date, which would see the superhero film compete against Disney's four-quadrant movie Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Fox has wisely moved the tentpole X-Men film to the Presidents Day weekend, which proved successful for Deadpool and Black Panther.
The second reason, however, left audiences far more concerned. There were reports that both New Mutants and X-Men: Dark Phoenix needed to go undergo substantial additional photography. "It’s normal for all these big movies now," Kinberg insisted in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. "We’ll go back when we can get all those actors together, and then it will give me enough time to have it ready and looking perfect." While casual moviegoers were unconvinced, he does have a point; reshoots are indeed a standard part of the modern film-making process, especially for tentpole blockbusters. What's more, even extensive reshoots aren't necessarily a kiss of death - something that's proven by movies as diverse as Back to the Future, Fatal Attraction, and Rogue One.
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Dark Phoenix's Reshoots are Two Weeks, Not Three Months
While the reshoots for New Mutants seem to be significant (even adding a new character into the mix), there were initial reports that X-Men: Dark Phoenix needed a lot less work. "I think it's just a few bits and bobs, reshoot-wise," Sophie Turner told Digital Spy. Then, however rumors began to swirl that they were far more extensive - even running over a three-month period. To give a sense of scale to this, the film's principal photography in 2017 only lasted three and a half months, so these rumors suggested Fox was essentially starting again from scratch.
Fortunately, the rumors were false. Sources at Fox confirmed that the reshoots would take only two-and-a-half weeks, which is standard for blockbusters of this type, and in line with the lnegth of reshoots for Thor: Ragnarok and Black Panther.
There are reports that additional photography will be focused on the film's third act, with some additional action sequences, a couple of new scenes, and some additional shots for existing scenes. Far from indicating a film in crisis, these reports suggest that X-Men: Dark Phoenix is going through the standard process. So why the long delay between principal photography and the reshoots? And, if the reshoots will only take two-and-a-half weeks, why has the film been pushed back three months?
Page 2: Dark Phoenix Was Delayed By Scheduling Conflicts
Dark Phoenix's Reshoots Are Being Complicated by Scheduling
The challenge facing Simon Kinberg is simply that he has an all-star cast, all of whom are very much in demand. James McAvoy and his fellow Dark Phoenix star Jessica Chastain both started filming IT Chapter 2 in June, and McAvoy also has commitments to the BBC TV productions Watership Down and His Dark Materials. Sophie Turner's schedule is similarly busy, as she's been filming the final season of Game of Thrones, and Tye Sheridan has been filming The Night Clerk, which began production in May. Kinberg was unable to get the cast back together before August or September - far too close to the film's original release date for comfort.
That's the real reason X-Men: Dark Phoenix got pushed back to February 2019 - not the scale of the reshoots, but finding the right time for them. What's more, there was no way Fox could move the film back to December, where it would be competing with Aquaman, Bumblebee, Holmes and Watson, and Alita: Battle Angel. January is pretty much a dead zone on the movie front, so the Presidents Day weekend in February was the first sensible new release date Fox could give the film.
Related: Why X-Men: Dark Phoenix's Release Was Delayed Three Months
The X-Men Cast & Crew are Being Open About Reshoots
Perhaps in an effort to quell fans' worries about the reshoots, the cast and crew seem to be surprisingly open about them on social media. Jessica Chastain posted a video of herself with her Dark Phoenix wig, accompanied by the comment "Back on set." Kinberg followed that up with a stream of photos on Instagram - most notably one showing a chair with Sophie Turner's name on it. If the intention is to counter the negative buzz surrounding the film by going straight to audiences via social media, it's a similar approach to the one adopted by Ron Howard as he attempted to win Star Wars fans over to Solo: A Star Wars Story. It's possible we'll get a steady stream of similar teases over the course of the next fortnight.
The strangest thing about this, though, is that the cast and crew's openness isn't being matched by a marketing campaign. Marketing for X-Men: Dark Phoenix screeched to a halt when the movie was delayed, and it's yet to start up again. Trailers for tentpole movies tend to release about seven or eight months before the film hits the box office, so we're frankly overdue to see some actual footage. Hopefully these posts on social media will serve as the beginning of a major push, and we get more news over the next few weeks.
More: All 13 X-Men Films Fox Still Has In Development
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