Now that the writers’ strike is over, tons of projects will be able to restart development – and one of those is reportedly the highly anticipated new X-Men movie.
According to a report from Deadline today, executives at Marvel Studios will start setting meetings to find a writer for the new project this fall. Per the report, there’s no real rush to nail down someone for the highly sought-after job, and the decision will likely be made around the beginning of 2024.
While “movie looks for writers” might not seem like a big deal at first, this is the first real piece of development news we’ve gotten on a full-blown X-Men film since Disney completed its acquisition of Fox – and all its Marvel rights with it – all the way back in 2019. We’ve seen Patrick Stewart’s Professor X in last year’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine will make his return in the upcoming Deadpool 3, but details have been scarce on a completely new X-Men film.
It’s not surprising that Disney is looking to invest more in X-Men, given how lucrative the property was for 20th Century Fox for years. Starting with 2000’s X-Men, the studio released six X-Men movies, a Wolverine trilogy, and two Deadpool films. Two X-Men-related movies developed under 20th Century and distributed following the Disney acquisition – Dark Phoenix and New Mutants – were less successful, however, so there’s little doubt Disney wants to do a bit of revamping.
Deadpool 3, meanwhile, remains highly anticipated and was well into production even after the writers’ strike was called in May, but had to halt filming after SAG-AFTRA went on strike. It had been targeting a May 2024 release, but we’ll have to wait and see if Hollywood’s studios and actors reach a deal for a new contract when they resume negotiations next Monday.
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she's not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
