X-Men

News for November 1999 and older:

23 November, 1999

Want to know what Magneto's costume looks like in the movie? Why not go to the source? Ian McKellan just added a new entry on his website about the filming of X-Men and described his outfit. He actually has at least two outfits, one of which is an actual uniform based on Magneto's traditional outfit as shown in the comics. He describes his outfit in comparison to Rebecca Romijn-Stamos' outfit which, as we've outlined previously is pretty skimpy.

"...pity Rebecca Romijn-Stamos in her blue Mystique disguise, a makeup that takes four hours to apply and leaves her almost naked with no protection against the night cold. Never a word of complaint, though.

"In comparison I am molly-coddled, with warming tights under my outfit of grey sweater, black pants and knee-length boots. Magneto's work-uniform is a tight fit, inspired by the comic strip design but influenced by the latest catwalk fashion. It involves a maroon-lined cloak, a steel-grey tunic and pants and boots and a deep-red fiberglass helmet. I hope it looks as good as it feels to wear. And, yes, Magneto has a wide metallic belt as X-Men fans would expect."

He goes on to describe Sabretooth and Toad, "hirsute Tyler Mane striding out at 7'4" and Ray Park, his complexion painted bright green. The makeup effects are achieved by a team led by Ann Browdie, my compatriot whom I worked with on A Touch of Love, my first film."

Clearly not without a sense of humor he suggests they sell tickets to filming to recoup some of the film's budget. "The interest in our movie is intense, witness the gossip and speculation on the various websites. Our producers should consider selling tickets to the comic fans for studio or location visits and begin to pay off the 75 million dollar budget!"

16 November, 1999

Filming continues on the X-Men movie. The picture to your left was taken on one of the sets and appeared in The Hamilton Spectator. I believe the piece in the middle is supposed to be the torch from the Statue of Liberty. Apparently there is a major battle scene taking place atop the statue. Despite the fact that the scene takes part on top of a monument outside a major city, this is actually being filmed in a park. A recreation of the statue's base and scaffolding with blue canvas have been assembled as well. The canvas will serve as the blue screen for adding the New York skyline in later.

10 November, 1999

A while back it was reported that great effort was made to keep Rebecca Romijn-Stamos warm during outdoor scenes. It would appear that was pretty accurate. She recently told the NY Daily News her character, Mystique, doesn't wear a lot, so "I sit in front of the space heater with my coat on and just repeat my mantra, 'This is a really cool movie to be a part of.'"

She went on to mention meeting Sir Ian McKellan for the first time on set. She began giggling, causing McKellan to ask what was so funny. Her response, "Well, um, you're a knight and you're actually drinking grape soda." I imagine you should expect that kind of exchange when you hire a model.

2 November, 1999

These are the first shots of any kind showing any of the mutants in any part of their uniforms.

"Big Big BIG X-Men related scoop today from a scooper who must remain anonymous. Yes its our very first look at the film's most arguably famous prop - Cyclops' Ruby Quartz visor. The image on the left is of the latest 'bad ass' creation from Oakley sunglasses and will be sported by Cyclops (James Marsden, pictured above) while in everyday attire. The next two shots are of the visor itself, made by the personal hands of famous designer Hans Moritz. Laser forms of Marsden's face were taken for the accuracy of the skin tight fit of the visor. What about the ruby quartz lens? Three coatings cover a dyed blood red plutonite lens, including a pure chrome back layer and anti-reflection material on both sides for extra ruby punch. On top of that, a curved red light was custom built to fit inside the visor for certain shots, while a company called Hammer Head will be doing the CG element of it. Once again, a huge thankyou to my must remain confidential source."

27 October, 1999

First you heard about the scene here and now you can check out the set. That's right, we've got some pictures snapped at the set where Magneto went mad a few days ago. Mostly you can see the exterior of the building, a train station I believe, and the cars that were thrown around. In at least one shot you can see the crew setting up the debris. Click on any of the images to enlarge.

25 October, 1999

What follows is a brief summary of a set reports from recent filming. The details here could constitute spoilers so don't read further if you don't want to know.

Filming is occuring at a train station near Toronto. Two separate scenes are being shot there. The first has something to do with Magneto going on a bit of a rampage. Cars are strewn about the set as if thrown around. They are upside down, on their sides and on top of each other. Debris is everywhere and smoke fills the air. Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman, Ray Park, Famke Janssen, Tyler Mane and Patrick Stewart were all on hand. The second shot takes place outside with Stewart and Janssen in a car. Xavier is trying to get Magneto to release Rogue. This is followed by a gunshot that makes everyone jump.

Essentially Magneto has threatened to kill Rogue. Xavier begs him not to and then the shot is heard. Later one of Magneto's henchmen, possibly Toad, leaves with a body bag, supposedly carrying Rogue's body.

Keep in mind these set reports can be very sketchy. Various observers can come to different conclusions from seeing the same thing. For instance Rebecca Romijn-Stamos as Mystique has been reported as having a full body suit with some paint to get the blue skinned effect. At the same time it's been reported that she's actually wearing little else other than body paint and scales, requiring a lot of effort to keep her warm on night shots. So make of these reports what you will.

Finally one last detail. The picture on the right is a paper from the set. It's not a real paper. It's just a prop to get blown around as the action occurs. The headline fits the action but the text is nonsense. Pretty good on the level of detail, don't you think?

12 October, 1999

So you say you want some more mutants in the movie. Well fear not, they will be there. Several cameos are planned for the movie but so far only one of them is known. Kitty Pryde (aka Shadowcat) will be making an appearance. No one has been cast for the part yet. They are going to be looking for someone who looks the part. A big name is not a requisite. So let's get the rumor mill going, who should it be?

11 October, 1999

7 October, 1999

Lots of stuff about this today. First off, there is a rumor that Magneto makes attempts to recruit Wolverine and Rogue to join his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. It's an interesting concept. Logan always chafed a bit under the command of Cyclops and Proffesor X. Plus Magneto's goal is vaguely similar to Xavier's in that they both want the best for mutants. Those could be the factors to tempt Wolverine to switch sides. Rogue makes even more sense, since in the comic she was essentially raised by Mystique, who ran the Brotherhood for a time.

The other possible rumor is that the part of Wolverine may have to be recast. Dougray Scott is still involved in the perpetually troubled Mission Impossible 2 project. Furthermore he apparently suffered a shoulder injury working on that movie and causing it even further delays. He needs to be available for shooting X-Men on October 18th. If he can't make it they will be forced to recast the part next week. This could open the door for fan favorite Russel Crowe to be cast. It's doubtful but would really make the fans happy.

29 September, 1999

Filming has officially begun for the X-Men movie. Many reports have appeared around the web concerning the first shots. Allow me to summarize the details for you. Filming began September 22 and will continue for five and a half months. The current shots contain none of the big names. They arrive in a week. Filming will be in Toronto, around Toronto (Oshawa and Hamilton) and in Los Angeles. The current shots are on the campus of Central Commerce Collegiate. It's posing as Ellis Island in New York as the site of a big UN gala.

16 September, 1999

Remember the story a couple of days ago, saying the casting of James Marsden as Cyclops was no sure thing? Well forget it. Marsden has signed on officially. Both Variety and AICN have confirmed it. I was always a big fan of the comic book so the idea of a movie has me intrigued. The casting has me a bit nervous though. One last tidbit before looking at the cast, Fox has officially set June 30, 2000 as the release date. Mel Gibson's The Patriot is also scheduled to open that day.
Rebecca Romijn-Stamos as Mystique? Sure she's beautiful, but she's a model. Can she act? Her recent appearance on Just Shoot Me doesn't do anything for my confidence in her abilities as an actress. With a little touching up of her picture we can see that appearance wise, she's fine though.	Halle Berry as Storm? Again, beautiful but a little young for the part and if rumors are correct she isn't too thrilled with the part. Adjusting her photo to imitate Storm doesn't really sell her to me.	Famke Janssen as Jean Grey? Another beauty, (seeing a trend yet?) but she really doesn't seem right to me. After adjusting her photo accordingly, I don't see Jean Grey at all.
Anna Paquin as Rogue? I'll give you that she really looks the part but she seems way too young to me. Some photo editing to make her appear a bit like Rogue makes her work to the eye but the age thing concerns me still.	Marsden as Cyclops? I'm completely unfamiliar with him as an actor but isn't he a little young looking? Compared to Janssen he looks like a kid.	Dougray Scott as Wolverine? As the fan favorite this could go either way. I'm withholding judgement for now on him.
Ian McKellen as Magneto is a choice I can cheerfully live with. No problems here.	Patrick Stewart as Professor X is possibly the perfect choice. I can't think of another actor better suited for the role.	Ray Park as Toad? If anything Park is too good for this part. He kicks some serious ass so I won't complain at all.
Tyler Mane as Sabretooth? All I know is that this guy is a wrestler and he looks the part.

14 September, 1999

Um... remember yesterday's report that James Marsden had been cast as Cyclops? It might have been the slightest bit premature. Marsden did audition for the role but as yet has not been cast in the part. Meanwhile on the digital effects front, it has been confirmed that C.O.R.E Digital Pictures will be doing work on the project. They are not the exclusive provider of digital effects though. Different studios will be used depending on their individual strengths in certain areas.

13 September, 1999

Reportedly the final big role has finally been filled. The part of Cyclops/Scott Summers will be played by James Marsden (Disturbing Behavior). He's been in absolutely nothing that I've seen so I have no idea if this is good casting or not. However the speculation over casting can now come to a rest and production can begin soon. Then we can start speculating about filming instead.

Current News
May 2000
April 2000
March 2000
February 2000
January 2000
December 1999