The New Mutants are about to get their very own movie as 20th Century Fox plans an ambitious X-Men spin-off.
According to Deadline, Marvel’s New Mutants will soon be heading to the big screen and Fox has even managed to snag a rather impressive director.
“Fox has closed a deal with The Fault In Our Stars director Josh Boone to co-write and direct The New Mutants, a standalone spinoff that expands its X-Men movie universe,” they revealed. “The series, already part of the X-Men Comics universe, introduces a new crop of mutant characters born with special powers.”
“Boone will co-write with Knate Gwaltney. Simon Kinberg will produce with Lauren Shuler Donner.”
Of course, ‘The New Mutants’ aren’t exactly a brand-new group of character… but while comic book readers will no doubt know exactly who they are, the mainstream cinemagoers might need some convincing.
Created way back in 1982, the New Mutants were essentially the next generation of X-Men. All of them students at Professor Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, they filled a rather prominent gap left by the then fully-grown X-Men.
And the line-up certainly helped Marvel become a bit more diverse…
Canonball was their nigh-invulnerable leader, with Karma – a 19-year-old Vietnamese girl who was able to possess others. Mirage was a Cheyenne who was able to create 3D illusions while Sunspot harnessed the power of solar energy. Finally, there was Scottish werewolf Wolfsbane… who unsurprisingly transformed into a wolf.
Obviously, this is just the latest project to come from Fox’s X-Men franchise and I can’t help thinking they’ve done rather well out of the deal.
X-Men has produced a slew of smash hit movies and with the Wolverine and now Deadpool spin-offs, they’ve really managed to capitalise on every opportunity.
Not to mention the upcoming Gambit solo film.
“We’re so excited to explore this new part of the X-Men universe,” said producer Simon Kinberg. “And so excited to do it with Josh, who is uniquely suited to tell this story about young characters.”
Will the ‘New Mutants’ be as good as the X-Men? For now, we’ll have to wait and see.
What do you think of The New Mutants? Could it be as successful as the main X-Men movies? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
