Although initially slated for release last November, Dark Phoenix underwent relatively extensive reshoots, though exactly how much was changed isn't clear at this time. However, a new interview has revealed how the production altered the film's climax during that process.
According to Entertainment Weekly's interview with the cast, reshoots saw director Simon Kinberg shoot a new third act that moved the action from space to a military train. The outlet reports the X-Men have been kidnapped in the new climax.
“I think the biggest challenge is modulating the film so that we have the big scale and visual-effects action that these movies require, but balancing that in a way that feels calibrated with the drama,” Kinberg said. “You have these big space sequences and trains flying through the air and people firing lightning bolts, but you also have a lot of emotional, four-page dramatic dialogue scenes.”
Fans of Chris Claremont and John Byrne's "Dark Phoenix Saga," which serves as the inspiration for the film, will notice quite quickly that this constitutes a major change to the source material, which saw the X-Men and Shi'ar Imperial Guard transported to the Blue Area of the Moon to determine the fate of Jean Grey.
Currently, Dark Phoenix is tracking for the lowest-opening and overall gross of any film in the X-Men franchise. This is in part attributed to Disney's recent acquisition of key assets from 21st Century Fox, which means the X-Men, among others, will now be in the hands of Marvel Studios.
Directed and written by Simon Kinberg, Dark Phoenix stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Sophie Turner, Tye Sheridan, Alexandra Shipp, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Evan Peters and Jessica Chastain. The film arrives June 7.