Warning: This article contains mild spoilers for Dark Phoenix, which is set to hit theaters on June 7.
Despite rampant rumors about its quality, extensive new Dark Phoenix footage won audiences over at this year's WonderCon in Anaheim, California.
The footage largely follows up on the film's trailers and expands on scenes from what could be Fox's last X-Men movie that have already been glimpsed. However, thanks to a report from CBR's Alexandra August, we also learned a few surprises from the footage.
The Dark Phoenix footage opened with the X-Men on a space rescue mission in a scene that features some direct nods to X-Men comics and features Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee) and Quicksilver (Evan Peters) using their mutant powers to rescue the stranded astronauts.
After the X-Men return from the mission and are welcomed as celebrities, tensions within the team rise. Professor X (James McAvoy) and Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) get into a heated argument, where Mystique accuses of Professor X enjoying the X-Men's fame and popularity a little too much. In a crowd-pleasing line, she said that the team should be called the X-Women.
The next scene depicts a confrontation in New York City between Professor X, Storm, Cyclops and Nightcrawler against Magneto, Beast and two other mutants, Red Lotus and Selene. Lotus can manipulate his arms like whips while Selene has telepathic abilities. In battle, Selene uses her powers against Nightcrawler by messing with his teleportation. It's worth noting that Mystique is absent from these scenes, which could be another indication of her heavily-rumored death.
Then, Michael Fassbender's Magneto confronts Sophie Turner's Jean in a hotel lobby. Jessica Chastain's enigmatic character is at her side. Magneto attempts to kill Jean with a banister and tries to use his powers to thrust the metal straight through her eye. However, before it can pierce flesh, Jean uses her telekinetic powers to direct the banister away from her.
After taunting Magneto by saying that he can't even kill her, Jean turns the tables and uses her powers to crush Magneto's head with his own helmet in a brutal scene that's already been glimpsed in the movie's trailers.
While the footage wasn't truly revelatory, it offered a few takeaways that confirmed previously-rumored developments. By the time Dark Phoenix starts, the X-Men are enjoying some degree of success and fame. This ties in with the image of the X-Men that the Deadpool films have established, where the X-Men have the reputation of being heroes rather than just feared mutants hiding from society.
The footage also revealed that Beast switches sides to team up with Magneto. However, it's not clear whether this is caused by mind control or an honest divide between Hanky McCoy and Xavier. It's worth noting that the two X-Men both shared a few intense moments in the trailers, and it's not hard to imagine Mystique's death fracturing their relationship.
Across social media, WonderCon attendees have heaped praise upon the footage. While Dark Phoenix has had a relatively rocky road forward since its announcement, this footage could indicate a positive ending for the beleaguered production that could mark the X-Men's final cinematic outing before they're potentially brought into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Written and directed 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 opens June 7.