The X-Men franchise as produced by Fox Studios had a tumultuous relationship with critical and commercial success, and before Disney bought the studio out (and the film rights that went with it), things did not look good for the New Mutants movie . However, the movie has a new trailer and looks likely to finally see the light of day.
The production and post-production of New Mutants has been difficult, with reshoots and scheduling conflicts ultimately dragging out for years before the Disney purchase. At the time of the buyout, Dark Phoenix performed so poorly that many fans were skeptical whether or not the New Mutants would get their big screen debut at all. It remains unclear just what universe the film will take place in, be it the same continuity is the other Fox movies, the Marvel Cinematic Universe or its own little microcosm. What is clear, however, is that the movie has style.
Marketing itself as a sort of superhero horror-thriller, The New Mutants trailer features shadowy corridors, ghostly apparitions, snarling fanged monsters and a band of frightened misfit teenagers. While the first trailer for the film hinted at much the same aesthetic, the latest footage commits to the style wholeheartedly while also introducing the characters and giving actual insight into the plot of the movie.
Where Fox truly shot erred with its last few X-Men endeavors was in marketing, failing to advertise the films effectively ahead of time or produce a singular vision for what fans could anticipate. Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix both didn't cohere to a certain style, theme or overarching plot. That translated to Dark Phoenix bombing at the box office.
By comparison, The New Mutants is already generating buzz and clearly communicating what kind of film it wants to be. With superhero movies as popular as they all, the production seems to promise a refreshing take with horror, a genre that is seldom, mixed in with superheroics. At the same time, the movie still seems to promise a faithfulness to the source material that fans of the comics can appreciate.
New Mutants' willingness to use downright weird concepts like the Soul Sword, Demon Bear and the integration of the characters backstories, like Sunspot's slain girlfriend or Cannonball's history in the Kentucky coal mines, all serve to promise that the creators still care about the source material. It would be all too easy for such a particular vision like "superhero horror film" to lose sight of the importance of such fidelity.
While its mainline X-Men films floundered, the critical and commercial darlings of the Fox franchise became the spinoff films that showed the same singularity of vision and commitment storytelling that The New Mutants trailer seems to indicate. Deadpool was a breakout success built on a comedic vision containing pathos toward its main character, while Logan thrived on the same principles but for a grittier and more dramatic production. Both movies knew what they were, and they knew how to market themselves. Logan's trailer at Johnny Cash's "Hurt," to communicate the Western sense of tragedy. Deadpool's trailer had Salt-N-Pepa's "Shoop," which doesn't even need an explanation.
While The New Mutants still restrains itself to a PG-13 rating in contrast to Logan and Deadpool, it would be hard to tell that from the trailer. The darker tone offers a far more mature and adult look at the characters than some of their brightly-colored costumed adventures from the comics would indicate. From top to bottom it seems that The New Mutants may actually work after all, and the new trailer shows the movie does have something to bring to the superhero genre.
Directed and co-written by Josh Boone, The New Mutants stars Maisie Williams as Rahne Sinclair/Wolfsbane, Anya Taylor-Joy as Illyana Rasputin/Magik, Charlie Heaton as Sam Guthrie/Cannonball, Henry Zaga as Roberto da Costa/Sunspot, Blu Hunt as Danielle Moonstar/Mirage and Alice Braga as Dr. Cecilia Reyes. The film arrives in theaters April 3.