Bryan Singer breaks down the new X-Men: Apocalypse trailer

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

The trailer for Bryan Singer's latest X-Men epic arrived just this morning and while it received a mixed response, I feel like we're finally beginning to witness the Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) that Bryan Singer had promised us. Ivan Ooze no more. The X-MEN: APOCALYPSE trailer was jammed full of X-Men tidbits and introductions to the new characters, so Bryan Singer sat down with Empire Magazine to break down the new trailer.

Unfortunately, Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) has been the focus of some ridicule, with many fans taking issue with how his appearance has been realized in the film. Now that we've seen (and heard) him in action, I feel much more confident that Oscar Isaac will knock this one out of the park.

What is a God? Why would someone create and rule over a race simply to be worshiped? It bears no respect or devotion to him – that’s the big giant ego of the old God, all of it lacks symmetry, order and devotion to him. It needs to be culled. It needs to be wiped away and rebuilt again.

The trailer doesn't give us a super clear look at the new villain, but Bryan Singer said that that was his intention.

I like that you just see bits and pieces, it forces you to look at not just his face, but his costume, the scale, the strangeness, the inscription, the technology. It makes you want to lean around the corner to get a better look. He’s a very powerful and imposing character and Oscar acts the shit out of it.

Michael Fassbender has been one of the best parts of these recent X-Men films and Singer had nothing but praise for Fassbender's work, as well as hinting at how he falls under Apocalypse's (Oscar Isaac) spell.

He’s found Erik at the most vulnerable place in his life, He’s searching for God. Remember, he was a young Jew in a concentration camp when he first lost his family and now here comes this man who was, is, or claims to be God. The power of persuasion is Apocalypse’s greatest power. Fassbender really delivers here in non-traditional comic book style. There are scenes here you will not see in any other comic book movie. I really think Erik goes through one of the most complex journeys in the movie.

Quicksilver (Evan Peters) stole the show in X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST with an elaborate and creative display of his powers. X-MEN: APOCALYPSE will feature another Quicksilver sequence which Bryan Singer hopes will be bigger, longer, and more detailed than anything we've ever seen. Glimpse's of this scene were spotted in the trailer and Singer revealed just how much work it took to bring it to life.

There’s one sequence that took one and a half months to shoot for three minutes of film, it involves the most complex camera moves, very sophisticated explosive algorithms, 3D Phantom cameras traveling at 50mph while shooting at 3,100 frames per second. Evan worked more days on this movie than any other actor because of this one sequence.

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE will introduce us to younger versions of the X-Men characters we already know, including Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), and Cyclops (Tye Sheridan).

This movie is about the formation of the X-Men. How do you get all these characters who are in different places in their lives to become the X-Men? That’s the challenge of the movie. It was important to show that these are kids. There’s no way anybody can get in there but them, and do what needs to be done, and yet they’re kids.

Singer also revealed that he "very specifically put Jubilee in" the film, but that her role won't be particularly large in X-MEN: APOCALYPSE. In fact, there was one cut which didn't include the character but Singer went on the say that Jubliee (Lana Condor) is "a part of the growing new universe.”

A synopsis of X-MEN: APOCALYPSE:

Since the dawn of civilization, he was worshiped as a god. Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac), the first and most powerful mutant from Marvel’s X-Men universe, amassed the powers of many other mutants, becoming immortal and invincible. Upon awakening after thousands of years, he is disillusioned with the world as he finds it and recruits a team of powerful mutants, including a disheartened Magneto (Michael Fassbender), to cleanse mankind and create a new world order, over which he will reign. As the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance, Raven (Jennifer Lawrence) with the help of Professor X (James McAvoy) must lead a team of young X-Men to stop their greatest nemesis and save mankind from complete destruction.

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE will be in theaters on May 27, 2016.