New report may shed a little light on the failures of Dark Phoenix

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

The X-MEN film franchise has had its ups and downs over the years, but the recently released DARK PHOENIX almost certainly represents its lowest point. In addition to receiving the worst reviews of the entire franchise, DARK PHOENIX will also likely face a loss of between $100-$120 million. Not the best way to conclude what was one of Fox's biggest franchises.

So, what went wrong? The easiest explanation is that DARK PHOENIX simply isn't a good film, but a new report from THR may shed a little more light on what was going on behind-the-scenes. Although X-MEN: APOCALYPSE was still a success, Fox took notice of the negative reviews and lackluster box-office when developing what would become DARK PHOENIX, and THR says that they took the wrong lessons from APOCALYPSE. Insiders told THR that executives believed that the negative reception was due to an "excessive amount of explosions and scale," adding that "There was a misguided feeling that [Apocalypse] was an anomaly, that we just got it wrong. We were wrong." Franchise writer/producer Simon Kinberg was brought in to write and direct DARK PHOENIX and the main cast agreed to return for one last outing. However, once production wrapped, it was clear that reshoots would be needed. This certainly isn't an anomaly for a film nowadays, but as most of the main actors were in high demand, the reshoots didn't occur until nearly a year after principal photography had ended. DARK PHOENIX had been slated to hit theaters on November 2, 2018, but with more work needed, that release was pushed back to February 14, 2019. As DARK PHOENIX reportedly wasn't designed to be a summer movie, this was still a good fit for the film, but then Fox pushed the film into June. According to THR, the reason for the move had to do with James Cameron's ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL.

Insiders tell THR that the move was to placate James Cameron, Fox’s most important filmmaker, and his concerns for his movie, Alita: Battle Angel. According to one source, Cameron felt Alita would lose horribly when facing a December opening weekend that included Aquaman and Bumblebee, with Mary Poppins Returns opening up two days earlier. He wanted his expensive movie shifted. Stacey Snider, according to this source, obliged, giving Alita the February date and moving Dark Phoenix to June. “Emma, Hutch and Simon begged her not do it,” says this source.

Disney's acquisition of Fox was in the final stages at this point, and it seems that DARK PHOENIX got lost in the shuffle as there was confusion over just how to market the film. "The campaign was muddled," a former Fox executive said. "Was this the final X-Men movie? Was it about a character going back? This movie just got lost." As a result, public awareness of DARK PHOENIX was at an all-time low, with more people aware of the recent Elton John biopic than the X-MEN film. "When definite awareness of Rocketman is higher than an X-Men movie, you know you’re in strange territory," said one insider. Now that the X-MEN are back under Marvel's roof, it's simply a matter of time before they join the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but one producer said "There is no rush to bring the X-Men to the marketplace after this. And when they come back, it’s going to extend Marvel’s run another 10 years."

The official synopsis for DARK PHOENIX:

In DARK PHOENIX, the X-MEN face their most formidable and powerful foe: one of their own, Jean Grey. During a rescue mission in space, Jean is nearly killed when she is hit by a mysterious cosmic force. Once she returns home, this force not only makes her infinitely more powerful, but far more unstable. Wrestling with this entity inside her, Jean unleashes her powers in ways she can neither comprehend nor contain. With Jean spiraling out of control, and hurting the ones she loves most, she begins to unravel the very fabric that holds the X-Men together. Now, with this family falling apart, they must find a way to unite — not only to save Jean's soul, but to save our very planet from aliens who wish to weaponize this force and rule the galaxy.

DARK PHOENIX is now playing in theaters, so check out a review from our own Chris Bumbray and let us know what you thought of the film!