With X-MEN: FIRST CLASS taking place in 1962 and X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST’s events unfolding in 1973, one could surmise that X-MEN: APOCALYPSE would tackle the 80s in some form or fashion. No guesswork will be needed anymore, as a recent podcast has writer/producer Simon Kinberg admit that the next feature will take place in the year 1983 (check out the entire podcast here).
The series has done a pretty great job at integrating itself into the periods on which they’ve been set. It’s all too easy to go over-the-top when you’re doing stories that take place in the past, but so far X:MEN: FIRST CLASS and DAYS OF FUTURE PAST have showed a good amount of restraint; having the year in which its set act as the canvas in which the action takes place, and not the portrait itself, so to speak. I’ll be looking forward to seeing what visual style that all of this big-time destruction that’s being promised looks like when the film is released in two years time. Given that 10 years have passed since the events in 1973, a decade does a lot for a character (just at look at the arc for Xavier from FIRST CLASS to DAYS OF FUTURE PAST). We should be seeing some new looks for those from the FIRST CLASS bunch, as well as possible younger versions of characters from the original trilogy (Cyclops, Jean Grey, etc). And lest you forget . . . Channing “Gambit” Tatum.
X-MEN: APOCALYPSE will apocalyze theaters May 27, 2016.