As everyone knows I’m a life-long X-Men fan, and in this last week it seems I’ve been on an X-Men kick. I watched the Astonishing X-Men motion comic on instant Netflix, read the storylines The Curse of the Mutants and Second Coming, and also watched the first two X-Men movies. But yesterday morning I woke up to find X-Men: The Last Stand on television. Seeing how I only had The Daily Show and The Colbert Report on my DVR to watch I decided to stick with the Marvel mutants. And of course, just like all the other times I try to watch this film, I turned it off twenty minutes in and demanded Brett Ratner be hung in a public forum.
The film can barely be called an X-Men film due to how wrong the characters were portrayed and the mockery made of two great X-Men storylines. Chris Claremont’s The Dark Phoenix Saga and Joss Whedon’s Gifted were raped in order to make this horrible, horrible film. When Whedon is done with The Avengers I would love to see him make a live action, and true-to-story, adaptation to his Gifted comic book. If that dream ever becomes a reality here are my casting picks for Astonishing X-Men.
Joshua Jackson as Scott Summers/Cyclops
I’ve followed Joshua Jackson’s career ever since he played Charlie in The Mighty Ducks trilogy. From there he went on to play Pacey Witter for six seasons on the teen drama Dawson’s Creek. But it wasn’t until his current role as Peter Bishop on the Fox show Fringe that I thought he could pull of the current Scott Summers.
At the beginning of Astonishing X-Men Cyclops has just lost the love of his life, Jean Grey, and is currently dating Emma Frost, the woman he technically cheated on his wife with. It wasn’t physical though, only psychological. Scott has a bit of an edge to him in the comics these days which I love! He’s leading an entire species on the brink of extinction and with the edge that Jackson brings to Fringe every week I think these two would go together like peanut butter and jelly.
January Jones as Emma Frost/the White Queen
When I first heard that January Jones was playing The White Queen in this summer’s X-Men: First Class I thought it seemed like a great casting so why change it. Jones’s role on Mad Men shows she has the acting chops to play a woman who used to be a villain and is now running a school for the hope of all mutant kind.
Emma Frost is as cunning and bitchy as she is knock-out gorgeous. Her only soft spot seems to be for the late Mr. Summers. In Astonishing X-Men you’re never quite sure where Emma stands with everyone, which makes her a great character. Did I mention she once tortured most of her current teammates?
Sam Worthington as Logan/Wolverine
He’s the best he is at what he does, and what he doesn’t isn’t very nice. Wolverine is the most famous X-Men character, so much that he has been the center of four X-Men films. He’s great and all, but I’m so glad we’re getting at least one X-Men film without him this summer.
Sam Worthington has the tough guy act down with roles in action films like Avatar, Clash of the Titans, and Terminator: Salvation. He can pull off the fight scenes, the deep tough guy voice, and as long as he can do the rage scream I think we’re in business. Of course Wolverine is pretty short and I’m not sure how tall Mr. Worthington is. That's my only complaint about Hugh Jackman.
Karl Urban as Dr. Hank McCoy/Beast
At some moments he seems to be the heart of the X-Men, always trying to lead them away from a dark path by being the voice of reason. In Astonishing X-Men, Beast, however, has a hard choice to make. When a cure for mutation is found he must choose whether to use it on himself, or stay the blue, furry animal that humanity sees him as.
I cast Karl Urban for his distinctive voice and acting abilities. It was only after I started writing that I realized he already played a character named Dr. McCoy, so I knew I had the right guy. Urban is known for his roles in The Bourne Supremacy, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and playing Dr. Leonard McCoy in Star Trek. Just think what would happen if they ever had a Star Trek/X-Men crossover like on the comic books. Classic!
Owain Yeoman as Peter Rasputin/ Colossus
Peter Rasputin is the tough guy on the X-Men, but his most solid muscle is his heart. He can turn his skin to steel but he has more compassion than anyone on the team. In Astonishing X-Men Colossus returns from the dead after being experimented on for quite some time. He also is reconciled with his former girlfriend, Kitty Pryde. Oh and did I mention he is prophesized to destroy an entire alien race?
Owain Yeoman is currently playing CBI agent Wayne Rigsby on CBS’s The Mentalist. To play Colossus I needed a big guy who looks very non-threatening at times, but can make you piss your pants at other times. I think Yeoman can even pull off the Russian accent.
Ashley Greene as Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat
Joss Whedon’s entire run of Astonishing X-Men is centered around Kitty Pryde. This young girl returns to a place full of memories to help Scott and Emma teach young mutants. In that time though she finds her dead boyfriend alive, gets her mind royally screwed with by The Hellfire Club, and becomes the only hope for Earth. Whedon sure does love his female heroines.
Ashley Greene is most know for her role as Alice in the Twilight Saga. But she’s one of the few actors I find non-annoying in those silly films, and out in the real world she is really hot. Her upcoming film, Skateland, has her playing a girl-next-door character. I think this fits her well. She seems like a cute girl who is very approachable and down to Earth. Don't worry, there’s only one team in this franchise Ms. Greene. Unless fans are still having their Team Jean vs. Team Emma debates.
Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier
If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Patrick Stewart not only played captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise for years, but also Professor Charles Xavier for three films. He’s the only bald man I trust in cinema. It’s a shame that Brett Ratner killed him along with Cyclops in X3. Does Ratner know how many times Professor X has died and came back in the comic books? Judging from X-Men: The Last Stand I doubt he’s ever even read an X-Men comic. Damn you Brett Ratner!
Angelina Jolie as Special Agent Abigail Brand
Agent Brand is the leader of S.W.O.R.D. Don’t ask me what it stand for because I can barely get S.H.I.E.L.D. right. Brand is trying to stop an alien world from being destroyed, and also trying to make sure they don’t destroy Earth as well. Her run-ins with the X-Men are rarely nice, and over time she and Beast kind of develop a crush on each other.
Bring in the queen beotch herself. Angelina Jolie has made a career of not only being a tough girl on the screen with films like Salt and Mr. and Mrs. Smith be she also stole Brad Pitt away from one of America’s sweethearts. I think she has more than what it takes to play tough girl Brand who gives even Emma Frost a run for her money in the bitch department.
Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury
In main stream Marvel comics Nick Fury was a white guy. When the Ultimate universe was created they based Nick Fury off of bad-ass mother f%cker, Samuel L. Jackson. Which is now ironic since he plays Nick Fury in the current Marvel Studio films.
Fury runs S.H.I.E.L.D. and starts out as the go-between guy in Agent Brand and the X-Men's relationship. He doesn’t care much for mutant kind, but he just wants to make sure sh*t doesn't hit the fan on Earth. Roles like these are why we love you Mr. Jackson. It’s why we love you.
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