“I don't think our movie is overstuffed with characters.” Well, that’s one issue dealt with right out of the blocks. “That would be like saying the comics are too crowded with characters,” X-Men 3 scribbler Simon Kinberg continues. “This film takes place in the X-Men universe, so when we write a geneticist, it's Kavita Rao instead of some nameless doctor. This has a bigger canvas than the first two films, so there's room for more characters.”
Sounds perfectly reasonable to us but what of the tears and jeers emanating from fanboy central about the polished presentation of Bryan Singer giving way to the potentially audacious stylings of Brett ‘Rush Hour’ Ratner? “Brett starts from a love of the comics. He's got an immense respect for the X-Men universe. He's also got a lot of respect for Bryan's films, so he's not trying to create a radically different template. He's making this movie more visceral and emotional.”
Any juicy little morsels of plot you could throw our way? “This movie continues some of the universal X-Men themes, like alienation, persecution, the struggle for equality. But it also deals with what happens when someone you love starts to spiral out of control. How can you help them? When is it too late?”
Kinberg confirms that the rumours that one (or more) of the latex laden crew will be an Ex man by the end of the third instalment. “All I can say is, death is a part of life. One of the moments I remember most vividly from childhood was when Obi-Wan died…”
Was that a clue?
