[WARNING: The post contains SPOILERS for X-Men: Days of Future Past.]

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As has become the norm with comic book movies, X-Men: Days of Future Past features a post-credit stinger intended to tease where the franchise is going next. And, much like how the mid-credit scene for The Avengers featured a tantalizing appearance by Thanos, the scene tacked on to the end of Days of Future Past hinted at another of the X-Men's most infamous foes.

But unlike Thanos in the MCU - who won't necessarily be the main antagonist for The Avengers in their sequel, Age of Ultron - the big bad who debuts in the end-credit scene for Days of Future Past is definitely the villain for the next X-film: Apocalypse.

Apocalypse - or rather En Sabah Nur as he's first known and is in fact called in the post-credit scene - is an extremely formidable villain. He has immense power and unique talents, yet screenwriter Simon Kinberg has promised a multi-faceted villain. Apocalypse will be a "super charismatic leader" and audiences will be "almost empathetic about his motivation." (Emphasis on the "almost," surely.)

In that post-credits scene, however, he's simply a young and gifted En Sabah Nur, who MTV News has revealed was played by Brendan Pedder, an 18-year-old unknown actor from Montreal. Check out a photo of him in costume with director Bryan Singer below:

En Sabah Nu actor, Brendan Pedder with Bryan Singer on set of X-Men: Days of Future Past
Brendan Pedder with Bryan Singer on the set of X-Men: Days of Future Past

Hopefully, the exposure will only boost the young actor's career - because he will not be back for the sequel. While speaking with Collider, Kinberg confirmed Pedder will most likely not be returning in X-Men: Apocalypse, adding:

"The tag is a tease of Apocalypse’s origin backstory.  It’s not necessarily gonna be a part of the storytelling of the Apocalypse movie.  It was really just to sort of tease for the audience. There’s this new guy out there and he’s coming."

Kinberg also revealed to Collider they were several versions of the post-credits scene considered before landing on the one we all saw. All of them featured Apocalypse, some were even "reported erroneously online," but the one in the film wasn't decided on until near the end of production.

In other Days of Future Past news: the company responsible for the film's visual effects, Framestore, has released some of the Sentinels' concept art. The Sentinels' design was a hot topic before the film's release, as almost nothing seen in the movie - especially the future sequences - resemble what fans are familiar with from the comics.

However, once said designs have been seen in action, there haven't been many complaints. Check out a few of Framestore's concept designs for the future and past Sentinels below:

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It's interesting to notice how little the design for the Sentinels varied from concept to final design. Clearly, there was always a strong vision about how they would appear right from the start.

What did you think of the Sentinels in X-Men: Days of Future Past? Did their design suit their function? And, knowing that Brendan Pedder won't be returning - and the Apocalypse in X-Men: Apocalypse will likely be more mature - what sort of an actor do you have in mind for the eponymous role in the next X-Men film? Fire away with your choices in the comments below!

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X-Men: Days of Future Past is currently in theaters; X-Men: Apocalypse is scheduled to premiere on May 27, 2016.

Sources: MTV News, Collider