While we await the official announcements (and signings) of returning actors Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellan and Hugh Jackman for X-Men: Days of Future Past we also await news on what format the film will release in.
The followup to X-Men: First Class begins production in April and it's possible that like The Hobbit, it could be shot in 3D and 48fps.
With next year's The Wolverine representing the first X-Men film to release in 3D, it's practically a certainty at this point that all X-Men films going forward will utilize the format, whether shot that way or post-converted.
The boost to ticket prices and hence, box office revenue, 3D a no-brainer business decision for studios. And with the competition utilizing the format as well, it's expected from the mainstream moviegoer for the action-heavy blockbusters. As an example, The Wolverine goes up against Iron Man 3, Man of Steel and Thor: The Dark World next year and all three are coming in 3D.
The following year, X-Men: Days of Future Past will share the market with Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Guardians of The Galaxy, again, all coming in 3D. So we can safely say that Days of Future Past - like The Wolverine - will come in 3D. But wouldn't it be interesting if it was shot in 48 FPS as well? That would give it something that the other genre films will not have.
From Bryan Singer's Twitter account - which he began using only a few weeks ago, tweeting lots of info about X-Men - we know that he attended the New Zealand premiere of The Hobbit with guests including James Cameron.
And like James Cameron who may shoot Avatar 2 & 3 using 48fps if it's 'accepted,' Singer may do the same for the next X-Men team-up. The news comes from Magneto himself aka Gandalf, who in an interview with Malone's Movie Minute promoting The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, mentioned that from the premiere, Singer was impressed and excited about the technology.
Unfortunately, the reaction from early screenings and reviews offers a mixed bag of conclusions about the 48fps format and how it looks on the big screen. To director Peter Jackson, it enhances the 3D and offers a sense of reality that can't be beaten.
The Wolverine is being post-converted into 3D. Wouldn't it be neat if X-Men: Days of Future Past was shot in 3D? That would give it another pillar to their marketing plans since the other superhero/comic book films over the next two years are all likely going to be post-converted with the exception of Marc Webb's Spider-Man reboot sequel. As for the 48fps, the jury's still out.
With X-Men: Days of Future Past promising to explore time travel, and involve massive, towering robot Sentinels in a dystopian future battling mutants with special effects heavy superpowers, it lends itself well to the 3D format. Especially if it is shot with actual 3D camera rigs. Stay tuned, it's possible Singer will be tweeting about this shortly. According to his latest updates, he read the current draft of the Days of Future Past screenplay on his 14 hour flight home.
Bryan Singer will direct X-Men: Days of Future Past with returning stars Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Nicholas Hoult, Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, who could be joined by the return of Hugh Jackman, Famke Janssen, Anna Paquin, James Marsden, Ellen Page, Shawn Ashmore. Stay tuned!
The Wolverine releases July 26, 2013 and X-Men: Days of Future Past hits theaters on July 18, 2014.
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Follow Rob on Twitter @rob_keyes and follow Bryan @BryanSinger.
Source: Malone's Movie Minute