The X-Men movie universe is nearing the end of an era. Logan will mark the end of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine run, but Fox has found a new tentpole with Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool. Outside of their respective solo movies, Fox developed a line-up of X-Men team films from director Bryan Singer and writer Simon Kinberg.
Kinberg has so far written X-Men: The Last Stand, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and most recently X-Men: Apocalypse. He also has credits in the Star Wars universe, Sherlock Holmes, and more. With rumors continuing to pop up that the next mainline X-Men film, reportedly titled X-Men: Supernova, will production soon, it looks as though Kinberg may be in line to make his directorial debut.
Collider is reporting that, according to multiple sources, Kinberg is in talks to direct Supernova, after already completing the screenplay. The report notes that Fox has yet to decide whether or not they will use his script for the final product. That said, with him now in talks to direct, it would be surprising if the studio was not ready to work on a film from his script. However, Kinberg's latest is said to focus on Jean Grey and the reported Dark Phoenix storyline, a popular storyline that has been hinted at before.
While as of right now, it appears as though Kinberg is in line to direct the film with his script, blockbusters of this size change all the time, making it far from a done deal at this point. It could very well turn out to be true, and given just how involved he is in the world, and Singer not returning, he would be a logical choice to shape the universe moving forward.
However, with a movie of this size, it could be a bit concerning that Kinberg has never directed anything before. There are examples of writers making the jump to smaller films or indie directors making the jump to blockbusters, but it is rare that a writer's first directorial outing is a movie with a budget well over $100 million. Then again, Kinberg is not your prototypical writer and is well-versed in the studio system.
Fox is reportedly still mulling the decision, so it will be interesting to see whether or not they bring in any other filmmakers to try to get a few different takes before agreeing with Kinberg. However, unless a truly impressive meeting takes place, it would be surprising for Kinberg to lose out on the job at this stage. Plus, with filming reportedly starting up this summer, it is in Fox's best interest to find a director and begin the casting process. So far, Sophie Turner and James McAvoy have teased their involvement, but the availability of the rest of the cast is not yet known.
Next: Will Logan Create Dual X-Men Timelines?
Source: Collider
