Why Fox Is Making a Second Dark Phoenix Saga Adaptation

Dark Phoenix is retreading a story the X-Men franchise already got wrong over a decade ago. X-Men: The Last Stand first tackled The Dark Phoenix Saga in 2006, directed by the disgraced Brett Ratner and written by Dark Phoenix writer/director Simon Kinberg. The movie was a moderate box office success, but was almost wholly rejected by fans, leading to an eventual timeline reset.

There's a lot of replication in the comic book genre as a whole, but one thing that's been fairly consistent is that a specific piece of source material typically isn't used more than once by each franchise. We've seen Spider-Man and Batman's origins more than once, and they've faced off against Green Goblin and Joker multiple times, but those stories still have some significant differences, drawing from a different bit of source material each time.

What makes Dark Phoenix so weird isn't just that it's drawing from the Phoenix Saga again, but that a lot of the trailer seems to revisit what we've already seen in the last telling - The Last Stand. With decades of comics to choose from, why is the Dark Phoenix Saga something Simon Kinber and Fox think is worth a second attempt to get it right?

This Page: The Last Stand Got the X-Men's Best Story Wrong
Page 2: How Dark Phoenix Will (Try) To Do The Phoenix Saga Justice

Phoenix is Bigger Than Phoenix Saga

Sophie Turner as Phoenix in flames in X-Men Dark Phoenix

Casual X-Men fans are very familiar with the Phoenix Saga, as it's one of the most popular arcs in the comics, it got a major focus on the popular X-Men The Animated Series, and the movies already attempted to adapt it once with X-Men: The Last Stand. What more casual fans might not know about the Phoenix Force is that it has a far more pervasive role in the comics than the initial classic Chris Clairmont run. In fact, considering the Phoenix Force's significance in the comics, it's shocking it hasn't been a bigger factor on the big screen.

The Phoenix Force may have only occupied Jean Grey on the big screen, but in the comics, it's been a central factor in a number of stories, possessing numerous characters at different points, including Professor X, Emma Frost, Captain Marvel, Namor, Colossus, Emma Frost, Magik, Cyclops, Hope Summers, and numerous others. It's also a central factor in numerous arcs, defining many of the X-Men's biggest stories.

With such a rich history, it's understandable why the franchise would continually want to introduce the Phoenix Force. Getting its introduction right could totally change what the X-Men movies could be, opening up a whole new realm of Phoenix stories. They just need to get the classic Dark Phoenix Saga story right first. And that's where The Last Stand went so wrong.

The Last Stand Got the X-Men's Best Story Wrong

The Last Stand got a lot of things wrong, but one of its biggest missteps was in its handling of Jean Grey and the Phoenix Force. Not only did it totally change the cosmic origin of the Phoenix Force, instead, but made it manifest from inside of Jean Grey, having always been attached to her. This change isn't unheard of, as a similar retcon also happened in more recent comics, but it's definitely a deviation from the original Phoenix Saga's telling.

Not only was the Phoenix Force's origin changed, but Jean Grey's character was basically taken entirely out of the story, essentially turning her into a zombie with supernatural powers, susceptible to the influence of Magneto. The Phoenix Force isn't just supposed to give Jean immense power, but she should still have character motivation. Using that power to essentially make her a MacGuffin is a disservice to both the character and the story.

Add in the backstory of the mutant "cure" from Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men run and Magneto assembling the Mutant Brotherhood, and the only part of the Phoenix Saga even recognizable in the story is the presence of a nerfed version of the entity inhabiting Jean Grey. Considering the comics story involves a Phoenix possessed Jean Grey destroying an entire planet and wiping out 5 billion lives, a version of the story where Jean is basically a weapon for Magneto is a betrayal of the Phoenix Force should be.

Page 2 of 2: How Dark Phoenix Will (Try) To Do The Phoenix Saga Justice

How Dark Phoenix Will (Try) To Do The Phoenix Saga Justice

One of the first things many people noticed about the first Dark Phoenix trailer is how similar it looks to The Last Stand, and for good reason. Dark Phoenix doesn't only repeat some story elements from The Last Stand, but there are moments where it looks like a retread visually. And the similarities shouldn't be shocking. Not only is the movie sharing the same comic inspirations as The Last Stand, but Dark Phoenix's writer and director, Simon Kinberg, also wrote The Last Stand.

The most notable difference from the original is that Dark Phoenix is finally taking the X-Men cosmic. The trailer interestingly suggests Jean Grey connects with the Phoenix Force in space, although we already saw her tap into it in X-Men: Apocalypse, so it's not clear exactly what's happening. The most logical explanation is that the Phoenix Force is already inside of her and her efforts to shield the Blackbird and other X-Men from harm and the effort causes her to give in fully, not unlike her apparent death in X2: X-Men United. We similarly saw the Phoenix Force teased in the fight against Apocalypse in X-Men: Apocalypse, so it could understandably be brought out in her mind in a moment of great need.

The other prominent way Dark Phoenix appears to be avoiding repeating the mistakes of The Last Stand is in its overall treatment of Jean. Based on the first trailer, Jean maintains a sense of autonomy and struggles with her dark side. Not only that, but she's a primary character, with the story following her and being influenced by her actions, instead of making her a pawn to be manipulated by another villain. There's still a lot to learn about what's happening in Dark Phoenix, but if the initial posters and trailer are any indication, Jean will be the primary focus, making the movie another woman led superhero movie, attempting to follow in the footsteps of Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel.

Does it Even Matter Anymore?

Sure, the Dark Phoenix Saga is an important story to get right, and Dark Phoenix could be the way to do that, but without the likelihood of sequels, does it even matter? The X-Men franchise is on its second movie of establishing this new cast of younger characters, presumably with the intention of having them keep the roles for a long time, but now that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

So, if Fox is remaking the Dark Phoenix Saga again, it's because they thought (when it was greenlit) it's a necessary part of the foundation from which to grow the next phase of the franchise. But if that franchise doesn't have anywhere to grow after the Disney acquisition, why go through the expense of adding these storied reshoots? Sure, it could just be a cautious decision in case the deal falls through, or it could be altering the movie to give it a definitive end instead of leaving Fox's X-Men legacy on an incomplete note.

So, what started out as an attempt to right the wrongs of the past and set the franchise up for the future, similar to the intentions of X-Men: Days of Future Past, Dark Phoenix may have pivoted to instead provide a more conclusive ending, while still (hopefully) washing the bad taste of The Last Stand out of fans' mouths.

It will certainly be hard to provide an ending as satisfying or conclusive as the ending of Logan, but Dark Phoenix can certainly give these characters a send-off before we see them again in a few years teaming up with the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy under Disney's Marvel Studios umbrella.