Comic book movies had made the transition to the silver screen long before the year 2000, but that year's release of the first X-Men movie changed everything. It was the first time that Hollywood began to see the full franchise potential that came with adapting comic books during the CGI age.
All of a sudden, anything was possible, and limited only by the imaginations of the director and team. However, what if someone tried to bring X-Men to theaters during the 1980s? Would it have been a success? It would have all started with the casting, and here's ten thespians who could have filled those roles nicely.
Michael J. Fox (Toad)
Yes, it might seem odd to choose Back To The Future actor Michael J. Fox for the role of Toad, but picture him with the makeup and it all starts to make sense. This villainous mutant has the average height and relative appearance that would have fit an actor like Fox.
Plus, it would have been a great opportunity for him to step out of his comfort zone and play against his typical charming and rebellious good guy type. However, that tongue might have presented quite a problem in an age when CGI was just taking its first baby steps.
Matthias Hues (Sabretooth)
It's hard to find actors with the right kind of physical stature to go toe-to-toe with Wolverine and make it believable, but German actor Matthias Hues would have undoubtedly been the best choice. This 6'5" beast starred in a ton of popular martial arts flicks including TC 2000 and Dark Angel, alongside Dolph Lundgren.
Little training would be required in order to transform Hues into Sabretooth. Simply glue some hair onto his face and body, slip a pair of fangs into his mouth and blacken his eyes with contact lenses.
Brigitte Nielsen (Mystique)
Brigitte Nielsen was a household name in the 1980s. She'd starred as the titular Red Sonja, made an appearance in the endlessly quotable Rocky IV, and even married (briefly) Sylvester Stallone. Her natural physique was lean, fit and dangerous. Who better to play Mystique?
1980s Nielsen had the facial characteristics to play the chilling and bold shapeshifter, right down to the smile. Slap a coat of blue paint on her, give her some yellow contact lenses, and she'd have rocked every scene.
Robin Givens (Ororo Munroe / Storm)
Robin Givens is an 80s legend, and she starred in everything from Boomerang to Diff'rent Strokes, and even The Cosby Show. Her natural look is beautiful but fierce - exactly the kind of stature an actress would need to pull off the role of Storm.
Regardless of what hairstyle was chosen for the film, it would have been something to see Givens with white contact lenses as she called forth the powers of nature to wreak havoc on her foes. It's hard to imagine another 1980s actress with the right combination of traits to make it work.
Faye Grant (Rogue)
Many fans have seen Faye Grant in the popular 1983 mini-series V and its follow-up V: The Final Battle. That gave her an edge when it came to tackling sci-fi material, and her looks definitely would have sealed the deal.
Grant isn't the tallest actress in the world, however. At 5'3", she might have had trouble portraying the kind of Rogue fans knew from the comic books, but original X-Men actress Anna Paquin was just a hair taller, so it's all relative.
Charlie Sheen (Scott Summers / Cyclops)
1980 Charlie Sheen was all about playing it cool. It wasn't until later that he'd find his niche in hilarious parodies and comedy roles. Even when he wasn't helping audiences laugh up a lung, he was starring in dramatic pieces and action movies that helped solidify his Hollywood status.
Sheen as Cyclops would have been far more daring, bold and take-charge than James Marsden's boyish take on the character, and it would have brought the character more to the forefront, instead of setting him up to get sidelined later on.
Daphne Zuniga (Jean Grey)
Say the name Daphne Zuniga, and the side-splitting Mel Brooks parody Spaceballs immediately comes to mind. Indeed, it's one of (if not the most) iconic roles the actress has ever played, but that doesn't mean her acting chops lay only in comedy. Zuniga had starred in everything from TV's Family Ties to The Fly II, and her body of work was varied.
Zuniga has "that" look that could have translated into a powerful Jean Grey. Her 1980s physicality practically begged to tackle the Dark Phoenix storyline, and it would have been interesting to see how the filmmakers would try to set that up for the eventual sequel.
Christopher Plummer (Eric Lensherr / Magneto)
Christopher Plummer has played a variety of shady and dastardly figures in his time, but he would have been at his best with a role like Magneto. Not only did Plummer fit the look of a European male who had escaped the Holocaust and lived to tell about it, but his imposing physical stature and facial characteristics would have made for one piercing villain.
Plummer would have looked the part a bit better than Ian McKellen, as well. The latter was already looking a bit old when the original X-Men movie debuted in 2000, but Plummer looked far closer in age and physicality to the comic book version of Magneto.
Anthony Hopkins (Professor Charles Xavier)
1980's Anthony Hopkins had some hair left on his dome, but it could have been clipped clean away to make him the best Xavier casting decision around. Hopkins can play almost any role with ease, thanks to his illustrious stage and screen career, and he's not bad at playing the teacher.
It would have been interesting to see Hopkins steal the scenes with his trademark acting intensity, especially during moments when he exercised his mutant powers. His outwardly calm demeanor hides a passionate mind, which would have gone hand-in-hand with the character.
Thomas Ian Griffith (Logan / Wolverine)
Best known for playing the uber-villainous Terry Silver in the divisive third Karate Kid film, Thomas Ian Griffith had the stature and the facial characteristics to play a hyper-aggressive animal like Wolverine. Not only was he no stranger to action roles, but he proved that he had the energy to play a mutant with rage on the brain.
The only caveat is Griffith's height, which is approximately 6'4" to 6'5". That flies directly in the face of the Logan that fans know from the Marvel comics, but iconic X-Men actor Hugh Jackman was 6'2", so it's not like this was a hard and fast rule.