X-Men: The Last Stand director, Brett Ratner, has deleted a post defending the film's depiction of Juggernaut against actor Vinnie Jones' recent criticism. Releasing in 2006, The Last Stand was the final installment in Fox's original trilogy of X-Men films. Though it performed well at the box office, it was nowhere near as well-received as the previous two X-Men movies, marking it as the first disappointing entry in franchise.
The complaints made against X-Men: The Last Stand range from it being a poor adaptation of the Dark Phoenix saga, a seminal story from the comics, to the wasted potential of many of its characters. Actor Vinnie Jones, who portrays the mutant, Juggernaut, certainly believes his character was wasted in the movie. He recently discussed his experience making the film and specifically his frustration over Juggernaut's story being cut down from what he initially signed up for. Jones' also cited meetings with Brett Ratner in where the director promised more material was being written for him, only for nothing to come of it. In a post on Instagram, Ratner responded to Jones, arguing he wasn't given the authority to expand Juggernaut's role but still believes Jones delivered a memorable performance. Strangely, that post has since been deleted from Ratner's Instagram account.
In his now deleted Instagram post, Brett Ratner is largely complimentary of Vinnie Jones and doesn't come off like he's trying to start a feud with the actor. He does, however, blame Juggernaut's diminished role in X-Men: The Last Stand on the script, written by Simon Kinberg and Zak Penn, and the rushed production rather than take any responsibility himself. Still, his post appears to be a genuine attempt to explain his take on situation and praise Jones for his performance. And that makes it rather odd that within a few hours of publishing the post, it would be deleted. You can read the text from Ratner's since deleted post, below:
"For those interested with regard to @TheVinnieJones reported comments that I “dissolved and mugged off” the role of Juggernaut in X-Men: The Last Stand, is inaccurate. All I can say is, too many evil mutants too little time! Let’s be honest, Mystique is easier on the eyes! 👀 In all seriousness, I shot the script I was given and I was not able to expand the role of Juggernaut as per Vinnie’s request due to the extremely limited time I had to deliver the film. I have the utmost respect and admiration for Vinnie Jones and his talent and thought he created a memorable character. Hopefully one day we will see a stand-alone Juggernaut film starring #VinnieJones! We can watch it mask free on @disneyplus in a pub near you since there might not be any more movie theaters in the future. 🤔#ImTheJuggernautBitch #XMen #XMenTheLastStand #XmenMovies @marvel"
While Ratner's post is a positive one and doesn't appear to be an attempt to stir up any trouble, its sudden deletion does raise questions. It's possible the director chose to delete the post simply because commenting on the situation at all, whether in a positive manner or not, may have inundated him with more replies than he could handle. Or, it could have been that by openly discussing the production, he broke some clause in a previous contract.
There is also the questionable comment made about preferring Mystique over Juggernaut because she is "easier on the eyes." Given the sexual assault allegations leveled against Ratner, choosing to defend himself by claiming the attractiveness of one character is the reason he lessened the role of another isn't a great look. Without any explanation from the director, it's impossible to know exactly why Ratner decided to so quickly delete the post, but it wouldn't be all too surprising to learn he was advised to remove the post because of that insinuation.
It's very likely the truth about what happened to both this deleted Instagram post and the size of Vinnie Jones' Juggernaut role will never be fully known. X-Men: The Last Stand did suffer from a troubled production and that means there isn't one sole person who can blamed for the movie's failings. Nevertheless, it would have been good to see more of Jones' portrayal of the Juggernaut seeing as it was one of the better received parts of the film. Perhaps one day there will even be another chance for Jones to play Juggernaut just as Ratner hoped before he deleting it.
Source: Brett Ratner/Instagram