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Dark Phoenix: Simon Kinberg Explains His Decision to Reveal a Spoiler in the New Trailer

Published Thu, 28 Feb 2019 07:15:30 -0600

Do we need to label something as a spoiler if it's revealed in the second trailer for the movie? Let's air on the side of caution and say that if you want to remain spoiler free for Dark Phoenix then you should skip this article and probably the rest of the promotion for the movie. We're still four months away but they have spoiled a pretty major death in this trailer. While people knew it was coming it was still a little odd to see it so out there for all to see. Scroll down a little if you want to see director Simon Kinberg justify this spoiler to Entertainment Weekly.
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So, while we all know that Jennifer Lawrence has been looking toward the door since literally the second movie it seems she finally got her wish. In the second trailer for Dark Phoenix it appears that Jean Grey kills Mystique. It's unclear just how intentional that death is, the context isn't entirely clear but Jean seems at least conflicted about it, and Kinberg explained why they decided to reveal this in the second trailer.

Well, the thought process behind that was to primarily show that this is a movie that is unlike other X-Men movies. It's a movie where shocking things happen, where intense, dramatic things happen. People don't just fall off buildings and dust themselves off and walk away. There's a reality to this movie and a consequence to this movie. Even more than that, it was to show that Jean/Dark Phoenix is genuinely a threat to everyone, including the X-Men.

Kinberg has been working with Lawrence since X-Men: First Class and was asked what it was like to decide to kill off the character of a friend. Lawrence is also one of the biggest stars in the group. For Kinberg Mystique was a character that touches everyone and as far as a dramatic device she was one that would have the biggest impact.

I had a lot of emotions about it. I was obviously sad about it, as Jen's friend, and also as a fan of Jen as an actress. But I felt it was the strongest, most dramatic thing for the movie, and sometimes you have to make those kinds of hard decisions to service the larger story. And the larger story really is Jean cracking up, losing control because she's more powerful than anyone else in the world. To dramatize that properly, you have to show real loss, you have to show real pain and show real threat and menace. I didn't want to do that by her blowing up a building with anonymous people in it. It had to feel really personal for the X-Men, and I wanted it to be something that would fracture the X-Men as well. Mystique is someone who in our universe has been part of the X-Men and has been part of Magneto's world. Her death impacts literally everybody.

Clearly, there is already blood on the ground in this movie but that doesn't mean we shouldn't expect more, according to Kinberg.

There are certainly other major casualties in this.

Jean killing someone shes loves at her family home sounds very familiar not only to fans of the comics but also to those who had to sit through X-Men: The Last Stand. Fans are already asking about this particular scene and Kinberg addressed it.

I was conscious of it. There's scenes of her going home in the comics. That's a big part of it, and then the other big part of it is what you said: Going home elicits so much raw emotion from a character. When I was writing, I wasn't conscious of it, to be honest with you. As I started editing it and you go from being purely creative to being a little more objective after you finish a draft, I was like, "Oh yeah, this is something from X3." But it's certainly not meant to be an homage, and it's very very different sequence.

The various mutants of the X-Men have always been split into two different sides but this time the split isn't quite as ideological as usual. This time the group splits when it comes to the fate of Jean; do they kill her or do they try and save her?

That's exactly right. Mystique's death is the thing that fractures the family of the X-Men, including Magneto [Michael Fassbender], and sets people who were friends on opposite sides, and people who were enemies become allies. For me, if there's a metaphor for the film, it's like if someone in your life or your family starts to lose control, whether that be because of drugs or mental health issues or more minor things, the question is: At one point do you give up on them? And how long do you hold out hope for them?

Obviously, Professor Xavier and Scott are on the side of "save Jean" as they usually are. Scott's reason is older than probably half of the audience that is going to see this movie but Xavier's reasons are apparently a little different.

That's a big part of the movie. Scott and Charles are aligned in trying to save her. Scott because she's the love of his life, and their love story is something that's been so powerful in these films and so powerful in the comics. And Charles as well because she's like a daughter figure for him, and someone he's known since she's been a little girl and feels responsible for and feels responsible for something he's done wrong in her life.

As the great Kitty Pryde once said; Professor Xavier is a jerk. It's one of his defining traits in this new series of movies so it's going to be interesting to see people, or someone other than Magneto, calling him out on it.

Summary: Jean Grey begins to develop incredible powers that corrupt and turn it into a Dark Phoenix. Now the X-Men will have to decide if the life of a team member is worth more than all the people living in the world.

Dark Phoenix, directed by Simon Kinberg, stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Sophie Turner, Jennifer Lawrence, and Nicholas Hoult. It will be released on June 7, 2019.

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