Marvel has, in recent years, treaded through difficult waters. The box-office failure of some major movies such as Ant-Man 3 and The Marvels, along with the critical failure of movies such as Guardians of the Galaxy 3, in addition to the huge Jonathan Majors controversy, means that there has been plenty of speculation about where the franchise is headed next.
Amidst this, comes Deadpool & Wolverine, set to be the stepping stone for mutants in the MCU, and expected to become the knight in shining armor for Kevin Feige’s MCU. Fans will undoubtedly not forgive the MCU for messing up the X-Men live-action(s) in any way, especially after the blinding success that X-Men ‘97 proved to be.
Considering its track record in recent years, the MCU will need all the help that it can get in order to do justice to the glorious X-Men, and X-Men ‘97 executive producer Brad Winderbaum’s recent comments prove that there is plenty available as well. Talking about how all the projects across Marvel’s live-action and animated offerings influence each other, Winderbaum claimed that his team will do all it can to help with Marvel’s upcoming live-action projects, that delve into the X-Men universe.
Brad Winderbaum eager to help Kevin Feige get X-Men live actions right!
Speaking during a recent interview, Brad Winderbaum talked about a range of aspects of the hugely successful Season 1 of X-Men ‘97. Talking about the roller-coaster emotional ride that the series’ 10 episodes offered, Winderbaum concluded by claiming that his team will only be too willing to support any live-action projects that feature the X-Men, in the future.
He said, (via The Wrap)
We’ve always helped each other on each other’s projects. It’s a tight-knit group and that philosophy is as strong today as it ever was. Every project, even our successes down the line, influence each other.
What it represents is surely only good news for the fans. After all, X-Men ‘97 not only brought forth nostalgia from the past, it also brought forth new narratives that perfectly made sense in the overall franchise and gave fans plenty of gut-wrenching moments to cry about.
The series brought forth some of the most familiar mutants back into the fold, and although Gambit did not survive, the overall narrative of the series was in itself, without faults.
That is the expectation from any live-action iteration of the mutants as well, and Marvel’s recent track record means that any help from Winderbaum’s team will only be a positive, and increase the chances of Marvel doing justice to the X-Men, and their fans.
The X-Men are not your average superheroes, after all!
There is little doubt that the X-Men in some ways represent more, as superheroes, than the average overpowered beings that the MCU has dealt with thus far. After all, the likes of Iron Man and Thor are seen as carriers of hope, and saviors of humanity against the range of threats that litter the multiverse.
The X-Men however, are more, in the sense that they stand for bigger things that are relevant to actual society. The franchise’s USP, and a number of major confrontations between characters occur due to the way humanity fears and loathes mutants, and how they are often seen as a threat to the species.
Its chief character, Charles Xavier, opts for an approach fraught with understanding, revolving around peaceful co-existence, and his philosophies ring true in the actual world as well. For the unversed and the newer fans, mutants are simply a new species suffering from the kind of discrimination that a number of minorities around the world have suffered from traditionally.
The X-Men are more inclusive, they are more raw and real and the kind of narratives that have made them a fan-favorite ring more in line with actual society, which means that Marvel is no longer merely in superhero realm. Instead, it is dealing with an arguable piece of literature that goes deeper, and has things to teach us.
And therefore, the MCU must do them justice, barring which there is bound to be upheaval from fans. After all, the risk is not merely with respect to messing up random characters or superheroes.
It is much bigger, and any misstep has potential of messing up everything the franchise stands for, and rest assured, the X-Men stand for a lot.
Deadpool & Wolverine will introduce them via its theatrical release on July 26, while X-Men ‘97 remains available to be streamed on Disney+.
