One of the most powerful mutants in the X-Men Cinematic Universe sounds absolutely terrified about a new kind of evil set to threaten them all in X-Men: Dark Phoenix. And if Magneto’s afraid, then things are really dire, especially after the X-Men narrowly avoided the end of the world in X-Men: Apocalypse. What could be worse than that?
On Wednesday morning, actress Sophie Turner shared an animated Instagram teaser for X-Men: Dark Phoenix, in which she plays the powerful mutant Jean Grey and becomes possessed by a malevolent force called the Phoenix.
Turner’s caption reads, “Dark Phoenix. Tonight on @latelateshow with @j_corden @xmenmovies #darkphoenix See you there.” So it seems pretty clear that on the night of September 26, Turner will appear on The Late Late Show with James Corden to debut the first trailer.
It might look like a pretty straightforward visual, but if you turn up the volume you’ll hear some new audio from the upcoming trailer. Professor Charles Xavier defends himself from someone asking what he might’ve done to cause some catastrophe. “I protected her!” he says. Someone else remarks, “This is your fault.” Another says, “You don’t belong here.”
But the most telling piece of dialogue is unmistakably Michael Fassbender’s Magneto, who says, “I’ve seen evil, and I’m looking at it now.”
If Magneto is afraid it means things are very serious — especially after Apocalypse turned him into one of the most powerful mutants alive in X-Men: Apocalypse.
A full synopsis for Dark Phoenix was also released on Wednesday, teasing that in the decade since Apocalypse, the X-Men have become global heroes. But after the Phoenix Force overcomes Jean Grey, an alien invasion that wants to use the Phoenix as a weapon threatens the planet.
In Dark Phoenix, the X-Men face their most formidable and powerful foe: one of their own, Jean Grey. During a rescue mission in space, Jean is nearly killed when she is hit by a mysterious cosmic force. Once she returns home, this force not only makes her infinitely more powerful but far more unstable. Wrestling with this entity inside her, Jean unleashes her powers in ways she can neither comprehend nor contain. With Jean spiraling out of control and hurting the ones she loves most, she begins to unravel the very fabric that holds the X-Men together. Now, with this family falling apart, they must find a way to unite — not only to save Jean’s soul, but to save our very planet from aliens who wish to weaponize this force and rule the galaxy.
The plot borrows heavily from the classic and immensely popular Dark Phoenix Saga in X-Men Marvel Comics by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, though it looks like this version might be slightly less cosmic in its scope. We’ll know more once the trailer drops on Wednesday night, but things are definitely heating up.
The trailer will debut on the episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden that airs on Thursday, September 27 at 12:35 a.m. Eastern.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix will be released in theaters on February 14, 2019.
