10 Ways The X-Men Films Nearly Turned Out Very Differently

In X-Men: Dark Phoenix, Jessica Chastain plays villainous Vuk of the D'Bari; an alien race who had their planet wiped out by the Phoenix. When she was cast, virtually every Marvel fan assumed she was playing Lilandra of the Sh'iar Empire. The Sh'iar are interwoven with the Phoenix mythos so many viewers were disappointed not to see them appear in the film.

However, that was the original intention. Lilandra would originally serve as an antagonist but would join the X-Men after the shape-shifting Skrulls attempt to awaken the Dark Phoenix. Artwork has shown that many Hellfire Club characters would appear in some capacity including Mastermind, Harry Leland, and Emma Frost.

The climax would've had Professor X heading to the UN to warn the US President of an alien invasion. The guards stationed there would reveal themselves as Skrulls before disarming the superheroes. Believing the world's destruction is imminent, Jean fully embraces the power of the Dark Phoenix and flies into space to decimate the Skrull's fleet. She says goodbye to Cyclops and the professor before heading into space. This ending was reshot, since it was deemed too similar to the conclusion of Captain Marvel.