Will Jean Grey Turn Into Dark Phoenix In X-Men: Apocalypse?

Do we have to worry about you, Jean?

jean grey x-men
20th Century Fox

Remember in X-Men: The Last Stand when Jean Grey got possessed by Phoenix and did a ton of bad stuff? Well, there's a good chance that pre-history could repeat itself in X-Men: Apocalypse, going by recent comments from director Bryan Singer.

We already know that Jean Grey will appear in her younger form in the upcoming movie, and that the story will partly chronicle her budding romance with Cyclops. According to Singer, though, there's a possibility that this character could go all Phoenix on us for a second time.

Talking to Entertainment Weekly, Singer firstly explained how Cyclops - AKA Scott Summers - and Jean Grey don't see eye to eye when they first meet:

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"In the beginning, she's the last thing he's interested in. When he first comes to the mansion, Scott's blind so he can't see her. Suddenly he gets some glasses and now he can see her and he's like 'Oh! That's Jean Grey.' Both of them are misfits in a way. Other mutants have settled in with their powers. This is all new to Scott Summers and he doesn't like it and he doesn't like school."

And then Singer offered up this tidbit, which has "Dark Phoenix" written all over it:

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"And Jean, she has not only has her telekinesis and her telepathy but she also knows inherently that something darker and more powerful is growing inside her and she doesn't quite know what it is."

Sounds ominous, but whether this is just Singer referencing what happens later on in the timeline during the events of The Last Stand or is hinting that something similar is going to happen in Apocalypse isn't quite clear. I'd wager that it's a bit of both, but doubt we'll see Jean Grey going too crazy when there's a lot of other stuff to deal with in this movie - namely, the end of the world.

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What do you think? Is this is a thinly-veiled hint that Dark Phoenix will return?

X-Men: Apocalypse is out in cinemas on 19 May, 2016

Contributor

Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.