With the Marvel Cinematic Universe branching out, it’s easy to get distracted by the Phase Three spectulation. On the other side of the Marvel pool, 20th Century Fox’s X-Men franchise is moving ahead with another solo outing; this time focusing on the kinetic-card wielding Gambit, to be played by Channing Tatum.
The role had previously been played by Talor Kitsch in the 2009 spin-off, X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Of course, his part was fairly minimal in light of Wolverine slicing up the screen. This new film looks set to give the Cajun mutant the live-action treatment he deserves.
The film is the latest in a longline of X-Men film announcements, following the announcements of the conclusion to the First Class Trilogy: X-Men: Apocalypse (May 27, 2016), a Deadpool spin-off (February 12, 2016), and a third Wolverine film (March 3, 2017). Although a release date has yet to be specified, it’s likely that the Gambit film will precede these films. Chances are, Fox will be expanding their X-Men franchise to match up to the ever-increasing MCU.
Fox are still looking for someone to fill the director’s chair. In the meantime, the screenplay is due to be written by Josh Zetumer (co-writer of the 2014 Robocop reboot), based on the Gambit comics written by X-Men comic legend Chris Claremont. Tatum is also listed as one of the producers.
More details to follow in the near-future…
