The X-Men franchise is being “reconfigured,” Bryan Singer not returning

20th Century Fox are in a bind with the ‘X-Men’ franchise following the underwhelming performance of Apocalypse earlier this summer.

Because while it has been reported by The Hollywood Reporter that a reboot of the franchise is currently “in the works” at the studio, the publication also revealed that, according to their sources, this could end up being just a reconfiguration.

Simon Kinberg, who has co-written X-Men’s ‘The Last Stand’, ‘First Class’, ‘Days Of Future Past’, and ‘Apocalypse’, has been tasked by the studio to write a new script for the series, which is being written with Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, and James McAvoy “optimistically in mind.”

There’s just one problem. ‘Apocalypse’ was the last film of the actors’ three-picture deals with the studio on ‘X-Men’, meaning that if they were to return they’d be after a huge pay increase.

One thing that is for certain, though, is that director Bryan Singer (‘X-Men’, ‘X2’, ‘X-Men: Days Of Future Past’, ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’) will not be returning in the hot seat as the studio looks to bring a fresh perspective to the franchise.

This comes after ‘Apocalypse’ grossed just $544 million across the world in comparison to its predecessor ‘Days Of Future Past’s’ $748 million, while at the same time it received just middling reviews, too.

From the sound of things the future of the ‘X-Men’ franchise rests on Lawrence, Fassbender, and McAvoy’s responses to Kinberg’s upcoming script. Because if they pull out, and with March’s ‘Logan’ the last ‘Wolverine’ film to star Hugh Jackman, Fox could just decide to reboot the franchise entirely.

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[Images via 20th Century Fox]