WOLVERINE Director James Mangold Says X-MEN Continuity Can Suck It

By Nick Dourian on Monday, June 24th, 2013

Fox’s X-MEN franchise might just have the absolute worse onscreen continuity out of any series in this whole “superhero” movie world. Well, ignoring the 90’s Batman flick with all of their Keaton-to-Kilmer-to-Clooney confusion, of course.

Bryan Singer, the director of the first 2 mutie flicks (X-Men and X2: X-Men United), is obsessed with amending the inconsistencies within the franchise in the upcoming supermovie DAYS OF FUTURE PAST. Like… how the hell could Professor X walk in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, when he was crippled at the very end of First Class? And in the first X-Men, Xavier claims to have met Magneto when they were both 17, but we know that’s not true based on events in FC, in which the two first met as groovy young professionals in their 20’s/30’s. What the Hell’s going on, dudes!?!?!?

All those questions should be answered in DOFP, most likely by using a very lazy “alternate dimensions, bro!” excuse. BUT… the latest standalone mutant flick THE WOLVERINE poses a very unique challenge to Singer’s goals. Director James Mangold, who’s the one responsible for Hugh Jackman’s latest stabby wabby adventure, argues that there was no way to entirely reconcile continuity between his film and Singer’s Days of Future Past, since the latter was announced while THE WOLVERINE was already in production.

Here’s the full quote:

“Bryan and I have talked and he’s seen what we’ve done. Clearly the reality is that we are all trying to work together and make things groove together. But the trick is we were making our movie before Bryan came on and before I knew what they were up to in that film. Our agenda was always our agenda and our movie stands alone, so the journey we take Logan on in The Wolverine, we bring to a close.”

Uh-Oh. Sounds like there’s a few dangling threads that don’t quite match up, but I’d much prefer a cohesive standalone film like The Wolverine, which will tell its own self contained story. Even though I have high hopes for Days of Future Past, Singer might be trying a little too hard to put band aids on the butchered franchise.

Sometimes you just gotta let these things go…