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Long beforeX-Menfilms and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine became popular among movie lovers, James Cameron had plans to make anX-Menfilm. TheAvatardirector’s ex-wife and Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow was set to direct the film. The reported lineup for the film was also pretty awesome, including Bob Hoskins as Wolverine and Angela Bassett as Storm. However, one Marvel character ruined these plans and the film never got past the planning stage.
Bryan Singer’sX-Menfilms re-ignited audience interest in superhero films, particularly the Marvel films. If the film produced by James Cameron happened way back in the ’90s, it would’ve turned around the fate of Marvel Studios.
James Cameron Planned To Produce AnX-MenFilm Directed By Kathryn Bigelow
BeforeJames Cameronmade his epic film,Titanic, he was in talks with Marvel to produce anX-Menfilm. One comic book writer was a big fan of the dream team that intended to create the first live-actionX-Menfilm. Chris Claremont wrote some of the majorX-Menstorylines for Marvel, includingThe Phoenix SagaandDays of Future Past. Claremont was also part of the discussions for this live-action film.
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In a 2012 interview with The Wrap, Claremont opened up about Cameron’s unmadeX-Menfilm. He shared that Cameron along with stars Bob Hoskins andAngela Bassettwas“fanboy heaven”. TheX-Menwriter had seen Hoskins perform in Tom Selleck’sLassiterand believed him to be perfect for Wolverine. Bassett, on the other hand, was a fan favorite to play Storm, with fans even wanting her to replace Halle Berry after the firstX-Menfilm. Claremont shared with The Wrap (via Screen Rant):
“Just think about this for a minute: James Cameron’s X-Men. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow. That’s what we were playing.”
Fans ofHugh Jackmanwill find it difficult to imagine Bob Hoskins in the lead role, but James Cameron believed in the actor which spoke volumes about his capabilities. Interestingly, Jackman was a last-minute pick byBryan Singer,replacing Dougray Scott in the role, which almost suggests that the Australian actor was always destined for the role.
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Claremont also detailed how theX-Menmovie plan quickly evaporated whenStan LeementionedSpider-Manto Cameron. He revealed that asStan Lee and Cameron kept on talking aboutSpider-Man, both he and the team at Cameron’s production house Lightstorm knew that theX-Mendeal was off the table. Nevertheless,Kathryn Bigelowwrote a screen treatment forX-Men.
What Happened To Kathryn Bigelow’sX-MenTreatment?
Chris Claremont revealed to The Wrap that Kathryn Bigelow’s treatment forX-Mengot lost in the studios’ fight forSpider-Man. Marvel was going through a financial crisis at the time and sold off the rights to several characters to multiple studios. Several studios that held the rights for the character at one time wanted to make aSpider-Manfilm. Claremont shared that it was a nightmare, adding that Bigelow’s treatment reached nowhere amidst this mess. He shared with The Wrap:
“Kathryn goes off and writes a screen treatment for X-Men that was eaten alive by all the idiots who have a piece of Spider-Man because Marvel during its evolution has sold off the rights time and time and time again. To Carolco. To Universal. To this, to that. To Fox. It was just a nightmare.”
While James Cameron’sSpider-Mannever made it to screen, some of his ideas were incorporated intoSam Raimi’s films. Cameron lost a chance to make a great superhero film withX-Menas well asSpider-Man. Bryan Singer’sX-Menfilms are now available for streaming on Disney+.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
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Hugh JackmanJames CameronKathryn BigelowStan Lee
