X-Men Spin Off TV Series: Legion & Hellfire

[TurtleTitan97]

It's been announced that there will be two X-Men based spin off series from Fox and Marvel Studios. One focusing on Professor X's son, the other on the Hellfire Club.

Legion introduces the story of David Haller: Since he was a teenager, David has struggled with mental illness. Diagnosed as schizophrenic, David has been in and out of psychiatric hospitals for years. But after a strange encounter with a fellow patient, he’s confronted with the possibility that the voices he hears and the visions he sees might be real. Noah Hawley (Fargo, Bones) is writing an serves as Executive Producer, along with Lauren Shuler Donner (X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Wolverine), Bryan Singer (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Superman Returns), Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Martain), Jeph Loeb (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel’s Daredevil), Jim Chory (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel’s Daredevil) and John Cameron (Fargo, The Big Lebowski). “Legion is just the sort of ambitious story that Noah excels at,” said Nick Grad, Co-President Original Programming, FX Networks and FX Productions. “His adaption of Fargo for television was one of the most acclaimed television events in recent memory. It’s also an honor to partner with Marvel on Legion and to enlist such an accomplished team of Executive Producers to create this pilot.”

Hellfire will be set in the late 1960s. The series -- which will be produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Marvel Television, with 20th Century Fox handling the physical production -- follows a young Special Agent who learns that a power-hungry woman with extraordinary abilities is working with a clandestine society of millionaires – known as “The Hellfire Club” – to take over the world. “We are thrilled to partner with Marvel to bring this world to television and build upon the vibrant mythology that has captivated fans for years,” said David Madden, President, Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company. . “These powerful and dynamic characters are complicated and larger-than-life, the pace and visual imagination are unrelenting, and the story takes place during one of the most explosive eras in recent history. We are so looking forward to working with this incredibly talented team.” Hellfire is a co-production of 20th Century Fox Television and Marvel Television, co-created by Evan Katz, Manny Coto, Patrick McKay, and JD Payne.

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/markcassidycbm/news/?a=125932

[NinjaPug]

Neither series really interests me but I love seeing Fox and Marvel working together. Hopefully this carries over to movies too.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Prof. X's son and the 1960's Hellfire Club?

Seriously, this is not anything anyone wanted. Still no live action love for the X-Men franchise at large.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I don't know about Legion, but the Hellfire club is a HUGE part of the X-Men history, so I could go for that one. Emma Frost is a major character in that world, and I'd love to see some of the other Hellfire members done justice, too. Shaw was great in First Class, but we never saw any of the others. Black Queen, Leland, etc...

[CyberCubed]

What a waste of time.

[chrisdude]

I have no particular interest in these specific subjects, but it's nice to see Fox putting more and more in the franchise. I'm just glad to see the X-Men universe continue to grow.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

What a waste of time.

What do you mean? Explain. (Oh boy, what id I just open up?....)

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

I don't know about Legion, but the Hellfire club is a HUGE part of the X-Men history, so I could go for that one. Emma Frost is a major character in that world, and I'd love to see some of the other Hellfire members done justice, too. Shaw was great in First Class, but we never saw any of the others. Black Queen, Leland, etc...

I agree with you that the Hellfire Club is a HUGE part of the X-Men history.

But it would make much more sense to develop them in movies, where you have access to Xavier, Magneto, and other heavy-hitters. At least, if we're lucky, we'll get recast Shaw and Emma. Emma in particular deserves justice (First Class's Shaw was great).

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Emma was good in that movie, too- at least as she is in the Hellfire Club. I'd eventually like to see the change of heart that causes her to end up with the X-Men, and a series could really show that well. I wouldn't mind if Bacon played Shaw again, honestly. I'm thinking maybe this show might be more about the inner workings of the Hellfire Club itself, and perhaps along the lines of Empire? Sort of a "bad-guys POV" kind of thing. (X-verse's version of Orange Is the New Black, or Sons of Anarchy, maybe?) That could be cool, and might give them a chance to feature an X-Man here and there, maybe cameo or guest-star Mags or Xavier, I can see lots of potential here.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Emma was good in that movie, too- at least as she is in the Hellfire Club. I'd eventually like to see the change of heart that causes her to end up with the X-Men, and a series could really show that well. I wouldn't mind if Bacon played Shaw again, honestly. I'm thinking maybe this show might be more about the inner workings of the Hellfire Club itself, and perhaps along the lines of Empire? Sort of a "bad-guys POV" kind of thing. (X-verse's version of Orange Is the New Black, or Sons of Anarchy, maybe?) That could be cool, and might give them a chance to feature an X-Man here and there, maybe cameo or guest-star Mags or Xavier, I can see lots of potential here.

Yeah, but they killed her off-screen for Days of Future Past. A character with all that potential only to be criminally underused...

Just like Scott, and Jean, and Rogue, and pretty much everyone who isn't Magneto, Xavier, Wolverine, Beast, or Mystique. :trolleye:

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Scott, Jean and Rogue weren't underused, actually more like misused. Jean especially, at least in X3. Of all the X-Men, I wish they'd used Storm and Ice Man better. Then again, I was sorely ticked by the way Phoenix was done, and how Scott died. Both were just.... ugh. I'm not to crazy about FC overall, but at least the characterizations of most of the characters in it were accurate. That was the one GOOD thing about it, besides the adaptation of the "first" Mags storyline. Just wish they'd used the REAL "first class". But whatever.

I was a little disappointed that she died in DoFP, but seeing how she wasn't really part of the story anyway, I can understand why they made it brief. Didn't really need focusing on, and maybe she didn't want to be in it? I can accept that, at least.

[TLP]

Are they....finally getting along?

Is FOX going to actually SHARE with Marvel? :o

I think I have an idea of what those 3 movies just recently scheduled for 2020 are.

[sdp]

This will be the second x men TV show that's been made.

[Xav]

Is FOX going to actually SHARE with Marvel? :o

I think I have an idea of what those 3 movies just recently scheduled for 2020 are.And what might they be?
This will be the second x men TV show that's been made. Not it's not. There have been at least four other X-Men shows before this.

[TigerClaw]

And what might they be?
Not it's not. There have been at least four other X-Men shows before this.
Actually there was a show called Mutant X, and before that there was a TV movie called Generation X, which were based on the comics.

[The Turtle Terminator]

So we could have had a live action X-Men show that in theory could have taken place in the world of the animated series or the movies, but instead we get this. I think Raphael from the 1990 movie said it best:

"Where do they come up with this stuff?"

[TurtleTitan97]

Noah Hawley discusses Legion and how the project came about: http://www.tvinsider.com/article/47661/fargo-producer-noah-hawley-reveals-details-behind-his-x-men-pilot-legion/

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Actually there was a show called Mutant X, and before that there was a TV movie called Generation X, which were based on the comics.

Actually, Mutant X had nothing to do with the X-Men or any other Marvel property in existence at the time. It was merely piggybacking on the X-Men craze of the time. (IIRC, it was around the time of the first film.) Although it borrowed the premise of human "mutants" with powers- much like Heroes did later- and used the same terminology and even some very blatant rip-offs of powers, they could not use any X-Men characters directly, or even anything too similar to them, for copyright reasons. For obvious reasons, it was rather short-lived. Also, it should be pointed out that the mutants of that show were genetically engineered. In other words, they were an experiment, not natural-born "evolved" mutants.

In fact, there was a lawsuit involved, to whit:

In 2001, 20th Century Fox sued Marvel, Tribune Entertainment, and Fireworks Entertainment for breach of their licensing agreement and false advertisement. Fox stated it had exclusive rights from Marvel to develop the X-Men property, and anything similar was an infringement. Fox claimed that Mutant X was too similar to X-Men, and Mutant X was being advertised as an "X-Men replacement."

Marvel counter-sued Fox, saying that the two were dissimilar and asking the courts to allow Mutant X production to go forward. Production was allowed, as long as X-Men material was not used in the promotion of Mutant X. Apparently, the title Mutant X itself was deemed too close to X-Men to be effectively leveraged.

In 2003, Fox and Marvel resolved their differences in a confidential settlement of their suits. Meanwhile, Fox continued to pursue their case against Tribune and Fireworks. Tribune sued Marvel for fraud and breach of contract, claiming Marvel encouraged Tribune to connect Mutant X to the X-Men, misrepresented what they were getting in their license, and caused millions in losses due to the need to alter story lines and characters to ensure the mandated distance between Mutant X and X-Men, as well as fighting Fox's litigation.

Apparently, it was supposed to be unrelated, but Marvel was involved, so it was just ASSUMED that it was part of the X-Men franchise by many, because of the similarities.

[TurtleTitan97]

Rachel Keller (Fargo) has been casted as the female lead for Legion: http://deadline.com/2016/01/legion-marvel-pilot-rachel-keller-cast-fx-1201676226/

Keller will play the female lead, a scrappy, optimistic woman in her 20s. Details about her potential powers are unclear. There has been chatter about them possibly being tied to human touch, drawing parallels to such X-Men universe characters as Rogue and Spyke.

[NinjaPug]

She was great in Fargo.

[CyberCubed]

So they make an X-men TV series about obscure characters that nobody really cares about. Watch this end after one season.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

So they make an X-men TV series about obscure characters that nobody really cares about. Watch this end after one season.

They made Agents of Shield about obscure characters nobody really cared about, and it's still going strong. Somehow. :tlol:

[CyberCubed]

That show just rides off the success of the movies and Joss Whedon. Nobody would watch otherwise if it wasn't in continuity with the movie universe.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

That show just rides off the success of the movies and Joss Whedon. Nobody would watch otherwise if it wasn't in continuity with the movie universe.

That is absolutely my own opinion, or at least, it was. Now Skye/Daisy/Quake is the main incentive to tune in. I'm still dying to know what sort of wrench or wrinkle this introduces for an eventual Inhumans movie... if that ever does really happen. Not holding my breath, honestly.

[CyberCubed]

I only watched the first episode of that show so I have no idea. I don't watch shows much anymore.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

You know Cubed, Marvel DOES have other characters besides the Avengers, Spidey, abd X-Men. There are literally dozens of characters with potential to mine for a series, as shown by other shows like Agent Carter, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist. Legion is also more than just Xavier's son, he's a powerful mutant in his own right, and a serious threat.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

You know Cubed, Marvel DOES have other characters besides the Avengers, Spidey, abd X-Men. There are literally dozens of characters with potential to mine for a series, as shown by other shows like Agent Carter, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist. Legion is also more than just Xavier's son, he's a powerful mutant in his own right, and a serious threat.

But do we believe Fox can pull off a decent "son of Xavier" show? When they're barely making decent X-Men movies as it is?

I, for one, do not. Fox will have to do a helluva lot of good marketing and previewing to get me to even glance their way for "Legion" and "Hellfire Club." I'd like for them to be good, but I expect the worst. We shall see.

Agent Carter, honestly, is right up there with "Agents of SHIELD" in my opinion; if it weren't for the MCU carrying it, nobody would give it a second chance.

There are at least a dozen Marvel female characters I want to see done well. So far, only Jessica Jones seems to have any weight or staying power to her. She succeeded WITHOUT the MCU. Hardly any visible connections to it. Same for Daredevil. But Agent Carter and Agents of SHIELD? MCU movie tie-in episodes galore and every episode a visual reminder of "oh yeah, this is Captain America's ex..."

I'm glad some people like those shows, but they have zero interest for me. Bring on Iron Fist and Luke Cage, Misty Knight, and give the X-Women the treatment they deserve.

[TurtleTitan97]

You know Cubed, Marvel DOES have other characters besides the Avengers, Spidey, abd X-Men. There are literally dozens of characters with potential to mine for a series, as shown by other shows like Agent Carter, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist. Legion is also more than just Xavier's son, he's a powerful mutant in his own right, and a serious threat.

You forget, Cubed doesn't read Marvel or DC comics so of course he has no idea about other heroes aside from the most popular.

[CyberCubed]

Weren't some of those characters in the Avengers: EMH cartoon? I would only know them if they appeared there.

The only thing I know about superheros is what the cartoons and movies tell me.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

And therein lies your problem, Cubed. Cartoons and movies are fine for what they are, but they almost never get to the real "meat" of the characters and their stories. They are the watered- down versions made for the non-comic reader masses. Thus, those characters rarely get any screentime, even if they are an important staple of the universe in the comics. How many people actually know who She-Hulk is, even though she's been a long-time Avenger and has had her own book for years! Same goes for Luke Cage, who has been around for decades, was an Avenger AND one of the original Heroes for Hire, and married Jessica Jones and had a kid. He's a huge part if the comics universe. But movies and cartoons don't want to dig into characters who aren't immediately recognizable to casual fans who probably never read more than a half dozen comics as kids.

The fact that these less-known characters are FINALLY getting the spotlight they deserve is both heartening and exciting. It means they are confident enough in the franchise as a whole that they are willing to bring out their other characters to give them new stories to tell that don't neccessarily involve the "Big Twelve". (Meaning the original five Avengers, Spidey, Wolverine, Xavier, and the FF.)

[MsMarvelDuckie]

But do we believe Fox can pull off a decent "son of Xavier" show? When they're barely making decent X-Men movies as it is?

I, for one, do not. Fox will have to do a helluva lot of good marketing and previewing to get me to even glance their way for "Legion" and "Hellfire Club." I'd like for them to be good, but I expect the worst. We shall see.

Agent Carter, honestly, is right up there with "Agents of SHIELD" in my opinion; if it weren't for the MCU carrying it, nobody would give it a second chance.

There are at least a dozen Marvel female characters I want to see done well. So far, only Jessica Jones seems to have any weight or staying power to her. She succeeded WITHOUT the MCU. Hardly any visible connections to it. Same for Daredevil. But Agent Carter and Agents of SHIELD? MCU movie tie-in episodes galore and every episode a visual reminder of "oh yeah, this is Captain America's ex..."

I'm glad some people like those shows, but they have zero interest for me. Bring on Iron Fist and Luke Cage, Misty Knight, and give the X-Women the treatment they deserve.


At the risk of double-posting, I want to adress this as it's own subject. I feel like the tie-in shows are just the FIRST step in expanding the MCU to include a greater number and different kinds of heroes and villains for use in a larger tapestry of stories. I'm very interested to see how it all pans out, as it may mean movies or shows for other characters down the road. If Ant-Man 2.0 can get his own movie, and Fox is now willing to take chances on other characters in the X--Men world, and Sony is FINALLY allowing Spidey to return to his true home, things can only improve for the MCU.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

At the risk of double-posting, I want to adress this as it's own subject. I feel like the tie-in shows are just the FIRST step in expanding the MCU to include a greater number and different kinds of heroes and villains for use in a larger tapestry of stories. I'm very interested to see how it all pans out, as it may mean movies or shows for other characters down the road. If Ant-Man 2.0 can get his own movie, and Fox is now willing to take chances on other characters in the X--Men world, and Sony is FINALLY allowing Spidey to return to his true home, things can only improve for the MCU.

It actually functions in the exact opposite manner for me. My normal experience is I watch a show or movie, really like the character, then go find the comics... only to find that the comics are utter tripe IMO. Bloated plots, no permanent character development, pointless crossovers, et al.

For me, except with indie comics or the occasional Batman storyline (just because that's the only series where I already KNOW most of those characters and can tune out the crossovers/pointless crap), comics are anathema. I look at them as source material to be turned into gold, nothing more.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

YMMV of course, but that largely depends on the character in question, the writer/era, and whether it is a solo title, or team book. Some characters obviously work better on team books. Granted, there are some titles that have had entire runs that were just plain hokey or bad, but since the cinematic universe has a tetndency to alter backgrounds and even the characters themselves, some that don't get treated adequately in the comics may work better in the movies or shows. The point is that they are better able to introduce a wider range of characters to the public now- and that's a goid thing!

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

YMMV of course, but that largely depends on the character in question, the writer/era, and whether it is a solo title, or team book. Some characters obviously work better on team books. Granted, there are some titles that have had entire runs that were just plain hokey or bad, but since the cinematic universe has a tetndency to alter backgrounds and even the characters themselves, some that don't get treated adequately in the comics may work better in the movies or shows. The point is that they are better able to introduce a wider range of characters to the public now- and that's a goid thing!

I definitely understand your POV.

For instance... MCU ain't doing jack crap for Hank Pym, Janet Van Dyne, or the Maximoff twins. They've been totally watered down.

Man, I really hope they manage to do some cool stuff with Wanda regardless, 'cause at the moment, it seems like all her badassery lies directly with X-Men story lines.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

To be fair, her last GOOD story was House of M. Or the side plot in X-Men Endangered Species. Even her involvement in Avengers Disassembled was minimal after the initial meltdown. I really liked her in AoU, though I wasn't happy that the comics altered her and Pietro's backstory just to accomodate the movies. That's just poor decision-making.

[ToTheNines]

MCU Hank Pym is the best Hank Pym.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Janet died in the comics several years ago, so that part was actually fairly true to the comics. Hank passed the Ant-Man torch several years ago as well. Now he's Giant Man or Yellowjacket or whatever other name he's using ATM.

[ZariusTwo]

Janet died in the comics several years ago.

Janet got better.

[TigerClaw]

It looks like the Legion TV series from FX, will not be set in the X-Men's cinematic universe, instead it'll take place in a parallel universe.
http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/01/16/fxs-legion-anticipated-for-2016-tv-season

Legion centers on the story of David Haller, the alleged son of Professor X who was previously diagnosed with Schizophrenia before realizing his supposed illness was actually something more. Landgraf said this potential series won't take place within the X-Men film universe.

"It's not in the continuity of those films in the sense the current X-Men films take place in a universe in which everybody on planet Earth is aware of the existence of mutants," he said. "The series Legion takes place in a parallel universe, if you will, in which the US government is in the early days of being aware that something called mutants exist but the public is not. I wouldn't foresee characters moving back and forth because they really are parallel universes."

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

http://screenrant.com/x-men-hellfire-showrunners/

That bodes well... :trolleye:

[TurtleTitan97]

Dan Stevens has been casted as the lead role in Legion, along with Aubrey Plaza And Jean Smart: http://www.comicbookmovie.com/other/dan-stevens-lands-lead-role-in-x-men-tv-series-legion-aubrey-plaza-and-jean-a130706

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Dan Stevens has been casted as the lead role in Legion, along with Aubrey Plaza And Jean Smart: http://www.comicbookmovie.com/other/dan-stevens-lands-lead-role-in-x-men-tv-series-legion-aubrey-plaza-and-jean-a130706

Gah. Aubrey Plaza deserves much better.

[TurtleTitan97]

Gah. Aubrey Plaza deserves much better.

We never know man, this could actually turn out pretty good. I mean the executive producer did work on Fargo, and from what I hear that show got critical acclaim. Lets see how this turns out.

[Raph's Girl]

Dan Stevens has been casted as the lead role in Legion, along with Aubrey Plaza And Jean Smart: http://www.comicbookmovie.com/other/dan-stevens-lands-lead-role-in-x-men-tv-series-legion-aubrey-plaza-and-jean-a130706

Mathew Crawley is Prof. Xavier's son. Well at least he'll know how his dad feels being stuck in a wheelchair. :P

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

We never know man, this could actually turn out pretty good. I mean the executive producer did work on Fargo, and from what I hear that show got critical acclaim. Lets see how this turns out.

Eh. Could, but right now, I have neither seen nor heard anything that makes me hopeful.

[NinjaPug]

Legion was picked up to series and will air in 2017 on FX.

http://marvel.com/news/tv/26239/fx_networks_picks_up_legion_to_series?linkId=25044 909

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Janet got better.


Of course she did. :twink: nobody stays dead forever in Marvel- unless their name is Ben or Gwen. :trazz:


Legion was picked up to series and will air in 2017 on FX.

http://marvel.com/news/tv/26239/fx_networks_picks_up_legion_to_series?linkId=25044 909


More interested in Hellfire Club. I want to see more of Emma and Shaw.

[Andrew NDB]

These projects better be good. Purportedly Fox quietly gave up the movie rights to F4 (and with it, Galactus and Surfer) in order to get the blessing to do so from Marvel.

[Autbot_Benz]

Legion was picked up to series and will air in 2017 on FX.

http://marvel.com/news/tv/26239/fx_networks_picks_up_legion_to_series?linkId=25044 909

Bryan Singer and Simon Kinberg are executive producers so don't get your hopes up.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

These projects better be good. Purportedly Fox quietly gave up the movie rights to F4 (and with it, Galactus and Surfer) in order to get the blessing to do so from Marvel.

Unless you've seen an actual report that I've missed, this has never been rumored or reported... it's just what all of us have assumed and theorized, because honestly, it's very unlikely that this isn't EXACTLY what happened.

And honestly, I expect these will suck. Although I'd love a recast Emma Frost.

[TurtleTitan97]

First trailer for Legion is online:

Pep_HiCqYJA

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

First trailer for Legion is online:

Pep_HiCqYJA

Huh. Okay, I'm intrigued.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Ditto for me.

[ZariusTwo]

Another new X-Series in the works?

Thus far in 2017, Fox has been dragging their feet when it comes to placing orders for new television pilots. One interesting comment has come from Fox chairman Gary Newman in speaking with Deadline that he expects a final draft of an X-Men series penned by Matt Nix (Burn Notice, Complications, The Good Guys) to land in his hands shortly.

Earlier drafts of the script have been enthusiastically received within Fox as well as their TV production partners 20th Century Fox TV and Marvel TV. Once the final lands in their hands, Newman hopes to order the pickup within a few weeks. A challenge may come between the mix of film and television execs lined up to produce – on the one hand you have the film crew of Simon Kinberg, Lauren Donner, and Bryan Singer who have been behind the less than enthusiastically-met X-Men universe of films, and Marvel’s Jeph Loeb and Jim Cory who’ve brought the award winning Marvel TV series (Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones).

The as-yet untitled series focuses on two non-mutant parents who discover that their children possess mutant powers and are forced to go on the run from a government who want to take the children for their own ends. The family joins up with an underground network of mutants who must fight to hold onto their freedoms. Yea, it sounds like pretty standard fare, but is relevant to the country’s current political climate and could be cool if they go back to the Mutant Massacre storyline from the mid-80s.

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2017/01/11/fox-eyeing-new-x-men-tv-series/

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Another new X-Series in the works?



https://www.bleedingcool.com/2017/01/11/fox-eyeing-new-x-men-tv-series/

This is pretty old news; the existence of this intended series, I mean. Pretty sure Fox made mention of it in the same week they canned the "Hellfire Club" idea...

This idea sounds incredibly generic. Pass.