Talk about jumping the gun! As the October 14th home video release of X-Men: Days Of Future Past looms ever closer, 20th Century Fox have taken steps to ensure its success on the small screen matches its theatrical achievements. Filming on the follow-up sequel, X-Men: Apocalypse, doesn’t commence until next Spring.
But still, that means nothing when it comes to fostering a slow burning buzz. The first piece of marketing mayhem for the next instalment is here, in the shape of a viral video. Running at four minutes, the piece plays out like a straight-up documentary. Opening on a giant sinkhole emerging in Siberia, the clip cuts to a stream of scientists discussing an earthquake. Talk then turns to the mutant debate, and evolutionary genetics. No-one even says mutant – they call the X-Men ‘super homo sapiens.’ Check the full clip out for yourself, below. Presented as a news item it’s a neat beginning to what will no doubt be a lengthy viral campaign.
Regarding the plot to the sequel, what we know so far is sketchy at best. Set following the events of X-Men: First Class, Apocalypse will bring back the cast from the 2011 iteration back to centre stage. We learned earlier this week that Bryan Singer has been brought back into the fold to direct, based off a script by Simon Kinberg. Even though the mutants managed to stop Bolivar Trask’s wily Sentinel program – which aimed to rid the world of mutants – there’s inevitably another big baddy the X-crew will face. This time it’s the ancient enemy, Apocalypse, briefly glimpsed in the post-credits scene of DoFP.
X-Men: Apocalypse hits theatres on May 27th, 2016.
