The final Dark Phoenix trailer stops screwing around and just reveals the story
It’s been a weird ride for the Dark Phoenix marketing campaign: Despite obvious comparisons, the first trailer did very little to distinguish itself from the moribund X-Men: The Last Stand. Each subsequent spot has wisely veered a little further away, until finally, with this last trailer, it just tells audiences what’s up.
After a weird second trailer that basically gave away what probably would’ve been a shocker of a moment for unprepared viewers, the latest and supposedly last trailer for the new X-Men film (which doesn’t even include the word “X-Men” in its title) sets up the new iteration of the classic comic-book story in clear, unambiguous fashion. During a mission to aid NASA by rescuing astronauts (“We’re doing space missions now? Cool,” notes Quicksilver), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) is hit by a blast of cosmic energy that should’ve killed her, but instead seems to have awakened dark new powers within the telepath. Aided by some conversations with a white-haired Jessica Chastain—who seems to be encouraging her new, violent tendencies—Jean indulges this darker side, and the X-Men are appropriately disturbed and conflicted about how best to stop her.
It’s anyone’s guess as to whether longtime cinematic superhero scribe but first-time director Simon Kinberg will be able to wash the bad taste of X-Men: Apocalypse out of fans’ mouths, but here’s hoping. Dark Phoenix storms into theaters June 7.