X-Men: Apocalypse, the latest (prequel) installment in the mutant superhero franchise, has added a host of young characters to their already substantial lineup. Some of these include Sophie Turner (HBO’s Game of Thrones) as a young Jean Grey, Tye Sheridan (Mud) as a young Cyclops, and newcomer Lana Candor as Jubilee. With a lot of fan excitement surrounding the origin stories of these famous characters, writer/director Bryan Singer has released a sneak peek at another young addition to the team – the young Nightcrawler portrayed by Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road).
The image portrays the teenage Nightcrawler in the act of teleportation, one of his many mutant talents, which also include superhuman agility and adhesive hands and feet.
Singer tweeted the photo with the warning “catch him before he’s gone” and subsequently deleted the post within two hours. The dark screen-grab comes from Comicbook.com.
In a recent interview, the 18-year-old actor commented that he will be playing the character close to the source material. According to McPhee,
I realize the Nightcrawler that is portrayed in X2 is one that has been through quite a bit more and has really embraced the superhero part of him—a kind of violent part. Whereas I think what they’re trying to show here is the more vulnerable Nightcrawler and the one we all kind of related to in the comics. It’s really the fun, happy, swashbuckling Nightcrawler that we all love.
He followed this statement with the intriguing comment, “all of the traditional things that we want in it – it’s still there. Hint, hint.” Comicbook.com speculates that this is referring to Nightcrawler’s parents, Jennifer Lawrence‘s Mystique, and Azazel, who was killed in Days of Future Past. If true, this could add an interesting new dynamic to Mystique’s character as well as an extra layer of vulnerability for Nightcrawler.
X-Men: Apocalypse starts filming this week and will hit theaters May 27, 2016.