The great Sir Ian McKellen has spoken fondly and at length about his time in the X-Men franchise, but he has voiced a criticism about one aspect you might find surprising.
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While speaking with Variety about LGBTQ issues for Pride Month at Cannes Lion, the actor revealed that he was disappointed his Magneto costume did not look the same as the flamboyant purple version from the source material.
“I wasn’t allowed to wear that outfit,” said McKellen. “I don’t look like Magneto in the comics — always shot from the crotch level.”
McKellen noted the lack of gay characters featured in Hollywood tentpoles, while hetero romances are staples of nearly every film.
“Frankly looking at the images of some of these superheroes it’s a surprise to me they aren’t gay,” he joked.
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McKellen appeared as Magneto in five different X-Men films and was even supposed to receive his own film after X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Those plans never got off the ground, and Fox regrouped to make the prequel X-Men: First Class after the poor response to X-Men: The Last Stand.
The new series features Michael Fassbender playing the younger version of the character, alongside James McAvoy as Professor X and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique.
Apparently, there are no plans for McKellen to reprise his role in the future, so unfortunately we might never see the actor don the maroon and purple duds.
The next film in the franchise, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, is in production now.
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