X-Men and X2 director Bryan Singer is set to helm another movie about the mutant superheroes. Entitled X-Men: First Class, the film will show the beginnings of Xavier and Magneto, with them as friendly twenty-somethings. "This is the formative years of [the characters], and the formation of the school and where the relationship took a wrong turn," said Singer. "There is a romantic element, and some of the mutants from X-Men will figure into the plot, though I don't want to say which ones. There will be a lot of mutants and a great villain."

"Whether it's 'Batman,' 'Lord of the Rings' or 'Star Trek,' if the characters are good, you want to see them on their journey even if you know their destiny," said Singer. "I put myself in the fan's position, and I think this story is something I would want to see, and so will they."

Singer got the job after Twentieth Century Fox liked a detailed treatment he had written for them. Jamie Moss has been hired to write the script. The studio is said to be moving "aggressively" with the project.

With the success of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Twentieth Century Fox has been optioning with more "beginning" films of the characters, including one on villain Magneto. An "Origins" movie for character Deadpool (to be played by Ryan Reynolds) is now in the works.

Lauren Shuler Donner and Simon Kinberg are producing X-Men: First Class.

Also, Singer is working on a big-screen adaptation of "Battlestar Galactica."

While I didn't hate Brett Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand as much as a lot of people did, Singer is very welcome back to the franchise, especially after what he did in getting the cinematic adaptation started. Well, X2 isn't that great of a movie in my mind, but the first one will always be awesome. And yes, I did like X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Singer probably won't resort to "walking away in slow motion from an explosion" like Wolverine did, but at the same time he'll probably have more of a balance with characters than Ratner did with The Last Stand. I remember a lot of nerds crying foul about that one.

Source: Variety