X-Men

X-Men is a 2000 American superhero film directed by Bryan Singer from a screenplay by David Hayter and a story by Singer and Tom DeSanto, based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Featuring an ensemble cast consisting of Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Famke Janssen, James Marsden, Bruce Davison, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Ray Park, and Anna Paquin, the film depicts a world where an unknown proportion of people are mutants, possessing superhuman powers that make them distrusted by normal humans. It focuses on mutants Wolverine and Rogue as they are brought into a conflict between two groups with radically different approaches to bringing about the acceptance of mutant-kind: Charles Xavier's X-Men, and the Brotherhood of Mutants, led by Magneto. Development of X-Men began as far back as 1984 with Orion Pictures, with James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow in discussions at one point. 20th Century Fox bought the film rights in 1994, and various scripts and film treatments were commissioned from Andrew Kevin Walker, John Logan, Joss Whedon, and Michael Chabon. Singer signed to direct in 1996, with further rewrites by Ed Solomon, Singer, Tom DeSanto, Christopher McQuarrie, and Hayter, in which Beast and Nightcrawler were deleted over budget concerns from Fox. X-Men marked the American debut for Jackman, a last-second choice for Wolverine, cast three weeks into filming. Filming took place from September 22, 1999, to March 3, 2000, primarily in Toronto. X-Men premiered at Ellis Island on July 12, 2000, and was released in the United States on July 14. It was a box office success, grossing over $296.3million worldwide, and was well-received by critics, who cited the film's performances (especially Jackman’s portrayal of Wolverine), story, and thematic depth. The film's success led to a series of sequels, prequels, reboots, and spin-offs, with the overall success of the series helping spawn a reemergence of superhero films. Plot In 1944 Nazi-occupied Poland, 14-year-old Erik Lehnsherr is separated from his parents upon entering the Auschwitz concentration camp. While attempting to reach them, he causes a set of metal gates to bend toward him because of his mutant ability to generate magnetic fields, but is knocked out by guards. In the not-too-distant future, U.S.