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Charlize Theron Turned Down Jean Grey Role In X-Men
Years ago, Charlize Theron turned down the role of Jean Grey for Fox's X-Men. As the first-ever big screen appearance of the X-Men, the 2000 movie signaled a major change in the superhero genre. X-Men just celebrated its 20th anniversary, and it's hard to resist taking a moment to size up its legacy. Not only did X-Men introduce the iconic performances of Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Ian McKellan (Magneto), and Patrick Stewart (Charles Xavier), it altered the landscape for comic book movies and kicked off the long-running Fox franchise. Fox's last X-Men movie, The New Mutants, is (tentatively) scheduled for release in August.
Famke Janssen played Jean Grey in X-Men, as well as in four subsequent films. Jean stands as one of the most well-known X-Men, largely because of her famous Dark Phoenix storyline. In the comics, the telepathic and telekinetic Jean takes on the extreme power of the Phoenix Force, which eventually corrupts her and becomes the Dark Phoenix. This story was brought into the movies with X-Men: The Last Stand, but it was poorly received by fans. Years later, Fox attempted it once again with Dark Phoenix starring Sophie Turner as Jean, but that film similarly struggled to impress audiences and ended up flopping at the box office.
As part of a 20th anniversary piece on X-Men, Observer spoke to Janssen, executive producers Lauren Shuler Donner and Ralph Winter, and screenwriter David Hayter. When it came to the casting, Hayter and Winter recalled several famous faces who were interested in being cast, such as, interestingly enough, Michael Jackson (who wanted to play Professor X). In the case of Jean, Hayter and director Bryan Singer flew to Vancouver to offer the part to Theron, but she ultimately turned it down.
Looking back on things now, it might've been really awesome to see Theron take on the role of Jean Grey. In recent years, Theron has become a bonafide action star, with her most iconic role coming in 2015's Mad: Max: Fury Road. Theron played Imperator Furiosa, a character that instantly became a fan favorite and has inspired director George Miller to create a prequel for her. Theron has since appeared in action films like Atomic Blonde and The Old Guard, which just premiered on Netflix last weekend.
Theron recently said she's never been offered a role in an MCU film, which seems especially wild now that it's clear Theron was once given the opportunity to play a Marvel character. Fox's X-Men franchise has remained separate from the MCU, which began in 2008 with Iron Man. Now, though, the X-Men will join the MCU thanks to Disney's acquisition of Fox, meaning there could be a new chance for Theron to play Jean. Of course, she still might not want to, but perhaps she'll find her way into the universe some other way.
