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‘The New Mutants’ to be the first in a trilogy of superhero-themed horror movies

Eric Brackett
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Superhero movies are a dime a dozen these days. This year has already seen the release of several new superhero movies, and more are slated to come later this year. Wonder Woman released to rave reviews and box-office records, but this year will also see the release of the third Thor film and the first installment of Justice League. With so many superhero movies coming out over the next few years, new franchises have to do something different to stand out, and the upcoming film The New Mutants is certainly doing that by taking the superhero genre in a frightening new direction as the first in a planned trilogy of superhero horror movies.

In an interview with IGN, director Josh Boone said that he was inspired by Chris Claremont “Demon Bear” storyline, which was where The New Mutants went from your standard Teen Titans-like superhero comic to something a bit darker and more psychological.

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Aside from that classic Marvel storyline, Boone cited a number of horror icons as his influences for this upcoming trilogy.

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“We were incredibly inspired by the Demon Bear story which is probably the best, well-known New Mutants story. We also drew on movies like One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Stephen King stuff, and even Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors,” said Boone.

Speaking of Nightmare on Elm Street, the trailer contains a reference to the famous wall scene in the first installment of the franchise, which prompted Boone to go into a minor rant about his issues with the remake using CGI instead of practical effects. He stated that the majority of the movie’s effects were practical, though it did not shy away from CGI when necessary.

The idea of a horror-themed X-Men movie might seem like a hard sell, but Boone points out that Fox has seen a lot of success with non-traditional superhero movies such as Logan and Deadpool, so the studio was willing to take a chance on his horror-inspired story. Boone said that the movie would be a trilogy, but promised that each movie would deliver a different kind of horror.

“These are all going to be horror movies, and they’re all be their own distinct kind of horror movies,” Boone said. “This is certainly the ‘rubber-reality’ supernatural horror movie. The next one will be a completely different kind of horror movie.

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Eric Brackett
Eric Brackett
Former Digital Trends Contributor
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