X-Men: First Class Casting Update

X-Men: First Class Casting Update
Catch up on all the recent casting announcements for X-Men: First Class!

Take your seats, True Believers, because things have continued to get more exciting for the cast of "X-Men: First Class."

The film, set to debut June 3, 2011, will follow the formative years of the X-Men and the relationship between Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr, a.k.a. Magneto.

Deadline Hollywood had news earlier this week that January Jones, the Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actress who plays Betty Draper on AMC's "Mad Men," will play Emma Frost. Jones will undoubtedly bring a chilly air to the telepathic villainess-turned-X-Man also known as the White Queen!

Also reported was Rose Byrne, set to play Moira MacTaggert, Xavier's longtime love interest in the X-Men comics. Byrne, who stars in the TV series "Damages" also seen in "28 Days Later," "Sunshine" and "Knowing," will undoubtedly make things interesting for the young Professor X, played by James McAvoy.

The demonic Azazel will be brought to the silver screen by British actor Jason Flemyng. Having previously worked with "First Class" director Matthew Vaughan on "Layer Cake," "Stardust" and in a brief cameo in "Kick-Ass," the two have clearly developed a rapport that will continue here!

Mystery surrounds Oliver Platt's Man in Black-in fact, we can't even tell if he'll help or hurt our merry band of mutants! Given Platt's stellar performances in "Frost/Nixon" and Showtime's "Huff," though, you can bet he'll wow audiences no matter how malicious or heroic his character!

The young Zoe Kravitz joins the cast as Angel Salvadore, a character who first appeared in Grant Morrison's run on NEW X-MEN. Kravitz may not have many credits to her name just yet, but she's sure to make an impression on moviegoers and comics fans alike with her turn as this interesting mutant!

And on an even younger front, Bill Milner and Morgan Lily will portray Young Magneto and Young Raven, but as to just who the latter is we can't say!

The latest cast members will join James McAvoy (Charles Xavier), Michael Fassbender (Magneto), Nicholas Hoult (Beast), Caleb Landry Jones (Banshee), Edi Gathegi (Darwin), Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique), Lucas Till (Alex Summers) and Kevin Bacon, who will play an as-yet-unrevealed villain that will menace the young mutants.

Keep your eyes on Marvel.com for the latest news on "X-Men: First Class" as we prepare for its release on June 3, 2011!

Zoe Kravitz And January Jones Join X-Men: First Class; Is Kravitz Secretly Playing Storm?

Zoe Kravitz And January Jones Join X-Men: First Class; Is Kravitz Secretly Playing Storm?

Given the limitless roster of mutants in the X-Men universe I wouldn't be surprised if the casting process for X-Men: First Class really did go on until the end of time. As production gets ready to start at the end of the month we're getting a new announcement seemingly every hour, and now here are two big ones-- Deadline reports that January Jones will play Emma Frost and Zoe Kravitz will play Angel.

This news is confusing in many different ways, so let me start from the beginning-- we've been presuming for months now that Alice Eve had the role, to the point that she was included in nearly every casting roundup, but apparently she never made a deal and was handily replaced by Jones instead. Kravitz is far trickier-- not only is the character of Angel male and played by Ben Foster in X3, but the character was introduced as having had no contact with the other mutants in the past, and as we know this is a prequel. It's possible Kravitz won't be playing Angel at all, and instead this is another one of those casting misdirects we warned you about in July. Feel free to speculate all you like about who Kravitz might really be playing, but I'll wager something substantial she's stepping in for Halle Berry

and playing Storm.

Two more names figure into the piece, one of which, Morgan Lily, we told you about earlier. The other is Bill Milner, a 15-year-old who will play a younger version of Magneto. No, I have no idea how a teenage Magneto is going to fit into this story, nor why we don't have casting for an equivalent teenage Professor Xavier. For all I know Milner is playing Cyclops and this is a total misdirect.

X-Men First Class’ The White Queen is Not Out of January Jones’ League | BeyondHollywood.com

X-Men First Class’ The White Queen is Not Out of January Jones’ League | BeyondHollywood.com

Despite reports that Alice Eve (“She’s Out of My League”) had all but been cast as Emma Frost aka The White Queen in Matthew Vaughn’s upcoming “X-Men: First Class”, that turned out to not be the case after all. Premature casting, perhaps.

In any case, Deadline reports that “Mad Men’s” January Jones (left) has snagged the role from Eve. Emma Frost (below, in all her minimal clothing glory) is a potentially pivotal role in the film, if rumors prove true and Kevin Bacon, long announced as the film’s main villain, turns out to be a member of the Hellfire Club, of which Frost is a main member.

Also added to the cast: Zoe Kravitz as Angel, Bill Milner as Magneto Jr., and Morgan Lily as young Raven.

Two notables here: casting Kravitz as “Angel” is interesting, because the only Angel I know from X-Men lore is the male, winged flying one. So does this mean they’ve switched up Angel’s gender? (Zoe Kravitz is the daughter of Lenny Kravitz FYI.) Also, “Young Raven” could be a younger version of Mystique, whose real name is Raven Darkhölme.

The new faces join James McAvoy as Professor X, Michael Fassbender as Magneto, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Caleb Landry Jones as Banshee, Lucas Till as Havoc, and Edi Gathegi as Darwin.

Earlier this week, other castmembers were announced, including Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggert, Jason Flemyng as Azazel, and Oliver Platt as an unidentified Man in Black.

Shooting on “First Class” begins next week in London.