X-Men '97: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

Tag: Reverted

Tag: Reverted

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Work on a second season had begun by July 2022,<ref name="SDCC2022PanelVariety" /><ref name="SDCC2022PanelTHR" /> and writing on the second-season finale started by July 2023.<ref name="CastorenaSDCC2023Marvel" /> Conley and Yonemura returned as directors for the season.<ref name="ConleyYonemuraS2" /> By March 2024, DeMayo had finished writing for the second season,<ref name="DeMayoFired" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementTHR" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementVariety" /> and had began discussing ideas for a potential third season when he was fired by Marvel Studios ahead of the series' premiere. He was not involved in further promotion for the series and missed its red carpet premiere, which ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' said was unusual for someone working on a Marvel Studios project, "even if they've been shuffled to the side" or replaced by other creatives.<ref name="DeMayoFired" /> Marvel said DeMayo had been fired after an investigation that led to "egregious" findings, which reportedly involved sexual misconduct.<ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementTHR" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementVariety" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementEW" /><ref name="DeMayoLawyerResponse" /> According to journalist Jeff Sneider, the investigation found that DeMayo sent photos of himself to several young male staff members that he wanted them to use for inspiration, in which he was "in various states of undress" and posing suggestively; that he had groped an assistant; and that he was being physically and emotionally abusive to staff members.<ref name="SneiderDeMayoInvestigation" /><ref name="SneiderDeMayoInvestigation2" /> An agreement made following DeMayo's exit allowed him to still [[Tweet (social media)|tweet]] about the series.<ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementTHR" /> Winderbaum praised DeMayo's work on the series and said his departure would not negatively affect work on the third season, which was in development by the end of the month and remained on track to meet its production schedule. The studio was searching for DeMayo's replacement by then.<ref name="WinderbaumDeMayoEW" /><ref name="NYTInterview" />

In June 2024, after DeMayo posted [[gay pride]]-themed X-Men fan art on his [[Instagram]] account, Marvel told him that they would be removing his credits from the second season because of the post.<ref name="DeMayoGayPrideFanArt" /> This decision was reportedly based on multiple instances that Marvel viewed as violations of DeMayo's termination agreement, in addition to the fan art post.<ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementTHR" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementVariety" /><ref name="MarvelDeMayoStatementEW" /><ref name="SneiderDeMayoInvestigation2" /> DeMayo said the breaches of his termination agreement were posts that he had made about the first season while it was being released, along with him participating in a screening of the series at a bar.<ref name="DeMayoVideoResponse" /> His lawyer [[Bryan Freedman]] said the agreement included "illegal unconscionable items".<ref name="DeMayoLawyerResponse" /> DeMayo released a video in which he denied reports of his own egregious misconduct and accused crew members and Marvel executives of "egregious prejudicial misconduct" against him, saying others had weaponized his identity as a [[gay]] Black man to undermine his work. He listed a series of concerns about crew and executives who worked on the series, and also suggested that his role on the second season had been "aggressively marginalized" before his firing due to concerns that he had expressed about the workplace culture of Marvel's in-development film ''[[Blade (2025 film)|Blade]]'' (2025) while he was working on that project.<ref name="DeMayoVideoResponse" /> [[Matthew Chauncey]], a writer on ''What If...?'', was hired in July 2024 to write the third season, replacing DeMayo.<ref name="Chauncey" /> The scripts for the second season had reportedly been revised and rewritten by then, with Chauncey overseeing the rewrites.<ref name="Chauncey" /><ref name="SneiderDeMayoInvestigation2" />

=== Writing ===

By April 2022, the Lewalds had seen premises for all 10 episodes and several completed scripts from the first season, as well as the series' [[Bible (screenwriting)|bible]],<ref name="EsoNetworkPodcast" />{{rp|1:06:17–1:06:32}} which confirms that—as with the original series and the comic books—the revival's central ethos is the X-Men are allegories for people who face prejudice and discrimination.<ref name="CastorenaPrejudice" /> Eric Lewald described ''X-Men '97'' as an extension of the original series that the Marvel Studios team had made their own,<ref name="EpisodeCount" /> while Vasquez-Eberhardt said the original series "embraced action, [[soap opera]] and serious topics", and the revival would do the same.<ref name="CNETSeriesExplained" /> DeMayo wanted to honor the original series while bringing it into the modern world,<ref name="MarvelPodcast" />{{rp|19:09–19:48}} hoping to retain its earnestness, emotional sincerity, and focus on [[found family]] while updating the social commentary to reflect contemporary society.<ref name="DeMayoApril2022Direct" /> The new series explores whether [[Professor X|Professor Charles Xavier]]'s dream of [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutant]]/human co-existence and his focus on empathy are still relevant to modern audiences,<ref name="EWTrailerFirstLook" /><ref name="SDCC2022CBR" /> with DeMayo feeling that issues of social acceptance had become more complicated since the 1990s.<ref name="EWTrailerFirstLook" />

The revival begins a year after the loss of Xavier during the original series' finale.<ref name="Synopsis" /> [[Cyclops (Marvel Comics)|Cyclops]], [[Jean Grey]], [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]], [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]], [[Rogue (Marvel Comics)|Rogue]], [[Beast (Marvel Comics)|Beast]], [[Gambit (comics)|Gambit]], and [[Jubilee (Marvel Comics)|Jubilee]] return as members of the X-Men, now led by their former adversary [[Magneto (Marvel Comics)|Magneto]].<ref name="DeMayoJul2022" /> Joining the team in the first season are [[Bishop (Marvel Comics)|Bishop]], a time-traveling ally of the X-Men; [[Morph (X-Men: The Animated Series)|Morph]], who rejoins after their death and resurrection in the original series;<ref name="SDCC2023Footage" /> and [[Nightcrawler (character)|Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler]]. Winderbaum said fans remembered these three characters as being more important in the original series than they actually were, and the creatives wanted to make-up for that by elevating them in the revival.<ref name="WinderbaumMar2024SR" /> The X-Men question their future after Xavier's loss and a subsequent increase in sympathy towards mutants. Cyclops and Storm want to continue Xavier's dream but others, such as Jean Grey, want to build new lives. Magneto is moved by the growing mutant sympathy and wants to follow in Xavier's footsteps as the team's leader.<ref name="DeMayoDetailsMar2023" /> In writing Magneto's dynamic with the late Xavier, much like how [[Pixar]] animators were told to make ''[[Inside Out 2]]'' (2024) "less gay" in light of the underperformance of ''[[Lightyear]]'' (2022) under the belief that film's same-sex kiss, DeMayo was similarly asked to do the same thing in regards to the relationship between the two characters for marketing purposes.<ref name="DeMayoM&XDynamic" /> The main antagonists for the first season are the returning [[Mister Sinister]] and the [[Sentinel (comics)|Sentinels]],<ref name="SDCC2023Footage" /><ref name="BrittonSinister" /> along with new villain [[Bastion (comics)|Bastion]].<ref name="JamesBastion" /> [[Deadpool]] does not appear in the season because Marvel was saving him for the film ''[[Deadpool & Wolverine]]'' (2024), though Winderbaum said they could have used him if there was an "insanely compelling reason".<ref name="DeadpoolOffLimits" />

DeMayo said the original series' [[melodrama]] and exploration of character relationships was key to its success and set it apart from other animated series at the time,<ref name="AnimationMagFeb2024" /> which Marvel executives felt was a compelling approach to the material.<ref name="MarvelPodcast" />{{rp|19:09–19:48}} ''X-Men '97'' also retains the campiness of the original series in its writing, such as Storm announcing her attacks and Rogue using "syrupy" Southern metaphors and analogies. DeMayo found it particularly difficult to write for Rogue, who developed in ways that he did not initially plan for throughout the first season; and for Jubilee, who was introduced as a representative for younger audiences in the 1990s and needed to remain relevant for younger audiences in the modern day. DeMayo was more comfortable writing for Beast, whose scientific terms are similar to the writer's work on the series ''[[Star Trek: Strange New Worlds]]'' (2022–present).<ref name="AnimationMagFeb2024" />