The Gifted Creator Matt Nix On A World Without The X-Men
by Erik Amaya
The X-Men’s absence on FOX’s The Gifted is a feature of the show and not a handwave according to creator Matt Nix.
The series follows the Strucker family as they attempt to save their children from a government hostile to Marvel’s Merry Mutants. Stephen Moyer and Amy Acker star as parents choosing to go on the run and find an underground of Mutants and sympathizers. But that underground is not Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Children nor its paramilitary off-shoot, the X-Men.
The group, while not present on the series, will be a facet of he show. At least, that’s what Nix told reporters at the Television Critics Association summer press tour, according to Variety. “One of the things we’ll be unpacking is the specific relationship of this group of characters to the X-Men,” he said. “It’s in the trailer that the X-Men are gone. And that’s not a dodge, like ‘The X-Men are gone and we’re never going to mention them again!’ We’re going to be exploring it. It’s a huge deal to these guys. It’s a huge deal in the world. It’s one of the central mysteries of the show.”
Though the X-Men are missing, familiar X-Men characters like Polaris (Emma Dumont) and Blink (Jamie Chung) are part of the main cast. Additionally, Twin Peaks‘ Elena Satine will join the series as Dreamer from its second episode onward. Based on the Morlock Beautiful Dreamer from the comics, she has the ability to implant or remove memories from others. Nix referred to it as a “sexy power” illustrating the various (and cost-effective) powersets Mutants possess.
Additionally, Nix alluded to the show’s place in the larger Marvel landscape, but added “There’s not going to be a situation where the television show is driving the movies or the movies are driving the television show, because the mythology that we’re telling specifically avoids that.” At the same time, he pains to point out the show does not “avoid” the existence of the X-Men.
Which, all things considered, makes it nice that Legion has his own shown over on FX. All of the various X-Men continuities could just be blamed on his powers and state of mind.
The Gifted premieres October 2nd on FOX.
