✔MTV talks to Michael about X-Men, Prometheus

http://splashpage.mtv.com/2011/02/11/x-men-first-class-trailer-commentary-michael-fassbender/

EXCLUSIVE: Michael Fassbender's 'X-Men: First Class' Trailer Commentary

Posted 58 minutes ago by Rick Marshall in Hot Stuff, Marvel

The "X-Men: First Class" trailer hit the 'net this week and caused no small amount of discussion among those who viewed it. Along with our own "First Class" reader poll, we also heard from comic creators, and named some of our own favorite scenes here at Splash Page HQ.

But what does Magneto himself have to say about the "X-Men: First Class" trailer?

During the press junket for his new film "Jane Eyre," MTV News asked "X-Men: First Class" actor Michael Fassbender to take us through the trailer, frame by frame, to offer some additional context for our preview.

"No, I used the comics as the source material," said Fassbender when asked if he tried to channel Ian McKellan's performance as Magneto in the previous "X-Men" movie franchise.

And for those wondering about that group shot of Charles Xavier and the rest of his "gifted youngsters," Fassbender revealed that his character is just as much a student as the rest of the young mutants.

"I'm not a teacher, I'm a pupil," he explained. "Charlie boy is the teacher. ... He sees the potential in this new race... and gathers us all together to fulfill our ultimate powers."

Discussing the 1960s setting of the film, Fassbender compared Charles Xavier to Martin Luther King, Jr, and Magneto to the more incendiary civil rights leader Malcolm X.

Finally, Fassbender offered some insight on the uniforms the X-Men are seen wearing in the film. along with saying that there are two versions of Magneto's iconic helmet used in the film, he also said the characters' time in uniform will be relatively brief.

"No, that's sort of when we come together as a team," he responded when asked if they spend a lot of time in the yellow-striped uniforms.

What else are you wondering about in the "X-Men: First Class" trailer? What do you think of Fassbender's comments? Let us know in the comment section or on Twitter! You can also follow me, Splash Page editor Rick Marshall, on Twitter!

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1657800/x-men-first-class-trailer.jhtml

Feb 11 2011 6:57 PM EST 186
'X-Men: First Class' Star Michael Fassbender Leads Us Through Trailer
Actor talks about two Magneto helmets, being a student and pulling from Ian McKellen's performance and X-Men comics.

By Eric Ditzian (@ericditzian) , with reporting by Josh Horowitz (@joshuahorowitz)

Early in the evening on Thursday, the first trailer for "X-Men: First Class" popped up online — the general consensus on the footage being: dope! — and only hours later, we found ourselves chatting with star Michael Fassbender, who was in town to promote "Jane Eyre."

Charming, self-deprecating chap that he is, the 33-year-old actor agreed to walk MTV News through the trailer, pointing out his favorite bits and the scenes that make him cringe and offering some newsy insight into the way his character fits into the narrative.

Fassbender plays Erik Lehnsherr, the magnetically enhanced mutant who eventually becomes the villain Magneto. But when we first meet Erik in "First Class," he's a close confidant to Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), who is gathering a collection of mutant-students and teaching them how to maximize their potential. As Fassbender noted, Erik is not Xavier's fellow teacher, but his student.

"I'm not a teacher; I'm a pupil," he said. "Charlie boy is the teacher. That's the cool thing. He sees the potential in this new race and gathers us all together to really fulfill our ultimate powers, to really unleash these gifts."

In the trailer, Erik can be seen rocking two different helmets. You won't see a third enter the picture, Fassbender told us, though he stopped short of explaining exactly how and why the mutant switches up his headgear — "There are two versions. There's that silver one and that red one," he said coyly. But based on his nervous laughter on the topic, we have a feeling the helmet switch speaks to an important plot development, perhaps the point at which Erik formalizes his change from Charles' friend to his nemesis.

Magento, of course, was famously brought to the big screen in three previous "X-Men" films by Ian McKellen. Fassbender, however, took his creative cue not from the Oscar-nominated actor, but the character's comics-based mythology as a Holocaust survivor who eventually relocates to Israel after the war.

"I always had little remnants of [McKellen] somewhere in here," Fassbender said, pointing to his head, "but I used the comics as the source material."

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1657787/prometheus-connection-to-alien-michael-fassbender.jhtml

Feb 11 2011 5:33 PM EST 245
'Prometheus' Has 'Definite Connection' To 'Alien,' Michael Fassbender Says
'It's definitely in keeping with the old ones,' movie's star says about confusion over the Ridley Scott film.

By Eric Ditzian (@ericditzian) , with reporting by Josh Horowitz (@joshuahorowitz)

Ever since a Deadline New York report last month, there has been a lot of confusion about Ridley Scott's newest "Alien" film, which marks the director's return to the franchise more than 30 years after he brought the first "Alien" movie to the big screen.

After word of the project first broke in the summer of 2009, the new report suggested the film was in fact not an "Alien" prequel but rather a film born of "Alien DNA" that is "unique, large and provocative." Yet at the same time, contrary to this new spin, we were hearing that the film — titled "Prometheus" — was in fact a prequel to the franchise. Now, this all might be a matter of semantics (not to mention movie marketing), but there's no doubt that confusion has surrounded the exact nature of the production.

So when we had the chance to speak with one of the stars of the new film, Michael Fassbender, while he was promoting "Jane Eyre," we asked him to shed some light on these conflicting judgments. And as he told us, "Prometheus" is most definitely an "Alien" movie.

"Absolutely," he said. "There's a definite connecting vein. You realize you're part of something else. But it's definitely in keeping with the old ones."

What's more, Fassbender said the new film is more closely related to the slow-burning "Alien," which Scott directed, than James Cameron's more action-oriented follow-up, "Aliens."

"It is more sort of the original one," Fassbender explained. "There's things happening and building, and the intelligence of the first two-thirds of the film gets you ready for the action ... it's creeping, it's sinister, things are happening and building, all the different intrigues and politics going on between the different relationships onboard."

That's not to say Damon Lindelof, who worked on the script with Scott, was blowing smoke when he said things to Deadline like, "In a world flooded with prequels, sequels and reboots, I was incredibly struck by just how original Ridley's vision was for this movie."

Fassbender told us that while "Prometheus" fits squarely within "Alien" mythology, the film delivers "a whole new revelation."

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2011/02/11/prometheus-alien-michael-fassbender/

'Prometheus' Is Absolutely Connected To 'Alien,' Says Michael Fassbender

Posted 1 hr ago by Josh Wigler in Interviews, News, Video

There's a lot of deserved excitement over "Prometheus," Ridley Scott's glorious return to the science fiction genre. But there's some confusion as well: what started out as an "Alien" prequel morphed into what Scott has described as an "original story." So, should we take that to mean there's no longer any connection between "Prometheus" and the "Alien" franchise?

No, we shouldn't. According to leading man Michael Fassbender, "Prometheus" is absolutely connected to "Alien."

"Oh, absolutely. There's a definite connecting vein," Fassbender told MTV News when asked pointblank whether or not "Prometheus" and "Alien" are connected. "You realize you're part of something else, but it's definitely in keeping with the old ones."

Although it explores other areas of that universe, it appears that "Prometheus" and "Alien" exist in the same space. For Fassbender, that connection was initially a bit overwhelming: "When I read it, I was like, 'Well, okay, another Alien. Where do you go with this idea?' And then I sort of read the script, and it's new, yet it's in keeping with the old traditions as well. But there's a whole new revelation within this film."

"The first 'Alien' [movies], they were thrillers," he continued. "Something's going on. It's creeping, it's sinister. Things are happening, it's building, [and there are] different sorts of intrigues and politics going on between the different relationships on board."

Fassbender's description of "Prometheus" echoes back to the atmosphere of Scott's original "Alien" movie, but according to the actor, it's not all claustrophobic horror – there's action as well.

"There's action in it," he said, "but the intelligence is what struck me when I read it. It's more sort of like the original ones. There are things happening and building, and the intelligence of the first two-thirds of the film gets you ready for the action."

For his own part, Fassbender says he's considering preparing for the shoot with some specific physical training: "I was thinking about doing some yoga, some Pilates. I need to sort out my posture a little bit. I want to be as tall as I can standing next to those aliens!"

Tell us what you think of the news in the comments section and on Twitter!