Fox in Talks for an X-Men TV Show

Network is looking at bringing the iconic comic characters to the small screen

By Chris Harnick Jan 26, 2015 7:27 PMTags
X-Men: Days of Future Past PosterMarvel/Twentieth Century Fox

Fox might be saying, "To me, my X-Men" pretty soon. There are ongoing talks about a TV series based on the merry band of mutants, E! News has confirmed. However, there is no deal for this series just yet.

20th Century Fox controls the film rights to X-Men characters, but the comic rights still belong to Marvel. An X-Men TV series would require Marvel's blessing, according to TVInsider, and there have been talks.

"It's in negotiations," Fox boss Gary Newman tells TVInsider. "We're cautiously optimistic, we had a good meeting with them. That will not be on a fast track creatively. This is just the deal, now we have to find the creative."

According to The Hollywood Reporter, 24 veterans Evan Katz and Manny Coto are involved with the potential series as executive producers and possible showrunners with Patrick McKay and JD Payne writing the project.

An X-Men TV series would just be one of many comic book based projects on TV. Netflix has a suite of shows planned including Daredevil and AKA Jessica Jones, ABC has Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter. Fox is home to Gotham, a DC Comics series set when Bruce Wayne is still a teen. Projects based around Lucifer, Titans, Preacher and Supergirl are also in the works at various networks.

Newman and Dana Waldman made waves at TCA when they confirmed they have been talking to Chris Carter about reviving The X-Files with Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny reprising their iconic roles. The network had success with a revival of Kiefer Sutherland's 24 and there's also chatter about Prison Break returning for a limited run.

An animated X-Men series ran on Fox Kids from 1992-1997. The latest film, X-Men: Apocalypse, is in pre-production with a 2016 release date.