View source for The New Mutants

{{Infobox film
| name           = The New Mutants
| image          = The New Mutants 2020 Poster.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Josh Boone (director)|Josh Boone]]
| producer       = {{Plainlist|
* Karen Rosenfelt
* [[Lauren Shuler Donner]]
* [[Simon Kinberg]]
}}
| writer         = {{Plainlist|
* Josh Boone
* Knate Lee
}}
| based on       = {{Based on|[[New Mutants]]|[[Chris Claremont]]|[[Bob McLeod (comics)|Bob McLeod]]}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Maisie Williams]]
* [[Anya Taylor-Joy]]
* [[Charlie Heaton]]
* [[Alice Braga]]
* [[Blu Hunt]]
* [[Henry Zaga]]
}}
| music          = [[Mark Snow]]
| cinematography = [[Peter Deming]]
| editing        = {{Plainlist|
* Matthew Rundell
* Robb Sullivan
* Andrew Buckland
}}
| studio         = {{Plainlist|
* [[20th Century Studios]]
* [[Marvel Entertainment]]
* [[Genre Films]]
* Sunswept Entertainment
}}
| distributor    = 20th Century Studios<ref name="THRReview" />
| release date       = {{Film date|2020|8|28|United States}}
| runtime        = 94 minutes<ref name="Runtime" />
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $67–80 million<ref name="DeadlineOpening" /><ref name="ForbesWk2" />
| gross          = $35 million<ref name="BOM">{{Cite web |title=The New Mutants (2020) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt4682266/?ref_=bo_tt_ti |access-date=September 19, 2020 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref><ref name="NUM">{{Cite web |title=The New Mutants (2020) |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/New-Mutants-The-(2020)#tab=summary |access-date=September 20, 2020 |website=[[The Numbers (website)|The Numbers]]}}</ref>
|release=August 28, 2020|rating={{PG-13}}}}'''''The New Mutants''''' is a 2020 American superhero horror film directed by [[Josh Boone]]. The film stars [[Anya Taylor-Joy]], [[Maisie Williams]], [[Charlie Heaton]], [[Henry Zaga]], [[Blu Hunt]], and [[Alice Braga]].

The film was intended to be released on April 13, 2018 and February 22, 2019. It was later announced, however, that the film had been delayed to August 2, 2019. In May 2019, it was pushed back to July 17, 2020. It was eventually released on August 28, 2020.

==Plot==
[[Danielle Moonstar|Danielle "Dani" Moonstar]], a young [[Cheyenne]] Native American, escapes the destruction of her reservation during a tornado in 1970 Dani's father William hides her before an unseen entity kills him, leaving her the only survivor. After being knocked unconscious, Dani awakens in a hospital run by [[Cecilia Reyes|Dr. Cecilia Reyes]]. Reyes comforts Dani, telling her she is a [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutant]], and advises her to remain in the hospital until she learns what her abilities are and controls them.

Dani is introduced to four other young teenagers; [[Cannonball (comics)|Samuel "Sam" Guthrie]], [[Magik (Illyana Rasputina)|Illyana Rasputin]], [[Sunspot (comics)|Roberto "Bobby" da Costa]] and [[Wolfsbane (comics)|Rahne Sinclair]]. Reyes has brought each of them to the hospital after they have all suffered tragedy; Sam brought down a whole mine on his father and coworkers, Roberto burned his girlfriend to death, Rahne escaped her religiously strict village after being branded as a witch, and Illyana was haunted by her past in child slavery, which manifests itself as otherworldly beings called the "Smile Men". All of them are manifesting mutant abilities; Roberto can manipulate [[solar energy]], Sam can fly at jet speed, Illyana has inter-dimensional sorcery powers, and Rahne's [[Werewolf|lycanthropy]] allows her to turn into a wolf. Reyes herself is a powerful mutant who keeps her patients from leaving the facility by surrounding it with unbreakable force fields.

Collectively, the five of them believe that they are being trained to join the [[X-Men]], hence the strict supervision, as well as Reyes reminding them that they are considered dangerous and should not leave until they have mastered their abilities. Dani immediately befriends Rahne, eventually forming a romantic relationship, while Illyana continues to antagonize Dani. When Dani fights back, she discovers that Illyana's only friend is a hand puppet of a purple dragon who she calls [[Lockheed (comics)|Lockheed]]. Soon, the group all begin to have horrifying visions of their past tragedies, one of which results in Rahne getting branded in the neck. Illyana deduces that the visions are the result of Dani's powers manifesting; she has the ability to create illusions based on a person's psyche. Reyes consults her employers, the [[Mister Sinister|Essex Corporation]], who instruct her to collect Dani's DNA and have her euthanized.

As Reyes takes Dani away, Rahne suspects that something is wrong. Illyana and Sam are attacked by the Smile Men while Roberto tries to break through the barrier, which has shrunken down. Dani uses her powers to learn of Reyes's true intentions before Rahne arrives in half-wolf form and mauls Reyes, forcing her to flee. The five regroup and realize that, in order to escape, they have to kill Reyes to deprive the force fields of their power source. They find her and Reyes traps them, revealing that she was training them to be killers for Essex. Before she can crush Dani to death, the entity, [[Demon Bear]], who had been following Dani and was the true reason her reservation was destroyed, arrives and mauls Reyes throwing her body down to the floor.

Illyana summons her powers to jump between "limbo" and recruits a real life version of Lockheed to take on Demon Bear. Eventually, Sam and Roberto join the fight, overcoming their insecurities in the process. Rahne tries to reach through to an unconscious Dani until she is forced to fight the Demon Bear alone. Dani is visited by her father's spirit, who encourages her to face her fear. Dani awakens and confronts Demon Bear, calming it into submission and allowing it to rest. As day breaks, the group, now calling themselves the [[New Mutants]], learn that the force field is down and head out together to face the unknown.

==Cast==
* [[Maisie Williams]] as [[Wolfsbane (comics)|Rahne Sinclair]]:<br />A Scottish mutant who can turn into a wolf and is struggling to reconcile this with her religious beliefs.<ref name="DawsonTalks" /> Williams was convinced to join the film after discussing the character's religious background with director [[Josh Boone (director)|Josh Boone]], who identified with the comic book character due to his own strict religious upbringing.<ref name="WilliamsSameSex" />
* [[Anya Taylor-Joy]] as [[Magik (Illyana Rasputina)|Illyana Rasputin]]:<br />A Russian mutant with sorcery powers,<ref name="DawsonTalks" /> she can manifest the [[Magik (Illyana Rasputina)#Soulsword|Soulsword]] and use teleportation discs to travel.<ref name="DawsonTalks" /><ref name="BooneNoReshoots" /> Illyana is the sister of [[Colossus (comics)|Colossus]], a member of the X-Men seen in previous films in the series.<ref name="TaylorJoyWilliams" /> She has a purple dragon companion, [[Lockheed (comics)|Lockheed]], in the film.<ref name="BooneNoReshoots" /> Colbi Gannett portrays Illyana as a child.
* [[Charlie Heaton]] as [[Cannonball (comics)|Samuel "Sam" Guthrie]]: An American mutant who can propel himself into the air, and is invulnerable while doing so.<ref name="Heaton" />
* [[Alice Braga]] as [[Cecilia Reyes|Dr. Cecilia Reyes]]: A mentor to the group and a medical doctor who can generate protective fields around herself.<ref name="Braga" />
* [[Blu Hunt]] as [[Danielle Moonstar|Danielle "Dani" Moonstar]]:<br />A Native American mutant who can create illusions based on the fears and desires of other people.<ref name="Hunt" /> The film includes a love story between Rahne and Dani, which Williams felt was a natural extension of the comic book characters having a telepathic connection. Boone described this as "the spine and focus" of the film's "character-driven stuff".<ref name="WilliamsSameSex" />
* [[Henry Zaga]] as [[Sunspot (comics)|Roberto "Bobby" da Costa]]: A Brazilian mutant who can manipulate solar energy.<ref name="Zaga" />
* [[Adam Beach]] as William Lonestar: Dani's father of [[Cheyenne]] descent.

Additionally, the character [[Demon Bear]] is featured in the film. Thomas Kee appears as Sam Guthrie's father Thomas Guthrie, while [[Happy Anderson]] portrays [[Reverend Craig]] from Rahne's village, both are the result of illusions created by Dani Moonstar. The Smile Men are physically portrayed by Dustin Ceithamer while [[Marilyn Manson]] provided their voices.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://screenrant.com/new-mutants-movie-cast-character-guide-previous-roles/ | title=New Mutants Cast Guide: Where You Recognize The Actors From | work=[[Screen Rant]] | date=August 28, 2020 | accessdate=16 September 2020}}</ref>

==Production==
===Development===
After completing work on the 2014 film ''[[The Fault in Our Stars (film)|The Fault in Our Stars]]'' for [[20th Century Fox]], director [[Josh Boone (director)|Josh Boone]] created a comic book with his childhood best friend Knate Lee using panels from [[Chris Claremont]] and [[Bill Sienkiewicz]]'s ''[[New Mutants]]'' comics to illustrate what a potential film trilogy adapting those comics would be like. The pair had been fans of the characters growing up, with Boone calling the stories "really dark, interesting, and different from the typical [[X-Men]] stories that we had read". Boone and Lee took the comic to [[Simon Kinberg]], one of the producers of the [[X-Men (film series)|''X-Men'' film series]], who "really liked it".<ref name="BooneCS" /> In May 2015, Fox finalized a deal to have Boone direct ''The New Mutants'', from a script by himself and Lee, with Kinberg and [[Lauren Shuler Donner]] producing. The film was initially intended to expand the universe of the ''X-Men'' franchise and take place three years after ''[[X-Men: Apocalypse]]'' (2016).<ref name="Announcement" /><ref name="ApocalypseTimeline" /> While working on the first draft of the script, Boone sent it and his ideas for the film to Sienkiewicz, who thought Boone "had it figured out" and was not just copying the comics.<ref name="CCXP17" />

Updating the status of the film in March 2016, Kinberg said that Boone and Lee were working on the script, and that, like ''[[Deadpool (film)|Deadpool]]'' (2016), the film would be different from the core ''X-Men'' films, "maybe not as different as ''Deadpool'', but it has its own unique, original voice to it". Kinberg said that the film would have a [[Young adult fiction|young adult]] "vibe", and that there was potential for characters seen in previous films to appear, namely [[Warpath (comics)|Warpath]], [[Sunspot (comics)|Sunspot]], and [[Professor X]], who all have ties to the New Mutants in the comics.<ref name="KinbergIGNMar2016" /> Also at that time, it was reported that [[Maisie Williams]] and [[Anya Taylor-Joy]] were being looked at to star in the film as [[Wolfsbane (comics)|Rahne Sinclair / Wolfsbane]] and [[Magik (Illyana Rasputin)|Illyana Rasputin / Magik]], respectively. The rest of the title team was expected to consist of the characters [[Cannonball (comics)|Sam Guthrie / Cannonball]], Roberto da Costa / Sunspot, and [[Danielle Moonstar|Danielle Moonstar / Mirage]].<ref name="HitFixMar2016" /> Sunspot previously appeared in ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]'', portrayed by [[Adan Canto]], who was not confirmed to be returning for the new film.<ref name="Canto" /> [[James McAvoy]], who portrayed Professor X in several previous ''X-Men'' films, was said to have a significant role in this one, alongside [[Alexandra Shipp]], who was expected to reprise her role of [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]] from ''X-Men: Apocalypse''.<ref name="HitFixMar2016" />

In May 2016, Kinberg confirmed that the script included Professor X, and stated his hope for filming to start at the beginning of 2017.<ref name="KinbergColliderMay2016" /> By that August, the titular team's roster had expanded to include the character [[Warlock (New Mutants)|Warlock]], while [[Scott Neustadter]] and [[Michael H. Weber]]—who worked with Boone writing ''The Fault in Our Stars''—were working on a new draft of the script while Boone and Lee were busy on another project.<ref name="BooneCS" /><ref name="NeustadterWeber" /> In November, the report of Williams and Taylor-Joy's casting was believed to be accurate, and [[Nat Wolff]] was being looked at for the role of Cannonball after working with Boone on ''The Fault in Our Stars''. The character [[Demon Bear]] was set as the film's main antagonist, with the project aiming for more of a "'[[Stephen King]] meets [[John Hughes (filmmaker)|John Hughes]]'-style horror movie".<ref name="CSExclusive" /> Boone soon noted that the Demon Bear was a very personal villain for him as a child, as he "was raised by very religious parents. They were [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical]] [[Southern Baptist Convention|Southern Baptists]] and they believed in the [[rapture]]; they believed [[Satan#Christianity|the devil]] was real; they believed in [[Demon#Christianity|demons]]."<ref name="BooneEWMay2017" /><ref name="BooneCS" />

===Pre-production===
The film entered pre-production in [[Boston]], [[Massachusetts]], in April 2017, in preparation for filming to begin in that city. Location scouting took place, including at [[Medfield State Hospital]] which was previously used as a filming location for ''[[Shutter Island (film)|Shutter Island]]'' (2010).<ref name="PreProd" /> Fox scheduled ''New Mutants'' for an April 13, 2018 release.<ref name="ReleaseDate" /> Several weeks later, the studio officially announced the casting of Taylor-Joy and Williams, and was "making serious efforts to find ethnically appropriate actors" for the rest of the cast, searching for South American and Native American actors to respectively play Sunspot and Moonstar. By then, McAvoy was no longer slated to appear in the film;<ref name="NoMcAvoyWolff" /> Wolff was no longer in the running to portray Cannonball;<ref name="NoMcAvoyWolff" /> and Karen Rosenfelt was producing alongside Kinberg,<ref name="TaylorJoyWilliams" /> who ultimately spent much of production focused on making ''[[Dark Phoenix (film)|Dark Phoenix]]'' (2019).<ref name="TBReport" />

At the end of May, [[Henry Zaga]] was expected to be cast as Sunspot,<ref name="BooneEWMay2017" /> and [[Rosario Dawson]]—who also portrays the Marvel character [[Claire Temple (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Claire Temple]] across the various [[Marvel's Netflix television series|Marvel Netflix television series]]—was in talks to join the film as [[Cecilia Reyes]], a mentor to the titular team. It was explained that McAvoy was no longer involved due to Professor X being written out of the script with further drafts, and Shipp's Storm had likewise been written out of the film.<ref name="DawsonTalks" /> Illyana's brother [[Colossus (comics)|Colossus]], another character seen in previous ''X-Men'' films, also does not appear despite being included in early versions of the script, with Boone choosing to save him for future films.<ref name="NoColossus" /> Boone confirmed the film would be "a full-fledged horror movie set within the ''X-Men'' universe. There are no costumes. There are no supervillains. We're trying to do something very, very different."<ref name="BooneEWMay2017" /> He had previously said that he does not like horror films, except for "classic ones" such as ''[[The Exorcist (film)|The Exorcist]]'' (1973), ''[[Rosemary's Baby (film)|Rosemary's Baby]]'' (1968), and ''[[The Shining (film)|The Shining]]'' (1980), but was looking to "pioneer and champion doing prestige versions of horror films" based on his love for horror novels such as King's works.<ref name="BooneCS" /> At the end of the month, [[Charlie Heaton]] was in talks to portray Cannonball.<ref name="Heaton" />

Zaga, Dawson, and Heaton were confirmed to have been cast at the start of June,<ref name="Hunt" /><ref name="Zaga" /> and newcomer [[Blu Hunt]] was cast as Moonstar after an extensive and challenging international search that prioritized "ethnic authenticity". The character was believed to be central to the Demon Bear storyline that the film focuses on.<ref name="Hunt" /> At the end of that month, Dawson exited the film, and [[Alice Braga]] was cast as Reyes in her place.<ref name="Braga" /> The final shooting script for the film included contributions from [[Scott Frank]],<ref name="Frank" /> Josh Zetumer, [[Chad Hayes (writer)|Chad]] and [[Carey W. Hayes|Carey Hayes]], [[Seth Grahame-Smith]], Neustadter and Weber, along with a six-person "writer's room" that Fox hired to generate ideas for the film and also "tear apart the script and put it back together". Throughout the development process on the film, the script evolved from the "full horror" film that Boone and Lee initially wanted to make, and which Fox was resistant to, to a compromise version without "excessive blood and scares" and more "young adult"-focused.<ref name="TBReport" /> Boone created storyboards with artist Ashley R. Guillory to plan out all of the shots before filming.<ref name="Storyboards" />

The casting of Henry Zaga as Roberto da Costa was met with some controversy. Zaga, while Brazilian in real life, portrays a character who in the comics is of [[Afro-Brazilians|Afro-Brazilian]] descent. Boone stated, "my goal was to cast a real Brazilian and I saw 300 of myself black, brown, lighter-skinned. I saw every shade of the sun. It was the same case with Blu Hunt...My goal was to find the best actor who, because they've done so little work, was at least the closest to kind of what I saw in my head for the character...maybe if Henry didn't exist, I would have found somebody who was darker skinned who exemplified what I needed. But it was never about the color of their skin for me." He added that he was not concerned with the real life racism that existed in Brazil and that he wanted the character to be a positive representation of the nation.<ref name="ZagaControversy" />

===Filming===
[[Principal photography]] began on July 10, 2017, in Boston, under the [[working title]] ''Growing Pains''.<ref name="PreProd" /><ref name="FilmingBegan" /><ref name="WorkingTitle" /> [[Peter Deming]] served as cinematographer for the film.<ref name="FilmingBegan" /> The majority of the film was shot on location at [[Medfield State Hospital]], where Boone said every crew member had "weird things happen to them". Boone wanted to use practical effects as much as possible to make the film feel like the horror movies that he grew up with. For example, he had actors push on sheets of [[spandex]] to create the effect of figures pushing through the walls of a room, a technique originated by [[Wes Craven]]. Ten percent of the film used [[green screen]].<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> On the film's set, Boone explained that the script had been re-written following the failure of ''Apocalypse'' to be set during modern day rather than in the 1980s, which is why Professor X and Storm were removed from the film's story. Boone felt the film was not largely affected by this change since its confined location and lack of technology meant "it might as well be the 80s in terms of the setting. It didn't change our story very much."<ref name="SRSetVisit" />

Fox chairman and CEO [[Stacey Snider]] described the film's setting as a ''[[The Breakfast Club|Breakfast Club]]'' detention crossed with a ''[[One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film)|Cuckoo's Nest]]'' institution. She said the film was "a haunted-house movie with a bunch of hormonal teenagers. We haven't seen a superhero movie whose genre is more like ''The Shining'' than {{'}}we're teenagers let's save the world.{{'"}}<ref name="SniderSep2017" /> Boone was also influenced by ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors]]'' (1987).<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> He explained that Warlock had been deemed too expensive to portray on the film's budget, but could appear in a sequel,<ref name="TBReport" /><ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> and clarified that the Demon Bear would not be the main antagonist of the film, but would appear since the film was "very much inspired" by the comics in which that character is the main villain.<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> Filming also took place in the Massachusetts towns of [[Millis, Massachusetts|Millis]], [[Lynn, Massachusetts|Lynn]], and [[Weymouth, Massachusetts|Weymouth]],<ref name="BostonStory" /> and ended on September 16, 2017.<ref name="FilmingEnds" /> The film's principal photography was described as "stressful" for Boone, who felt "a bit neutered" during the process due to having to tone down the film from his original "full horror" ideas.<ref name="TBReport" />

===Post-production===
====Initial cut====
Boone and his regular editors Matthew Dunell and Robb Sullivan delivered a cut of the film to Fox that they were happy with,<ref name="ColliderReshoots" /><ref name="Editors" /> and it tested as well as initial screenings of ''Deadpool'' did. Three days of additional photography were planned to complete the "YA movie" that Boone, Lee, and Fox had agreed to make. However, following the successful release of the film ''[[It (2017 film)|It]]'' (2017), the studio cut the first trailer for ''The New Mutants'' to focus on the "scary elements from the film, essentially selling it as a straight-up horror movie". This proved a success, and Fox decided to make the film more like Boone's original vision rather than completing the version that they had been making during production.<ref name="TBReport" />

====Planned reshoots====
In January 2018, the film's release date was pushed back to February 22, 2019.<ref name="Jan2018ReleaseDelay" /> This allowed it to avoid ''[[Deadpool 2]]'' (2018), which had just been moved to a date that would have had both films in theaters at the same time in certain markets.<ref name="THRReleaseDelay" /> It also allowed time for the reshoots required to make the film more frightening.<ref name="TBReport" /><ref name="Scarier" /><ref name="Scarier2" /> When asked about this delay the next month, Williams stated that there had been concerns during filming regarding the short turnaround from the end of photography to the previously set release date, especially with the amount of visual effects still needed to finish the film, and so in her opinion the delay was "for the better".<ref name="WilliamsDelay" /> The additional photography was soon set for mid-2018. It was expected to include the addition of several new characters who would be appearing throughout the film rather than just making cameo appearances.<ref name="ColliderReshoots" /><ref name="UniversePlans2018" />

Fox again delayed the film's release in March 2018, moving it away from the new February 2019 release date for ''Dark Phoenix'' to August 2, 2019;<ref name="Mar2018ReleaseDelay" /> by then, the reshoots required for the film were believed to be more extensive than previously considered, with the studio now wanting at least half of the film to be reshot. The studio's focus was on making the film as distinct from the other entries in the series as ''Deadpool'' and ''[[Logan (film)|Logan]]'' (2017),<ref name="ColliderReshoots" /> while avoiding the film becoming a "flop" like ''[[Fantastic Four (2015 film)|Fantastic Four]]'' (2015) which went through similar production issues—industry insiders believed ''The New Mutants'' would not end up the same way due to Fox not blaming the issues on Boone as the studio did with ''Fantastic Four'' director [[Josh Trank]], and also because the studio was allowing Boone to write and direct the reshoots in order to complete his original vision. In addition to the reshoots changing the tone of the film, they were also reportedly adjusting an antagonist subplot in the film: ''The New Mutants'' was originally going to feature the Essex Corporation, which was first teased at the end of ''X-Men: Apocalypse'', leading to a [[post-credits scene]] featuring the surprise reveal of [[Jon Hamm]] as the villain [[Mister Sinister]].<ref name="TBReport" /> However, Fox decided against doing this following the failure of ''Apocalypse'' and so the reshoots would include a new post-credits scene introducing [[Antonio Banderas]] as Sunspot's father Emmanuel da Costa.<ref name="TBReport" /><ref name="BooneSequelPlans" /> Kinberg later denied that an actor was ever cast as Mister Sinister when he revealed that the character had been intended to be included in the [[Gambit (unproduced film)|canceled ''Gambit'' film]].<ref name="KinbergMrSinister" />

====Disney acquisition====
Reshoots for the film were expected to begin by the end of September 2018, with Kinberg confirming that they were mostly focused on making the film more frightening after the positive response to the horror-inspired trailer. He added that "audiences really embraced the notion of a superhero movie or a comic book movie that was, in its core, a horror film".<ref name="KinbergSep2018Franchise" /> Following the [[Acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney|acquisition of Fox by Disney]] in March 2019, ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' revealed that the planned reshoots had still not taken place and there were "none planned so far". The report indicated that further movement on the film appeared to be dependent on Boone,<ref name="THRMar2019" /><ref name="THRMar2019Support" /> and that there was a chance the film may not be released per its Fox release schedule and could instead be released on [[Disney+]] or [[Hulu]], both streaming services owned by Disney.<ref name="DisneyTHR" /> A month later at [[CinemaCon]] 2019, Disney confirmed that the film was still planned but indicated that its release date could be adjusted to better fit within Disney's existing schedule.<ref name="CinemaCon2019" /> A month after that, the studio pushed the film's release back to April 3, 2020,<ref name="May2019ReleaseDelay" /> and the reshoots were set to take place later in 2019. Kinberg explained that the reshoots had taken so long to schedule because the creative team was still deciding what to reshoot, and because of difficulty finding time to get the cast together again due to their commitments to various television series.<ref name="KinbergMay2019" />

In August 2019, Disney was said to be unimpressed with ''The New Mutants'', believing it had "limited box office potential".<ref name="FoxFlops" /> At the end of the month, this was reported to be the studio's impression of the original cut of the film. Further work had been completed on the film since Disney acquired it to align the film with Boone's original vision, and test screenings with these changes had been positive. In addition to making the film more frightening, these changes reportedly included removing connections to the ''X-Men'' films to give Disney's [[Marvel Studios]] the option to retroactively include the film in the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] (MCU).<ref name="NoMoreXMen" /> However, the film as released does make reference to the previous entries, with the inclusion of the Essex Corporation connecting the film to the post-credits scene of ''Apocalypse'' and ''Logan''.{{cite needed|date=August 2020}} Sienkiewicz confirmed in December that work on the film had been taking place and that, based on a new trailer he had seen, the style of Marvel Studios appeared to have had an impact on the tone of the film.<ref name="SienkiewiczNewTrailer" /> At the end of the month, Boone said the latest version of the film followed his original vision, a comment that was interpreted by some to mean no reshoots had taken place.<ref name="BooneJan2020" /> In January 2020, Disney's official fan club website [[D23 (Disney)|D23]] described the film as a "new addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe", a claim that was quickly picked up by fans and reporters. Soon after the claim was noticed, all mentions of the film were removed from the website. Disney later confirmed that this was an error and the film would not be part of the MCU.<ref name="D23" />

====Final cut====
On March 7, 2020, Boone stated that the film was complete.<ref name="BooneDone" /> Shortly after, he explained that work on the film had halted when Disney's acquisition of Fox had begun and so no reshoots ever took place on the film, even standard pickups that had already been scheduled during initial production. At that time, around 75 percent of the film had been edited while much of the film's visual effects were also not finished. By the time the acquisition was completed, Boone had moved on and was about to begin work on a new television series, ''[[The Stand (2020 miniseries)|The Stand]]'', based on the Stephen King novel. Before he started production on that series, Disney asked Boone if he would return to finish the film.<ref name="BooneNoReshoots" /> Dunell and Sullivan were committed to working on ''The Stand'' at that point and could not continue editing ''The New Mutants'', so Boone brought on editor Andrew Buckland to help finish the film.<ref name="Editors" />

The work required to finish the film when Boone returned involved completing the visual effects and editing alongside co-writer Lee, which took several months. Reshoots for the film could have been scheduled at that point, but Boone found that the cast had aged too much since principal photography had taken place.<ref name="BooneNoReshoots" /> He also felt it did not make sense to add the post-credit scenes of Banderas since it was unlikely that they would be able to make a sequel now that Disney owned the X-Men rights and was integrating the property into the MCU.<ref name="BooneSequelPlans" /> Describing returning to the film after so long, Boone said, "we hadn't seen it in a year. We did a bunch of things here and there that we hadn't thought about or noticed a year before." The visual effects that still needed to be finished included Illyana's sorceress abilities, including her [[Magik (Illyana Rasputina)#Soulsword|Soulsword]] that she materializes, as well as her dragon companion [[Lockheed (comics)|Lockheed]].<ref name="BooneNoReshoots" /> Visual effects for the film were provided by [[DNEG]], [[Method Studios]], and [[Moving Picture Company]], with Olivier Dumont serving as VFX supervisor.<ref name="ArtOfVFX" /> After the film was completed, Boone reunited the cast for the first official screening in New York City, after which Williams stated, "The movie is exactly the movie we set out to make."<ref name="BooneNoReshoots" />

Disney removed ''The New Mutants'' from its release schedule, along with several other films, on March 12, 2020, due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], and was looking to reschedule the film's release to a later 2020 date.<ref name="Mar2020ReleaseDelay" /> On May 4, the film was automatically listed for home media pre-order on [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] based on the film's previous April 2020 release date. Amazon took the listing down hours later after it had been widely reported on. At that time, the film was still expected to receive a theatrical release rather than be released straight-to-streaming as other films had been during the pandemic.<ref name="AmazonPreOrder" /> Shortly after, Disney scheduled the film for release on August 28, 2020.<ref name="Aug2020Release" />

==Music==
[[Nate Walcott]] and [[Mike Mogis]] were confirmed in December 2017 to be composing the score for the film, having worked with Boone on his previous films.<ref name="WalcottMogis" /> In May 2018, [[Marilyn Manson]] announced that his [[Cover version|cover]] of the song "[[Cry Little Sister]]"—originally written for the film ''[[The Lost Boys]]'' (1987) by [[Gerard McMahon]]—which Manson debuted during his ''[[Heaven Upside Down]]'' tour, had been recorded specifically for the ''New Mutants'' soundtrack.<ref name="MansonSong" /><ref name="MansonSongDebut" /> In February 2020, [[Mark Snow]] was revealed to have composed the score for the final version of the film, though additional music composed by Walcott and Mogis was still set to be used in the soundtrack.<ref name="Snow" />

==Marketing==
The first trailer for the film was released in October 2017, on [[Friday the 13th]],<ref name="DeadlineTrailer" /> with a horror focus inspired by the success of the film ''[[It (2017 film)|It]]'', which had been released the month before.<ref name="TBReport" /> Sara Vilkomerson of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' felt that trailer delivered on Boone's promise of a different type of ''X-Men'' film, and was "creepy". Vilkomerson also noted the trailer's use of [[Pink Floyd]]'s "[[Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2]]";<ref name="EWTrailer" /> the title treatment for the film introduced in the trailer evokes the treatment used for that song.<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> Alex McLevy, writing for ''[[The A.V. Club]]'', also felt that Boone had delivered on his promise of a "straight-up horror film", and said, "Congrats to this creative team for trying something different with the superhero genre."<ref name="AVClubTrailer" /> Writing for ''[[/Film]]'', Hoai-Tran Bui said the film looked like a [[bottle episode]] for the ''X-Men'' franchise, and noted that telling a standalone story led to success for ''Deadpool''. Bui also compared the trailer's tone to ''[[Stranger Things]]'' (in which Heaton also stars as Jonathan Byers), and Braga's performance as Reyes to [[Nurse Ratched]].<ref name="/FilmTrailer" /> Boone, Lee, Braga, Zaga, and Sienkiewicz promoted the film at a 2017 [[Comic Con Experience]] panel, where they also talked about their plans for future films.<ref name="CCXP17" />

A new trailer, incorporating the changes made to the film following Disney's acquisition of Fox, was released on January 6, 2020.<ref name="NewTrailerJan2020" /> Boone sent the trailer to Sienkiewicz in December 2019, and the comic book artist praised it as "phenomenal". He stated that the horror elements of the film were still present in the trailer, but that it now also appeared to have been influenced by the style of Disney's Marvel Studios who he said had appeared to give the latest version of the film "the blessings of Marvel".<ref name="SienkiewiczNewTrailer" /> Aja Romano of [[Vox (website)|Vox]] also compared the horror elements of this trailer to ''Stranger Things'', and felt the film looked like "highly entertaining, if predictable, fun".<ref name="VoxTrailer2" /> ''[[io9]]''{{'}}s Charles Pulliam-Moore praised the more comic-accurate superhero abilities included in the new trailer, especially Magik's, and felt that the less superhero-like elements could be what saves the film from being a "flop" like ''Dark Phoenix''.<ref name="io9Trailer2" /> Writing about the trailer for ''[[Forbes]]'', Scott Mendelson said the film "seems to be pretty similar in content and tone to what was always promised", and discussed its interesting position as "just a movie" now that the ''X-Men'' franchise had ended and future ''New Mutants'' films were unlikely after Marvel Studios took control of mutant-based films.<ref name="ForbesTrailer2" />

Weeks before the film's then-set April 2020 release date, Graeme McMillan of ''The Hollywood Reporter'' discussed several television spots released for the film. He stated that the first two, titled "Awaken" and "Escape", followed the tone and style of the previous trailers, while the third one, "Attitude", presented the film more like a traditional superhero film, focusing on action, quips, and superpowers. McMillan felt this was an abrupt shift in marketing given "Attitude" was released just one week after the other two spots and questioned whether the change in tone was to align the marketing to the film or just an attempt to boost interest in the film by reminding audiences of other popular superhero films.<ref name="THRSpots" />

A panel for the film was held during the virtual 2020 [[San Diego Comic-Con|Comic-Con@Home]] convention, with Boone and members of the cast. A teaser for the film, to announce the panel, was also released.<ref name="ComicConAtHomePanel" /> Ethan Anderton from ''/Film'' felt Taylor-Joy had "a great moment referencing herself" as Magik in the teaser and felt the footage "doesn't look half-bad", though he could not say he was excited for the film because of its extensive delays. Anderton also questioned if the film would hold its then-set August 28, 2020 release date, given higher profile films like ''[[Tenet (film)|Tenet]]'' and ''[[Mulan (2020 film)|Mulan]]'' had shifted back into August, and wondered if the Comic-Con panel would announce a new theatrical release date or a move to Disney+.<ref name="/FilmComicConTeaser" /> Germain Lussier at ''io9'' also felt Disney would use the Comic-Con panel to announce new release plans for the films,<ref name="io9ComicConTeaser" /> but the panel reaffirmed the film's August 28 theatrical release date while acknowledging the film's many delays. The film's opening scene was revealed during the panel, which Sienkiewicz joined to discuss a new poster he had drawn for the film.<ref name="ComicConAtHomeVariety" />

==Release==
''The New Mutants'' was released in the United States on August 28, 2020.<ref name="Aug2020Release" /> It was originally set to be released on April 13, 2018,<ref name="ReleaseDate" /> before being delayed to February 22, 2019, to avoid ''Deadpool 2'',<ref name="Mar2018ReleaseDelay" /> and then to August 2, 2019, to avoid ''Dark Phoenix''.<ref name="Jan2018ReleaseDelay" /> It was delayed to April 3, 2020, by Disney after that studio acquired Fox,<ref name="May2019ReleaseDelay" /> and then removed from Disney's schedule in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name="Mar2020ReleaseDelay" /> Disney rescheduled the film for August 28, 2020 two months later.<ref name="Aug2020Release" /> The various delays have led to several online commentators referring to the film as "cursed" and lamenting its bad luck.<ref name="Mar2020ReleaseDelay" /><ref name="Mar2020Curse" /><ref name="Mar2020Curse2" /> Boone and the film's cast acknowledged this curse during the 2020 Comic-Con@Home convention, which included a "cheeky teaser trailer" that recounted the film's release dates and ended with a "Fingers Crossed" note beside the August 28 date.<ref name="ComicConAtHomeVariety" /> Boone also revealed the various contracts signed for the film guaranteed a theatrical release, preventing it from first being released on either Disney+ or Hulu.<ref name="TheatricalReleaseContract" />

==Reception==
===Box office===
{{As of|2020|9|20|df=US}}, ''The New Mutants'' has grossed $17.7 million in the United States, and $17.3 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $35 million.<ref name="BOM" /><ref name="NUM" />

Originally tracking to debut to around $20 million in the United States before the pandemic, ''The New Mutants'' was projected to gross $5–10 million from 2,412 theaters in its opening weekend.<ref name="BOPProjection" /><ref name="DeadlineProjection" /> The film made $3.1 million on its first day, including $750,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $7 million, finishing first at the box office. With 62% of theaters in the country open (operating at 25-50% capacity), the audience was 66% male, with 61% being between 18 and 34.<ref name="DeadlineOpening" /> In its second weekend the film fell 59% to $2.9 million, despite adding over 340 theaters, finishing second behind newcomer ''[[Tenet (film)|Tenet]]'',<ref name="ForbesWk2" /> then made $2.1 million in its third weekend and $1.6 million in its fourth.<ref>{{cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=September 13, 2020 |url= https://deadline.com/2020/09/tenet-second-weekend-box-office-broken-hearts-gallery-after-we-collided-1234575952/ |title= ‘Tenet’ Raises To $200M+ Worldwide With Domestic Near $30M In Marketplace Still Slowed By Pandemic |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |access-date=September 13, 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=September 20, 2020 |url= https://deadline.com/2020/09/tenet-weekend-box-office-infidel-jim-caviezel-cloudburst-1234580381/ |title='Tenet' Now At $36M+ In Domestic Marketplace Still Fractured By Pandemic |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |access-date=September 20, 2020 }}</ref>

Overseas, the film was released day-in-date with the U.S. in 10 countries and made $2.9 million over its first weekend, including $1.1 million in France, $500,000 in Spain, and $400,000 in Taiwan.<ref name="Tartaglione-Aug2020" /> Expanding to 30 countries in its second weekend the film made another $4.2 million.<ref name="Tartaglione-Sep2020" />

===Critical response===
On [[review aggregator]] [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 33% based on 88 reviews, with an average rating of 4.75/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Rendering a list of potentially explosive ingredients mostly inert, ''The New Mutants'' is a franchise spinoff that's less than the sum of its super-powered parts."<ref name="RT">{{Cite rt |id=the_new_mutants |type=m |title=The New Mutants (2020) |access-date=September 10, 2020}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a weighted average score of 43 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref name="Metacritic">{{Cite web |title=The New Mutants Reviews |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-new-mutants |access-date=September 15, 2020 |website=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>

Writing for ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'', Jordan Mintzer said, "Generic and, at its best, straining to be heartfelt, director Josh Boone's adaptation of the Marvel spin-off comic series is a Marvel movie spinoff in its own right, making vague references to the ''X-Men'' franchise but attempting to stand on its own. Unfortunately it rarely does, even if the film's trio of young and tough female leads manages to give your typically male-dominated genre something of a feminine twist."<ref name="THRReview" /> Peter Debruge of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' said, "Despite all the meddling and interference the film reportedly went through, ''The New Mutants'' feels pretty coherent in the end. What it doesn't achieve is a memorable personality of its own."<ref name="VarietyReview" />

Amy Nicholson of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote, "Directed in 2017 by Josh Boone... ''The New Mutants'' spent three years on ice before being allowed to escape into the slowest summer season in a century. That's fitting for a film that's all buildup and no bang."<ref name="NewYorkTimesReview" /> ''[[The Globe and Mail]]''{{'}}s Barry Hertz gave the film 1.5 out of 4 stars, writing, "Instead of funnelling his inspirations into one singular vision that he could call his own, Boone has made a Frankenstein of a franchise movie, a giant elevator pitch that leads directly to the sub-basement of originality."<ref name="GlobeMailReview" />

In the days leading up to the film's release, several major publications, including ''[[RogerEbert.com]]'', ''[[IndieWire]]'', ''[[The A.V. Club]]'', and ''[[The Boston Globe]]'', refused to review the film, citing Disney's lack of [[Social distancing|socially distanced]] press screenings or digital streaming links and noting that it was not safe to attend a traditional public screening due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name="PublicantsNoReview" /><ref name="AVClubNoReview" />

The ''New Mutants'' comics co-creator, [[Bob McLeod (comics)|Bob McLeod]], expressed his disappointment with the film for inaccurately depicting the characters, including [[whitewashing in film|whitewashing]] Roberto, who is dark-skinned in the comics. He also criticized the film for misspelling his name in the credits as "MacLeod".<ref name="CoCreatorComplaints" />

==Future==
Boone and Lee originally pitched the film to Kinberg as the first in a trilogy.<ref name="BooneCS" /> In October 2017, Boone said that the characters [[Warlock (New Mutants)|Warlock]] and [[Karma (comics)|Karma]] would appear in the sequels.<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> In December, Boone and Lee revealed that they were interested in filming the first sequel in [[Brazil]] and that Sunspot's father Emmanuel da Costa would play a role in the franchise.<ref name="CCXP17" /> Explaining his plans for the sequels, Boone said that he wanted each film in the trilogy to be a different kind of horror movie. The first film is a "'rubber-reality' supernatural horror movie",<ref name="BooneIGNPostTrailer" /> the second film would have been an alien invasion film featuring Warlock, and the third film would have been an [[Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction|apocalyptic horror]] film inspired by the 1989 comic book crossover storyline "[[Inferno (Marvel Comics)|Inferno]]".<ref name="BooneSequelPlans2" /> Boone confirmed that the second film would have been set in Brazil and included Antonio Banderas as Emmanuel da Costa. Karma was to be introduced as the villain of the sequel but would have joined the New Mutants by the end of the film alongside Warlock. Boone added that Emmanuel da Costa's connections to the [[Hellfire Club (comics)|Hellfire Club]] would have been explored in the first sequel, and said the overall tone of that film would still have been inspired by Claremont and Sienkiewicz's run.<ref name="BooneSequelPlans" /> Boone had wanted [[Sacha Baron Cohen]] to portray Warlock through motion capture, and had discussed the role with Cohen during production on the first film.<ref name="CohenWarlock" />

In March 2019, Disney officially acquired Fox and gained the film rights to several Marvel Comics characters for Marvel Studios, including the New Mutants.<ref name="DisneyFoxDealClose" /><ref name="FoxDisneyPressRelease" /> The Marvel-based films that Fox had been developing were placed "on hold".<ref name="FoxMarvelOnHold" /> In March 2020, Boone stated that while it was unlikely that a sequel to ''The New Mutants'' could be made now that X-Men characters were being integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he still hoped that the film would be successful enough to allow a sequel to be made.<ref name="BooneSequelPlans" /> That August, Boone confirmed that there were no plans to incorporate the film into the MCU.<ref name="NoMCU" />

==Videos==
====Trailers====
<gallery>
File:The New Mutants Official Trailer 20th Century FOX|Official Trailer
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{imdb title|4682266}}
[[Category:Superhero films]]
[[Category:Horror films]]
[[Category:American horror films]]
[[Category:American superhero films]]
[[Category:Films starring Anya Taylor-Joy]]
[[Category:Films starring Maisie Williams]]
[[Category:American action films]]
[[Category:Action films]]
[[Category:Thriller films]]
[[Category:American thriller films]]
[[Category:Action thriller films]]

[[Category:American action thriller films]]
[[Category:Horror thriller films]]
[[Category:American horror thriller films]]
[[Category:Marvel films]]
[[Category:20th Century Fox films]]
[[Category:Science fiction films]]
[[Category:American science fiction films]]
[[Category:Science fiction action films]]
[[Category:American science fiction action films]]
[[Category:Science fiction horror films]]
[[Category:American science fiction horror films]]
[[Category:Teen horror films]]
[[Category:American teen horror films]]
[[Category:Teen superhero films]]
[[Category:American teen superhero films]]
[[Category:Superhero horror films]]
[[Category:American superhero horror films]]
[[Category:TSG Entertainment films]]
[[Category:Werewolves in film]]
[[Category:X-Men films]]
[[Category:Films shot in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Films directed by Josh Boone]]
[[Category:Films produced by Karen Rosenfelt]]
[[Category:Film produced by Lauren Shuler Donner]]
[[Category:Films produced by Simon Kinberg]]
[[Category:IMAX films]]
[[Category:American IMAX films]]
[[Category:Kinberg Genre films]]
[[Category:Sunswept Entertainment films]]
[[Category:Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures films]]
[[Category:2020s films]]
[[Category:2020 films]]
[[Category:Films postponed due to the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic]]
[[Category:Rated PG-13]]