When a movie is successful, it gets sequels. When those sequels are successful, we get reboots. When those reboots are successful, we get sequels to the reboots. When the reboot trilogies or quadrilogies are successful, we get spin-offs. It goes on and one. And of any film franchise, this continuous series of revitilization is most applicable to X-Men. These movies have been hitting theaters for two and a half decades now and, before long, they’re going to be officially popping up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Avengers: Doomsday after a brief Beast cameo in The Marvels‘ tag scene. So, with a whopping 14 total movies out there, those new to the mutant saga might be curious where to start.
On one hand, you can start with the 2000 original and keep going until you’re at Deadpool & Wolverine. On the other hand, if you want to go by universe chronology, well, it’s a little more difficult, because there have been…shifts.
14) X-Men: First Class
The original X-Men opens on Erik Lehnsherr in Nazi Germany, but most of it takes place when he’s an older man. X-Men: First Class opens much the same way but then goes to when he’s in his 30s. Specifically, X-Men: First Class opens in 1944 but spends most of its time in 1962, towards the end of the height of the Cold War (in other words when it was really, really scary). First Class is where you start if you want to go the chronological route, and in terms of quality it’s a great way to get a newcomer hooked.
13) X-Men: Days of Future Past
We’re already at the point where the timeline gets very wonky. If you could split X-Men: Days of Future Past into its two parts, the scenes focusing on the original trilogy cast and the scenes focusing on the prequel films’ cast (aka its majority), it would place both here and not long before Deadpool & Wolverine. Specifically, Days of Future Past takes place in both 1973 and (a potential) 2023. Then there’s the fact that the finale of Days of Future Past essentially undoes most of the original trilogy’s biggest events. Basically, it’s why there’s a strong argument to be made that this franchise is best watched in release order.
12) X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Sure, the opening montage of X-Men Origins: Wolverine (which is basically the best part of the movie), takes place in 1845. But that’s a swiftly moving montage, we’re not going to jot it down as the earliest chronologically just because of that. Instead, much of it takes place in 1979. Then again, everything you see here was briefly covered in X2, and that was really all you needed to see of this Origin. In a perfect world, you skip this dud entirely.
11) X-Men: Apocalypse
Hey, speaking of duds, X-Men: Apocalypse takes place in 1983, just four years after Wolverine. This overlong, hollow extravaganza brings about the greatest threat save for the Sentinels and has him try to rule the world. Like with Wolverine, it opens far in the past (3600 BC, specifically, just a tad farther back than Wolverine‘s 1845 montage), but the vast majority is ’83.
10) Dark Phoenix
We’re now three in a row when it comes to skippable X-Men movies. But, if you insist upon watching every last one of them, Dark Phoenix (or X-Men: Dark Phoenix) takes place in 1992, nine years after X-Men: Apocalypse, even though all of the characters introduced in that film look as though they haven’t aged a day. We also get a scene of a young Jean Grey back in 1975, but the film largely takes place in ’92.
9) X-Men
Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr sure did age quite a bit in less than a decade, because the original X-Men takes place in the present day. And its definition of present day was around the year 2000. It’s definitely the early aughts, so at most 10 years post-Dark Phoenix.
8) X2: X-Men United
Like with the film that preceded it, X2: X-Men United was set in the present day for early aughts audiences. So, looking at X-Men as a film that takes place in 2000 and X2 as a film that takes place in 2003 makes perfect sense.
7) X-Men: The Last Stand
Remember, Dark Phoenix takes place in the ’90s, but it’s the ’90s of the timeline that was created after Wolverine returned to the ’70s in Days of Future Past. The Jean Grey there and in Apocalypse is not quite the Jean Grey we see become the Phoenix in X-Men: The Last Stand. Again, confusing timeline stuff here. For all intents and purposes The Last Stand takes place during the year in which it was released: 2006.
6) The Wolverine
After losing Jean in The Last Stand, Wolverine goes his own not-so-merry way in The Wolverine. And he’s been on his own for a while, because we’re still in that modern-at-the-time area. That puts The Wolverine in 2013, meaning Wolverine has been grieving for seven years. However, there is also a flashback scene in 1945. And, without that scene, we wouldn’t have where the events of this film end up.
5) Deadpool
Deadpool makes the best case for just not watching X-Men Origins: Wolverine at all. The Wolverine hardly referenced it, so there really is no reason to give it a shot. And, while Liev Schreiber was a highlight, there’s a reason Tyler Mane was brought back for Deadpool & Wolverine instead of him. But, again, Deadpool makes the best case. After all, the finale of Wolverine had Logan fight a monstrous version of the Merc with a Mouth and it was definitely a different one than we meet here. Yes, the Deadpool franchise exists pretty much on its own, but it definitely exists in the same timeline as Deadpool & Wolverine, which absolutely acknowledges Logan. This is the more pressing watch, and it takes place in 2016.
4) The New Mutants
There’s some debate about when The New Mutants take place. Some think around 2018 or 2019, when the movie was originally supposed to be released. Others think it takes place around the same time as Logan, which would put it in the last 2020s. Let’s go with the latter, though you really don’t need to watch this one either.
3) Deadpool 2
Deadpool’s quips really do make it hard to place them on a timeline. It’s best to just think of him as a know it all who actually does know it all. But, while he does reference Logan’s 2029 death in Deadpool 2, this sequel is still widely considered to take place in 2018.
2) Deadpool & Wolverine
In Deadpool & Wolverine, Wade Wilson has been poorly selling cars for six years. It’s 2024. Sounds simple, right? But it’s not, because this thing has a field day playing with multiple timelines. Most notably, we see an X-23 who is older than she was in Logan, but in fact she was plucked from her timeline and placed in the Void. Technically, the events of Deadpool & Wolverine precede those of Logan.
1) Logan
Logan takes place in 2029. It’s one of the simplest to place on a timeline. Deadpool & Wolverine kind of ended up undoing it because it was just too tempting to bring Hugh Jackman back, but technically the version we grew to know and love died in 2029. Unless they end up making a mutant movie that takes place in the 2030s, Logan will remain a highpoint to end your binge watch.
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