A lot of research into mental health was undertaken by Sophie Turner for her role as Jean Grey in X-Men: Dark Phoenix.
Fox has attempted the Dark Phoenix story before back during X-Men: The Last Stand, and with little success. They will certainly be hoping for much better this time around and it looks like everyone is doing all they can to make sure it happens.
Sophie Turner, who’s character Jean Grey will be possessed by the powerful Phoenix Force in the movie, has revealed that she has done a lot of mental health research for the role, taking her character’s transformation very seriously.
Speaking to Screen Rant, Turner said: “As soon as Simon [Kinberg] kind of told me what the movie was about we just started straight away sharing ideas, sharing materials. Simon gave me a big, big book on schizophrenia. I actually found this thing online, on YouTube. And it was just kind of repeating, repeating, repeating, what it sounds like being a schizophrenic. So I used to walk around town with all these voices in my head. Kind of feel it out. And see what it felt like. We also explored Multiple Personality Disorder as well. And what that feels like to kind of wake up and not know what you did, What happened and that shear panic and how that affects you. Jean is just… this movie… She’s so, so, layered. She’s so complex in this movie. I really don’t think that I’ve done more research for a role than for this one and I loved every minute of it.”
Well, one does get the impression that Turner and Kinberg are leaving no stone left unturned to do the Dark Phoenix story justice this time around. Do you think the new film will exceed what The Last Stand managed?
In Dark Phoenix, the X-Men face their most formidable and powerful foe: one of their own, Jean Grey. During a rescue mission in space, Jean is nearly killed when she is hit by a mysterious cosmic force. Once she returns home, this force not only makes her infinitely more powerful, but far more unstable. Wrestling with this entity inside her, Jean unleashes her powers in ways she can neither comprehend nor contain. With Jean spiraling out of control, and hurting the ones she loves most, she begins to unravel the very fabric that holds the X-Men together. Now, with this family falling apart, they must find a way to unite — not only to save Jean’s soul, but to save our very planet from aliens who wish to weaponize this force and rule the galaxy.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix sees Simon Kinberg directing a cast that includes franchise veterans Michael Fassbender (Magneto), James McAvoy (Professor X), Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique), Nicholas Hoult (Beast), Alexandra Shipp (Storm), Sophie Turner (Jean Grey), Tye Sheridan (Cyclops), Kodi Smit-McPhee (Nightcrawler), Evan Peters (Quicksilver) and Olivia Munn (Psylocke) alongside new additions Kota Eberhardt (The Persian Connection) as Selene, Andrew Stehlin (Hacksaw Ridge) as Red Lotus, and Jessica Chastain (Molly’s Game) and Lamar Johnson (Kings). It is set for release on June 7th 2019.
