'X-Men: Apocalypse' Cast Member Reveals He's Signed On For Two More Movies

X-Men: Apocalypse was set to be perhaps the grandest act in the X-Men saga to date. On the one hand, it's a conclusion to the trilogy begun in X-Men: First Class. On the other, it's a collective origin story that introduces us to the newest incarnations of characters like Cyclops, Jean Grey and Storm.

But what is Fox planning for after Apocalypse? We don't have anything announced, but rumors are circulating; Bryan Singer has confirmed he's interested in coming back to the X-Men to write the villain Proteus, while there are whispers that Fox is planning to revisit the Dark Phoenix Saga.

Now we have our first piece of concrete information. Tye Sheridan will be introduced in X-Men: Apocalypse as a younger version of Cyclops. In an interview with EW, he revealed that he came on board with a multi-picture deal for three X-Men movies!

What does this tell us about the future of the X-Men franchise?

At the moment, there are strange rumors circulating about Fox's long-term plans for the mutants. Apocalypse was originally believed to be the end of Fox's X-Men saga, and Marvel's rescheduling of The Inhumans has left many X-Men fans hoping the studios are going to do a Sony-style deal. Personally, I can't see it happening — Fox's X-Men movies are performing better than ever, with X-Men: Days of Future Past and Deadpool being its best performers.

But now we know that Tye Sheridan is on board for another two films. We don't know what they are — it's possible that even the studio doesn't know yet. But we do know that Fox is expecting to make at least another two X-Men films that feature the newest version of Cyclops. We can assume some of the other new mutants have similar multi-picture deals.

At the same time, I admit that I find this very curious. Fox's X-Men movies have previously been in trilogies. The first trilogy was X-Men, X2, and X-Men: The Last Stand; the second trilogy is X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and finally X-Men: Apocalypse. I'm happy to assume that pattern will continue. As the old saying goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." But Sheridan has only been signed up for another two movies after X-Men: Apocalypse, meaning that, unless his contract is renewed, he'll exit partway through the next trilogy. That's oddly specific, and makes me wonder if Fox is planning a little bit further ahead than we think. If so, then there could be a darker twist in Cyclops's future — is Cyclops facing death in a forthcoming X-Men film?

As a fan of this particular mutant, I admit that I'm delighted about all this. A three-movie deal gives me the chance to see Sheridan's Cyclops grow into the tremendous leader we see in the comics. After James Marsden's Cyclops was treated so badly in X-Men: The Last Stand, I really want to see the character done well.