The casting for the upcoming superhero film X-Men: Apocalypse continues as Olivia Munn is announced as the latest addition to the group.
Munn will play the role of mutant telepath Psylocke from the Captain Britain series created in 1976 by writer Chris Claremont and artist Herb Trimpe.
Director Bryan Singer made the announcement through his Instagram account.
Munn is set to join franchise veterans Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, and Rose Byrne.
The film also marks the debut of newcomers Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, Kodi Smit-McPhee as Nightcrawler, Lana Condor as Jubilee, Alexandra Shipp as Storm, and Tye Sheridan as Cyclops.
Oscar Isaac will play the main villain Apocalypse from the 1990 X-Men comic book story arc Age of Apocalypse. The character, also known as En Sabah Nur, was first introduced during the end credits of the previous film X-Men: Days of Future Past.
Patrick Stewart, who played the role of X-Men leader Professor Charles Xavier, and Ian McKellen, who played Magneto, will not reprise their roles for X-Men: Apocalypse, while Lawrence has confirmed the film will be her last appearance as Mystique.
X-Men: Apocalypse is scheduled to hit theaters on May 27, 2016.
Character Origins
Psylocke, whose real name is Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock, was born and raised in the small English town of Maldon, Essex. She grew up in a wealthy family along with her older brother, Jamie, and her twin brother, Brian.
When Betsy and Jamie were abducted by the villain the Red Skull, they were rescued by the American superhero Captain America and Captain Britain, who Betsy learned to be her brother, Brian. During this time, Betsy began to develop her powers of precognition, and when she reached the age of 16, her powers grew to include telepathy.
Betsy was first recruited by the British Special Tactical Reserve for International Key Emergencies (S.T.R.I.K.E.) team but eventually joined the mutant supersquad of the X-Men as Psylocke.
In one of her adventures, Pyslocke's mind was transferred to a Japanese woman's body by Matsu'o Tsurayaba, head of the criminal organization known as the Hand. Wishing to revive his long brain-dead lover Kwannon, Matsu'o exchanged the two women's consciousness. Using Betsy's body and half of her telepathic powers, Kwannon became Lady Mandarin, while Betsy is left with the Asian appearance she is most popularly known for.
Pyslocke is currently a member of Cable's newly reformed X-Force team along with Dr. Nemesis, ForgetMeNot, Domino, Marrow, and Hope Summers.
Excited to welcome @oliviamunn as Betsy Braddock! #Psylocke #XmenApocalypse #XMEN
A photo posted by Bryan Singer (@bryanjaysinger) on Apr 13, 2015 at 1:04pm PDT
Be sure to follow T-Lounge on Twitter and visit our Facebook page.
Main Photo: Gage Skidmore | Flickr
