Matthew Vaughn is no stranger to the world of blockbuster filmmaking. After all, this is the man who helmed three installments in the Kingsman franchise as well as the 2010 comic book adaptation Kick-Ass. He also directed 2011’s X-Men: First Class, which kicked off the Marvel film series’ stretch of big-screen prequels. Some may not be aware, but he nearly tackled other flicks in that fan-favorite superhero saga, one of which was X3: The Last Stand. Vaughn dropped out only weeks before filming was set to commence. In the past, reasons for his exit were reported, but Vaughn himself just shared more insight into his decision to walk away from the production. And apparently, Halle Berry is involved.
Years ago, it was reported that the now-52-year-old director was forced to step away from the Fox-produced film due to family matters, and Brett Ratner succeeded him. He also told The Telegraph back in 2007 that with the studios’ deadlines in place, he didn’t have enough time to make the movie he wanted. It would now seem that there was another element played into his decision, though. The Tetris producer, while speaking at New York Comic Con (via THR) mentioned a script-related matter he encountered during pre-production:
I went into one of the executive’s office and I saw an X3 script, and I immediately knew it was a lot fatter. I was like what the hell is this draft. He went, ‘Don’t worry about it,’ and I’m like, ‘No, no. I’m the director. I’m worrying about this draft.' He wouldn’t tell me, so I grabbed it literally — it was like a crazy moment — opened the first page, and it said, ‘Africa. Storm. Kids dying of no water. She creates a thunderstorm and saves all these children.'
So it sounds like Matthew Vaughn was faced with a draft of the Last Stand screenplay that was quite different from what he'd seen And based on his recollection, Storm – who was famously played by Halle Berry – was highlighted in a few specific sequences. Vaughn went on to admit that he found the idea to be “pretty cool.” However, what gave him pause was the studio heads’ plan for that particular iteration of the film, which he says execs referred to as “Berry’s script”:
[I went,] ‘What is this?’ [They said,] ‘Oh, it’s Halle Berry’s script. I went, ‘OK, because she hasn’t signed up yet.’ ‘But this is what she wants it to be, and once she signs up, we’ll throw it in the bin.' I was like, ‘Wow, you’re gonna do that to an Oscar-winning actress who plays Storm? I’m outta here.’ So I quit at that point.
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The implication here, of course, is that the powers that be only used that draft to get Halle Berry to sign. Based on his comments, the Layer Cake director became somewhat disillusioned with the production after learning of the alleged plans to dispose of that particular copy of the script. It honestly is wild to hear that the execs allegedly did that in order to get Berry to officially sign on the dotted line. But again, Hollywood can be an "interesting" place.
As mentioned, Matthew Vaughn signed on for First Class a few years later, and it received mostly positive reviews. Vaughn was also set to direct the sequel (eventually titled Days of Future Past) but later dropped out of that as well, leaving franchise vet Bryan Singer to take on his duties.
These days, the filmmaker isn’t as consumed with the world of superheroes, though his productions are still ambitious in scale. His latest offering is the upcoming spy flick Argylle, and its recently released trailer revealed a wild haircut for Henry Cavill. It’s great that Matthew Vaughn is still working and making creative films. Though one still can’t help but wonder what X3 might’ve been like had he kept the reins and that scene for Halle Berry's Storm had remained.
Those who want to revisit the divisive film can stream it using a Disney+ subscription, and be on the lookout for Argylle which opens in theaters on February 2 as part of the 2024 movie schedule.
