X2 (often promoted as X2: X-Men United and internationally as X-Men 2) is a 2003 American superhero film based on the X-Men superhero team appearing in Marvel Comics. It is the sequel to 2000's X-Men, and the second instalment in the X-Men film series. The film was directed by Bryan Singer, written by Michael Dougherty, Dan Harris, and David Hayter, and features an ensemble cast including Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Famke Janssen, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Brian Cox, Alan Cumming, Bruce Davison, Shawn Ashmore, Aaron Stanford, Kelly Hu, and Anna Paquin. The plot, inspired by the graphic novel God Loves, Man Kills, pits the X-Men and their enemies, the Brotherhood, against the genocidal Colonel William Stryker (Brian Cox). He leads an assault on Professor Xavier's school to build his own version of Xavier's mutant-tracking computer Cerebro, in order to destroy every mutant on Earth and to save the human race from them.
Plot[]
At the White House, brainwashed teleporting mutant Nightcrawler attempts to assassinate the President of the United States but fails and escapes. Meanwhile, Wolverine explores an abandoned military installation at Alkali Lake in Alberta for clues to his past, but finds nothing. He returns to Professor Xavier's school for mutants, and Xavier tracks Nightcrawler using Cerebro. Xavier and Cyclops go to question the imprisoned Magneto about the attack, while X-Men Storm and Jean Grey retrieve Nightcrawler. Since the Liberty Island incident, Jean has been having premonitions and struggles to concentrate as her powers become increasingly difficult to control. Meanwhile, military scientist Colonel William Stryker approaches the president and receives approval to investigate Xavier's mansion for their ties to mutants. Stryker's forces invade the school and abduct some of the students. Colossus leads the remaining students to safety while Wolverine, Rogue, Iceman, and Pyro escape, and Stryker's assistant Yuriko Oyama captures Cyclops and Xavier. During the attack Wolverine confronts Stryker, who knows him by name.
The shape-shifting Mystique gains information about Magneto's prison and helps him escape while also discovering schematics for a second Cerebro. Wolverine, Rogue, Iceman, and Pyro visit Iceman's parents in Boston and meet up with Storm, Jean, and Nightcrawler. The X-Jet is attacked by fighter jets while flying back to the mansion and is shot down, but Magneto saves them from crashing. Magneto explains to the group that Stryker has built the second Cerebro to use it, and Xavier, to telepathically kill every mutant on the planet. Stryker's son, Jason, is a mutant with mind-controlling powers, which Stryker will use to force Xavier to do this. Stryker had also previously used Jason's powers to orchestrate Nightcrawler's attack as a pretense to gain approval to invade Xavier's mansion. Magneto also tells Wolverine that Stryker was the man who grafted his adamantium skeleton onto his bones. Jean reads Nightcrawler's mind and determines that Stryker's base is underground in a dam at Alkali Lake.
Disguised as Logan, Mystique infiltrates Stryker's base. She lets the rest of the mutants in and Magneto and Mystique go to disable Cerebro before the brainwashed Xavier can activate it. Storm and Nightcrawler rescue the captured students, and Jean fights a mind-controlled Cyclops; their battle frees Cyclops but damages the dam, which begins to rupture. Wolverine finds Stryker in an adamantium smelting lab and remembers it as where he received his adamantium skeleton. Wolverine fights and kills Yuriko, then chases Stryker to a helicopter pad and chains him to the helicopter's wheel. Magneto stops Cerebro and, using Mystique impersonating Stryker to command Jason, has Xavier redirect its powers on normal humans. The two subsequently use Stryker's helicopter to escape, accompanied by Pyro who has been swayed to Magneto's views. Nightcrawler teleports Storm inside Cerebro, where she creates a snowstorm to break Jason's concentration and free Xavier from his control.
The X-Men flee the dam as water engulfs it, killing Stryker, but the X-Jet loses all power and struggles to take flight as the flood water rushes towards them. Jean sneaks off the jet and telepathically wishes the team goodbye. She holds back the water and raises the jet above it as flames erupt from her body, until she lets go and allows the flood to crash down upon her; presumably killing her. The X-Men give the president Stryker's files, and Xavier warns him that humans and mutants must work together to build peace. Back at the school, Xavier, Cyclops, and Wolverine remember Jean, and Xavier begins to hold a class.
The film ends with a voice-over narration from Jean accompanied by the flooded Alkali Lake and a Phoenix-like shape rising towards the surface of the water.
Cast[]
- Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine
- Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier/Professor X
- Ian McKellen as Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto
- Famke Janssen as Jean Grey
- James Marsden as Scott Summers/Cyclops
- Anna Paquin as Marie D'Ancanto/Rogue
- Rebecca Romijn as Raven Darkholme/Mystique
- Halle Berry as Ororo Munroe/Storm
- Brian Cox as Colonel William Stryker
- Alan Cumming as Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler
- Bruce Davison as Senator Kelly
- Aaron Stanford as John Allerdyce/Pyro
- Shawn Ashmore as Bobby Drake/Iceman
- Kelly Hu as Yuriko Oyama/Lady Deathstrike
- Katie Stuart as Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat
- Kea Wong as Jubilation Lee/Jubilee
- Cotter Smith as President McKenna
- Chiara Zanni as Alicia Vargas
- Jackie A. Greenbank as Jackie
- David Fabrizio as Oval Office Agent Fabrizio
- Roger R. Cross as Oval Office Agent Cartwright
- Bryce Hodgson as Artie Maddicks
- Shauna Kain as Theresa Cassidy/Siryn
- Ty Olsson as Mitchell Laurio
- Connor Widdows as Jones
- Daniel Cudmore as Peter Rasputin/Colossus
- Peter Wingfield as Lyman
- Charles Siegel as Dr. Shaw
- Steve Bacic as Hank McCoy/Beast
- Michael Reid McKay as Jason Stryker
- James Kirk as Ronny Drake
- Jill Teed as Madeline Drake
- Alfred E. Humphreys as William Drake
- Dylan Kussman as Stryker Soldier Wilkins
- Jason S. Whitmer as Stryker Soldier Smith
- Kurt Max Runte as Chief of Staff Abrahams
- Layke Anderson as Douglas Ramsey/Cypher
- Luke Pohl as Flea
- Bryan Singer as Plastic Prison Guard B. Singer
Sequels[]
X2 was followed by five sequels: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men: First Class (2011), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) and X-Men: Apocalypse (2016) and X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019).
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
| X-Men |
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| X-Men (2000), X2 (2003), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Deadpool (2016), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019), The New Mutants (2019), Deadpool 3 (2024) |