Following the sudden-and-still-mysterious exit of previous showrunner Beau DeMayo, Disney and Marvel have finally settled on a new scriptwriter for the Merry Band of Mutant’s further X-Men ’97 adventures.
Per a July 9th exclusive from Deadline‘s Nellie Andreeva, rather than DeMayo, What If…? series screenwriter and Thor: Love and Thunder script doctor Matthew Chauncey will now be in charge of penning the animated revival’s third season.
Further, according to Andreeva’s sources, the scripts for X-Men ’97‘s second season – notably completed by DeMayo prior to his departure – have reportedly been revised by Marvel Studios.
At current, it’s unclear whether or not Chauncey had a hand in these revisions, nor why they were made in the first place.
However, the fact that they were made at all at all given their aforementioned completed status is curious, to say the least.
As previously reported, DeMayo’s exit was first revealed to the public on the morning of March 12th courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter’s Borys Kit and Aaron Couch.
Per the pair of noted entertainment reporters, DeMayo was ‘suddenly’ let go by Disney just days prior to X-Men 97‘s March 20th premiere, at which time his company email was deactivated and the rest of the series’ production team was made aware by leadership that he would no longer be attached to the project.
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In light of his apparent firing, the showrunner scrubbed the internet of his social media accounts, in particular his Instagram account, which he had been using to provide production updates on the series, and his OnlyFans account, which notably featured only ‘suggestive’ selfies rather than anything outright explicit.
Further, it appears that, like the public, DeMayo himself was caught off-guard by the decision, as immediately prior to his release he had reportedly “completed writing duties on season two of X-Men ’97, was lining up press [for the series], and making plans to attend the show’s Hollywood premiere on March 13 [and] was even discussing loose ideas for a third season with members of his team.”
As noted, the exact reasons for DeMayo’s firing have yet to be publicly detailed, with both Disney and DeMayo remaining tight-lipped on the matter.
However, DeMayo did notably break his silence during the airing of X-Men ’97‘s first season, taking to his personal Twitter account to interact with fans and provide insights into its production.
The second season of X-Men ’97 is currently in production.
At current, it has yet to receive an official release date.