Bryan Singer's X-Men: Apocalypse has been on a bit of a casting tear as of late. In recent weeks the production has hired Tye Sheridan as the new Cyclops, Alexandra Shipp as the new Storm, Sophie Turner as the new Jean Grey, Kodi Smit-McPhee as the new Nightcrawler, and Ben Hardy in a mystery role. Now the ranks have increased yet again, as the director has announced that actress Lana Condor will be playing Jubilation Lee a.k.a. Jubilee in the 2016 blockbuster.
Like he's been doing with just about all of the casting so far, Bryan Singer made the announcement via his personal Instagram account - simultaneously giving us a close up look at the young actress. You can see his post below:
For those unfamiliar with the character, Jubilee made her debut in X-Men comics back in 1989, but earned a great deal of popularity due to her front-and-center role in the great X-Men animated series that began in 1992. Introduced as a typical teenager, she classically has had a mutant ability allowing her to project "energy plasmoids" from her fingertips.
Hardcore fans of the X-Men movies will note that this actually isn't the first time that the character has appeared in the films - though evidence suggests that X-Men: Apocalypse will feature her most prominent part to date. In Singer's franchise entry, she was played by Katrina Florece and could be spotted in the scene where Rogue is introduced to Iceman:
Jubilee was played by Kea Wong in both X2: X-Men United and X-Men: The Last Stand, though she once again had a very minimized role:
For those curious about Lana Condor, the sad truth is that there isn't much information currently available about her as a performer. For example, she has an IMDb page, but it's currently blank. It would appear that X-Men: Apocalypse will be her big screen debut - and that's quite impressive. Interestingly, her lack of previous exposure also creates the opportunity that we will forever associate her with the part - similar to how we've viewed Hugh Jackman ever since he first became Wolverine.
X-Men: Apocalypse will be going into production in the next few weeks, with a cast that also includes James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, and Oscar Isaac. 20th Century Fox will release the film in theaters on May 27, 2016.
