There’s good news and bad news for those anticipating X-Men: Dark Phoenix – the good news is that the movie’s a lot further into the casting process than previously realized, but the bad news is that the movie’s already lost one of its new stars – South Korean actor and musician Jung Ji-Hoon.
According to JoongAng Ilbo (via SBS), Jung Ji-Hoon (better known by his stage name, Rain) will not be able to join the rest of the cast of X-Men: Dark Phoenix as initially planned. Fellow actor Lee Beom-Soo explained that Ji-Hoon had to drop out of the superhero movie due to his commitment to a biopic about Korean cyclist Uhm Bok-Dong, which both actors will star in.
Beom-Soo also noted that the unexpected schedule change occurred as a result of X-Men beginning filming in July and Uhm Bok-Dong filming in August, the latter of which is more important to Ji-Hoon since he’s playing the lead role.
Ji-Hoon had previously appeared in Hollywood movies before, collaborating with the Wachowskis twice with Speed Racer and Ninja Assassin and later appearing in a direct-to-video crime thriller The Prince.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix is currently targeting a November 2, 2018, release date.
Source: JoongAng Ilbo (via SBS).
