X-Men Spinoff Movie Gambit to Begin Production in March

Being part of a popular superhero franchise doesn't mean that getting a film to the screen will always be an easy process. The Gambit movie--part of Fox's X-Men universe--was delayed following the loss of its director last September. But with Edge of Tomorrow's Doug Liman now on board as director, the film is set to begin production in March.

According to WGNO, Gambit will start shooting in New Orleans in two months. The film is still without a confirmed release date however--Fox had originally scheduled it for October, but the delays in production have meant that a March start makes this impossible.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes director Rupert Wyatt was originally set to helm Gambit, which stars Channing Tatum and Spectre's Léa Seydoux. He left the project stating that a "push in the start date now conflicts with another project," but subsequent reports have suggested that it was creative differences that led to his departure.

In November it was announced that Liman was in talks to take over the project. As THR reported at the time, some of Liman's past films have met with serious production problems, but his experience with big movies and the tight deadline for Gambit have clearly worked in his favour.

The other X-Men related movies due for release this year are Deadpool and X-Men: Apocalypse, which will arrive on February 10 and May 27 respectively. Wolverine 3, Hugh Jackman's final outing as the clawed mutant hero, will follow in 2017.