X-Men Apocalypse: Oscar Isaac responds to early criticism of villain

'I was not super pleased with those first photos that ran'

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When the first images of Oscar Isaac’s X-Men villain Apocalypse emerged there was an outcry on the internet. Fans were furious the earth conquering mutant was seemingly given a purple tint and made to look relatively small.

It wasn’t just comic-book fans who were annoyed: Isaacs was also left disappointed by the initial photos.

“I was not super pleased with those first photos that ran,” the actor told EW.

“When you look at those things, you think that’s the representation of the character, and it was a shot from when we were coming out of a portal, and the portal light is purple and so suddenly everyone thinks that the character is purple which is not the case.”

However, director Bryan Singer was well aware there may be some backlash, having faced a similar backlash when he cast Hugh Jackman as Wolverine.

“Can you imagine what it was like for fans 16 years ago when I cast 6-foot-3 Hugh Jackman to play 5-foot-4 Wolverine in X-Men? Can you imagine the reactions I got?” he told the trade.

“I nearly got crucified. And there was no social media for me to say, ‘Hey guys, don’t worry, it will work out.’ Hopefully the audience will understand why the character had to be played by this particular actor.”

At one stage, singer also floated the idea of having a CGI Apocalypse, but felt the character needed to connect to the four horseman on a more personal level.

“We built a suit and enhanced Oscar’s size,” he continued. “But nonetheless to be as intimate and persuasive in his interaction with our lead characters, I made the decision to have him for the most part be in human form.”

X-Men Apocalypse has hit cinemas to rather middling reviews. Here’s why the film should have been released 10 years previously.