Casting
Many of the cast members from the previous two X-Men films returned, the major exceptions being Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler), Brian Cox (William Stryker), Kelly Hu (Lady Deathstrike), and Michael Reid McKay (Jason Stryker) from X-Men 2: X-Men United, who both signed two-film contracts (Wolverine kills Hu's character in the second film). James Marsden (Cyclops) also appeared in The Last Stand, despite reported scheduling conflicts with the June 2006 movie Superman Returns. Halle Berry stated during interviews for X-Men 2: X-Men United that she would not return as Storm in the third film unless the character had a significant presence comparable to the comic-book version. Brett Ratner also felt Storm required a larger role and there was little difficulty reaching an agreement. New cast members portraying The X-Men include veteran TV actor Kelsey Grammer (The Beast), Ben Foster (Archangel), and Ellen Page (Shadowcat), the third actress to play the character. New cast members portraying The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants include Eric Dane (Multiple Man), whose name appears in Stryker's files in X-Men 2: X-Men United, former British footballer Vinnie Jones (Juggernaut), Dania Ramirez (Callisto), Ken Leung (Quill), Meiling Melançon (Psylocke), and Omahyra Mota (Arclight, credited as simply Omahyra). The character Dr. Moira MacTaggert, who appears in the film, is not listed in the official press notes' cast list and goes uncredited in the finished film. She is played by actress Olivia Williams. Other new cast members in X-Men 3 include American film and television actor Michael Murphy as Warren Worthington II, Head of The Worthington Labs and his assistant Dr. Kavita Rao, played by Shohreh Aghdashloo, as well as mutant power dampener Leech, played by Canadian actor Cameron Bright.
The sergeant directing defensive preparations before The Brotherhood assaults Alcatraz Island is played by Gunnery Sergeant R. Lee Ermey, a former U.S. Marine Corps non-commissioned officer who became a military advisor for films and frequent military character actor.
X-Men co-creator Stan Lee and writer Chris Claremont have cameos in the film's opening scene as neighbors in Jean Grey's old neighborhood. Respectively, they are credited as "Waterhose man" and "Lawnmower man".
Filmmakers considered using the Beast character since the first X-Men movie, but budget constraints ruled him out; however, Steve Bacic is identified as Hank McCoy when he appears on a television screen in a cameo role in X-Men 2: X-Men United.
Read more about this topic: X-Men: The Last Stand
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