Even as Marvel Studios begins planning how to integrate the X-Men into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there's still one holdover from the Fox era left to go. The New Mutants is currently scheduled for an April 3, 2020 theatrical release. And though the multiple delays and lack of sequel prospects may have X-Men fans dismissing this spinoff, there's one Marvel creator who's still very excited to see the team make their big screen debut. Artist Bill Sienkiewicz thinks there's plenty of reason to be optimistic about The New Mutants.

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We brought up the movie while discussing Sienkiewicz's art for the upcoming X-Men: Dark Phoenix Steelbook Blu-ray . Having worked on classic New Mutants comic storylines like "The Demon Bear Saga" and having been given a chance to visit the set, Sienkiewicz is very eager to see this oft-delayed movie finally see the light of day."Having seen some of the filming and gotten to know some of the cast, what they have is just brilliant," he said. "I think the team that's been assembled, the cast - I feel very protective of all of them. As far as I'm concerned, they can do no wrong. They're just amazingly talented performers working with really gifted artists."He also urged fans to remember that the film's long-delayed reshoots don't necessarily mean trouble for the final product. "I know when people talk about reshoots, their antenna goes up and they start to get nervous, but I think back to everything I've seen, and the fact that they want to make it more of a horror film, which is something that hasn't really been done in superhero movies of this kind."Sienkiewicz is optimistic that New Mutants sequels could still be a possibility even as the X-Men franchise shifts over to Marvel Studios. "I don't know if I'm speaking out of turn here or if it's just my own druthers or my own hopes for the series, which is that it does become a series. It's not just a standalone," he said. "The idea of what they're doing for the first film - and I have some idea of what they'd be doing for the second and third - that would be something I'd really love to see. A trilogy of the New Mutants. It would still keep the flavor, as far as I know and as far as I can tell, in the same way that it's in the same universe."Basically, Sienkiewicz feels there's ample room for The New Mutants to continue on as a franchise even after the move to Disney, similar to how Deadpool fans are holding out hope the Ryan Reynolds incarnation of the character will continue on."Trying to separate from my own druthers and desires here, I just think it's got so much potential. And to be in the same world, but be its own thing. Much in the same way Legion is based on stuff that Chris [Claremont] and I did in The New Mutants, but it's its own thing, under the guidance of Noah Hawley and Lauren Shuler Donner at FX. What's especially wonderful is to see what's been done in the comics and hand it off to other creators and artists who run with the properties and put their own stamp on it. If it's done well, it's just magic. That's really what I'm hoping for and expecting."Does Sienkiewicz have you feeling more optimistic about the fate of The New Mutants? Let us know in the comments below.

Jesse is a mild-mannered writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter