The Evolution (and De-Evolution) of X-23/Laura

– as told by her co-creator, Craig Kyle



THR Reports: Craig Kyle created the character in 2003 for the animated series X-Men: Evolution, after a Kids WB executive asked if he could make Wolverine a kid (the show featured younger versions of many of the X-Men). The answer was no. But it got Kyle thinking, and he pitched the idea of a young, female Wolverine clone to then-Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada, who loved it.

X-23 soon became a fan favorite on Evolution and also moved to comics. Along with writer Chris Yost and artist Billy Tan, Kyle penned the acclaimed 2006 comic book storyline X-23: Innocence Lost, which told of Laura’s brutal life raised in a lab where she was trained to be an assassin. The arc served as an inspiration to Logan director James Mangold. Kyle and Yost followed it up with X-23: Target X, which explored her life after leaving the lab.

At times, the character has generated controversy. Before her launch, fans balked at the idea of a female Wolverine, while others still recall with derision a comic book arc that saw X-23 working as an underage prostitute in the 2003-05 series NYX, which Kyle was NOT involved in. Recent years have seen her popularity only grow, with Laura taking over the mantle of Wolverine in the comics. Now, with Logan, she’s risen to the next level.

In a conversation with Heat Vision, Kyle discusses why it was a mistake to age Laura up in the comics (“… she was 22 and had a boob job”), and why he’s happy to see her return to something more true to her original incarnation.

THR: How early did you know Laura would be in Logan?

Kyle: In 2014, I sat down with director James Mangold. We had lunch. He had obviously read X-23: Innocence Lost. At the time, he had not read Target X, so I pointed him in that direction. In that first lunch, he said, “The very core of the story, it’s a broken man with an aging and very sick father who discovers he has a daughter that he never knew about.” He had a lot of questions about her. He wanted to know the reasons behind the claw placement. And he actually ended up using that. Patrick Stewart stops Logan in the car and tries to explain the fact that she has her claws that way — and uses the pride of lions as an example. That was both my pitch at lunchtime and in an email later.

THR: What did you think of the final product?

Kyle: I am so grateful for how he brought her to screen. He has a chance to do what I couldn’t. My pitch to Joe [Quesada] when he said he wanted to put her in a [comic book] title was, “Interview with the Vampire had this great Kirsten Dunst character, who was this young child vampire and she was horrified when she realized she couldn’t age.” To me, the beauty and tragedy of X-23’s continuing story was she leaves the institute when she’s 13. I could have pushed that younger. I could have made it 11. She’s going to continue to grow and mature and evolve, but because they activated her healing factor early, she’s going be trapped in her youthful body for a long time. What I didn’t realize was Joe had a very specific story in mind for NYX. I didn’t know about NYX. My excitement of having her in a book was all I cared about at that time.

But she was then immediately aged up to 16, and then in Uncanny [X-Men] she was 22 and had a boob job. Those issues are a dark place. I was really hoping we would have a young character, a child, a pre-teen who wasn’t going to be in the dating, the sexuality aspects of the storylines for a long time to come. … It’s just one of those things she’s going to have to carry as she evolves and grows and takes a journey through the Marvel U. But because of the jump in the NYX, that chunk of her storyline couldn’t be told.

THR: If asked to be involved, would you?

Kyle: I’d love to be a part of it. I had such an amazing career at Marvel. When I started there were a few of us. There was Avi Arid, my boss Rick Ungar, we had a researcher and a couple of assistants. At the time we were sharing office space with Spectra Star, a kite company that [Marvel Chairman] Ike [Perlmutter] also owned. Those pictures of Hailey [Benton Gates], the original X-23 — one of the guys at the kite company cut me those blades and painted them for me, and I used those for the photo shoot. So I’m very grateful to those guys.

THR: Dafne’s Laura is being hailed as a new kind of female hero. What do you think of that?

Kyle: Some people are talking about how desperate we are for a good female hero. And man, am I with them. And someone who is not sexualized at all. On X-Men: Evolution, we did one last image that said our show is over. We did a montage of things to come. Sentinels and these dark times to show their journey is continuing. There is a shot of X-23 in the front of the team. Logan is missing, because we are implying he is no longer with the team. She steps into that role. When the costume design came in, it had a big midriff section left. I covered it up. Even back then, I just wanted her to be young and powerful and just rich in character. I wanted people to see what was so wonderful about her and have the sexuality really not be a part of it. With James doing what he’s done, he’s given us a chance to champion her story and love her … without making her a sexpot. I want a hero that my daughter, when she’s old enough to see heads be turned into bologna slices, can get behind of and proud of an excited by. And I think she has a real shot of filling a missing piece.

Interested in learning more about X-23/Laura? Here’s my recommended ‘Essentials’ list:



X-Men: Evolution, X-23: Innocence Lost, X-23: Target X, X-Force by Craig Kyle & Chris Yost Volume 1 and Volume 2

