This isn't a surprise, but it's very cool: Director Bryan Singer just tweeted the following:

"Thrilled to announce @ianmckellen118 & @SirPatStew are joining the cast of #XMEN #DaysOfFuturePast #magneto #professorX More to come..."

X-Men: Days of Future Past Explained

The helmer, who recently replaced Matthew Vaughn on the sequel to X-Men: First Class, also announced this morning that First Class' James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and Nicholas Hoult will be back for the film. The first three thesps were no-brainers to be returning, but this is the first we're hearing of Hoult coming back (he played the Beast in First Class and also stars in Singer's upcoming Jack the Giant Slayer).

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So what do we make of this Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen news? The pair, of course, starred in the first three X-Men movies (of which Singer directed the original two) as Professor Xavier and Magneto. Since McAvoy and Fassbender play younger versions of these characters, it seems pretty clear that the film will be utilizing the time-travel element from the X-Men: Days of Future Past story from the comics.How big a role Stewart and McKellen will have in the film remains to be seen, though it seems that actors of their caliber will require more than just a cameo or cursory appearance. As for which other X-Men from the original films might return, the slam-dunk would be to bring Hugh Jackman back as Wolverine as well. And hey, considering his arc in the Days of Future Past timeline of the future, it could be essentially a cameo -- and an unforgettable one at that!

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