Well this is certainly an interesting bit of news. It seems director Matthew Vaughn will not be returning for 'X-Men: First Class 2.' So who will direct it, then? Original 'X-Men' director Bryan Singer, perhaps?

Deadline is reporting that Matthew Vaughn has officially dropped out of 'X-Men: First Class 2' for unknown reasons. The director (who also directed 'Kick-Ass' and declined to direct that sequel as well) has stepped back from the project, titled 'X-Men: Days of Future Past.' It's a shame because his work on the first film was fantastic, and helped re-energize a franchise that we'd thought was exhausted for the time being.

Fox has placed Bryan Singer, director of the first 'X-Men' film and 'X-2: X-Men United' at the head of their wish list for replacements. Singer produced and oversaw the script for 'X-Men: First Class' and he if he takes the role of director and returns to the franchise in a more prominent capacity, it'll essentially mean that Vaughn and Singer are switching places, with Vaughn sticking around as producer. We're not totally averse to the idea of Singer directing, but his directorial output has been uneven over the years, at best.

As for Vaughn, it looks like he'll be directing another film for Fox instead -- 'Secret Service,' which sees him reuniting with his 'Kick-Ass' partner Mark Millar.

Filming for 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' is set to begin early next spring with a July 18, 2014 release date. Hopefully Fox can get this mess sorted out quickly.

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