Following a nastily short, nevertheless exciting, six-second teaser trailer released last week, we finally have a longer trailer to whet our comic book appetites. The emotive, epic trailer for X-Men: Days of Future Past sets out the story, which sees two generations of X-Men required to stop a war before it begins.

Hugh JackmanHugh Jackman's Wolverine faces a difficult task

Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian McKellen and Hugh Jackman reprise their roles; the latter being the conduit on which the film’s plot is based. He must wake up in his younger body, and find a young Professor Charles Xavier and “guide him, have patience with him.”

“You're going to have to do for me what I once did for you,” says Xavier to Wolverine in the X-Mansion. “You'll need me as well,” says McKellen's Magneto. “Side by side to end this war before it ever begins. It's going to take the two of us.”

James McAvoy and Patrick StewartJames McAvoy and Patrick Stewart - young and old Charles Xavier's meet

James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence also launch back into action, alongside Halle Berry, who revealed that she couldn’t partake in the action scenes as much as she’d wanted to after finding out she was pregent.

“I wasn’t in as much as I was meant to be," she told Total Film magazine. "That kind of coloured what my involvement could be, which was why I was one of the first ones in and the first ones out.”

Watch the trailer for X-Men: Days of Future Past here

Hugh Jackman, whose Wolverine recently enjoyed a feature film to a decent critical response and a solid financial performance at the Box Office, has declared that the latest X-Men film will please the fans.

"As excited as [the fans] are, I can tell you it'll exceed those expectations," he teased. "I feel it's that good. I'm very, very excited about it. [Bryan] has knocked it out of the park."

Jennifer LawrenceFeeling blue - Jennifer Lawrence

He also spoke of his synonymy with the character of Wolverine to Digital Spy: "He's like a best friend, Wolverine. He's the beginning of my career here in America and he's still there," he explained. "It's been 14 years and I can't believe it. And I love the character. I love playing him and I'm probably loving him more than ever."

Read our review of 2013's The Wolverine

Once again, Bryan Singer – the man behind The Usual Suspects – takes the X-Men reigns. Filmed in Canada last year, the all-action comic book adaption is set for a May release in 2014.

The last X-Men film – First Class – was directed by Brian Vaughn, received solid critical reviews.

Michael FassbenderMichael Fassbender is Magneto

“It uses the themes of the previous movies to build an intelligent, fast-paced, and highly entertaining prequel,” said Film.com in one of the reviews that led to the film’s impressive 87% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Financially, the film also impressed, but not as much as Marvel’s other blockbuster titles. It grabbed $353 million worldwide, which compared to its $160 million production budget – counting in the unknown marketing budget – doesn’t put it in Marvel’s ‘biggest earners’ list.

Ian McKellenA sullen Ian McKellen makes tough decisions

For that, Marvel look to The Avengers, which, in 2012, went on to make $1.5 billion, putting it third in the all time top grossing movies chart.

With a slew of movies contributes to Marvel’s ‘second phase’, attention is bound to be crystalized compared to that of the last X-Men film, so we expect Days of Future Past to triumph First Class in almost every way. Fans will be keen for 2014, as it will herald a sequel to their beloved Avengers franchise, too.

Ellen PageEllen Page in Days of Future Past

Anna Paquin
Anna Paquin in Days of Future Past