Kodi Smit-McPhee on X-MEN: “I think they know what the fans are expecting.”

Spinoff Online caught up with X-MEN: APOCALYPSE actor Kodi Smit-McPhee at the Tribeca Film Festival and spoke with him about his new role as Nightcrawler.

On auditioning fOR the film, he says he screen-tested only once before being hired by Bryan Singer. His audition consisted of him reciting Alan Cumming’s dialogue from X2.

“Yeah, I can totally tell you this. They got me to do –which I really liked – -one of Alan Cumming’s scenes, where he was explaining the scars on his body were from archangel Gabriel,” he says. “And they just had me do it in the accent. So I think that was really smart. I didn’t know if it was going to be in the actual movie, as like a moment rebooted. But it wasn’t.”

On his physical appearance as Nightcrawler and the character’s family ties to Mystique and the deceased Azazel.

“I obviously can’t say a lot, but there’s not a lot of prosthetics. I think they tried to stay overall, just because it’s X-Men and such a big following, they tried to keep it pretty traditional as much as they can. And even with the stories, they intertwine with Mystique being my mother and Azazel — so you know they can touch on that. I think people are going to be very happy. I’ve read the script and I think they know what the fans are expecting, and even fans of Nightcrawler. So, I’m very happy.”

Researching for the role, Smit-McPhee is looking at previous iterations of the character across various medium.

“I’m doing so much research definitely — on Alan Cumming’s take, on the comic books, on even the cartoons. I love the cartoon — I forget what it’s called, but it’s a really nostalgic old -school one. So cool, I’m just watching all the episodes, soaking it all up. It’s all out there.”

Seemingly confirming Wolverine appearing in the film, Smit-McPhee said he’s geeking out about seeing Hugh Jackman.

“Um … Hugh Jackman. I’ve just crossed his path many times, and I actually at the start of my career got [cast as] a young Wolverine [in ‘X-Men Origins’]. And then I was like, “No, I have to do ‘The Road.’” So this is really meant to be.”

Click here to read much more from the interview.