I guess this isn't exactly earth shattering news since we were already aware that X-Men: Apocalypse takes place in the 80's and ditches the time travel aspect of Days of Future Past (essentially breaking free of many of the iterations of the characters from the first three films).  But Patrick Stewart has just confirmed that neither he or Ian McKellen will be appearing in the film.

While I admire the work of both of those actors, I don't think this is a huge loss since I'm looking forward to a more streamlined story that takes place in one linear time period.  And I'm definitely interested to see where the burgeoning romance between Jennifer Lawrence and Michael Fassbender's versions of Mystique and Magneto heads.  Additionally the film is casting a bunch of youngsters as other well known characters.  Hit the jump for Patrick Stewart's comments on X-Men: Apocalypse.

Stewart told Larry King:

"I was learning quite a lot more about it last night, and it is going to be looking very much at the earlier lives of all our characters. And so I don’t think we’ll be making an appearance."

Maybe it's time McKellen and Stewart move on from these characters?