X-MEN: APOCALYPSE Casts Olivia Munn as Psylocke

Bryan Singer sure loves to overload his X-Men movies, doesn't he?

On his official Instagram account yesterday, Singer announced another member of his cast for the upcoming film X-Men: Apocalypse -- Olivia Munn as Betsy Braddock, better known to X-Men fans as the mutant superhero Psylocke.  Here's his official post...

Munn, 34, is probably best known as Sloan Sabbith on the HBO series The Newsroom and as the co-host of the G4 series Attack of the Show!  In addition, Munn has had various roles in the movies Iron Man 2, Magic Mike, Mortdecai, and Deliver Us from Evil.  Her other TV roles include The Daily Show, New Girl, Chuck, and Robot Chicken.

Created in 1976 by Chris Claremont and Herb Trimpe, Psylocke first appeared in the UK comic Captain Britain (vol.1) #8 as Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock, the twin sister of Captain Britain.  Betsy was a charter pilot with mutant psychic abilities who later filled in for her brother as Captain Britain until she was blinded by the villain Slaymaster.

Betsy was soon abducted by another villain called Mojo, brainwashed, fitted with bionic eyes and given the name Psylocke.  After being rescued by the New Mutants, Psylocke joined the X-Men after fending off an attack by Sabretooth.

Later, Psylocke was captured by ninja cult The Hand, who also brainwashed her and physically altered her so that she could blend in with people in Hong Kong.  After being rescued by Wolverine, Psylocke eventually died while fighting the villain Vargas, but was soon resurrected by her older brother, Jamie Braddock, who reached back through time to prevent her spirit from passing into the afterlife.  Psylocke later joined the black-ops mutant team X-Force, but remains closely allied with the X-Men.

Munn will be the first actress to portray the character in a major role, although Psylocke appeared as a minor villainess in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand, played by Meiling Melançon.  The character has also appeared in a couple of animated projects, including the X-Men animated series (voiced by Tasha Simms), and Wolverine and the X-Men (voiced by Grey DeLisle).

X-Men: Apocalypse is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters on May 27, 2016.