“I’m basically going to try and bury Patrick’s performance,” McAvoy joked, explaining that the sequel takes place far enough in advance of the first X-Men film that he doesn’t feel the need to mimic Stewart’s take.
McAvoy does offer up some hope for a more established continuity should First Class develop into sequels, claiming that the journey of the character would ideally develop over time and may even see a change by the end of X-Men: First Class.
Patrick Stewart previously played the character in three X-Men films and in the spinoff, X-Men Origins: Wolverine.