The Marvel Movies That Inspired Invasion

Alien invasion stories are nothing new, but few have been as unique in their approach to the genre as "Invasion" from Apple TV+. The story follows a group of characters located around the globe. The ensuing plotlines follow these characters as they all react to the oncoming alien invasion in different ways. 

The result is a heart-pounding series that's already given fans 10 stellar episodes of science-fiction television. The first season aired on the platform toward the end of 2021, and it didn't take long for fans to get the news they'd been waiting for. Season 2 of "Invasion" is well on the way, hopefully wrapping up some of those loose plot threads from the first season.

The show naturally has parallels to other alien stories of the past, but it may surprise some fans to learn about how certain superhero movies influenced the structure of the series. This makes sense considering many episodes of the first season were written by "X-Men: Days of Future Past" scribe Simon Kinberg, and he apparently learned some lessons during his time in the "X-Men" franchise.

You can tell how important the idea of an ensemble is to the "X-Men" franchise right there in the name. Whereas other superhero stories center on a singular hero, the X-Men have always been about the group. Similarly, "Invasion" focuses on a group dynamic rather than one single person, which isn't always the easiest to balance, but Simon Kinberg figured out the trick from his time working on several "X-Men" movies.

In an interview with Collider, Kinberg stated, "A big lesson I learned from the 'X-Men' films ... Even though it's an ensemble, and even though in some ways in the films will reign as the main character, what I learned is you have to choose the main character. And the audience may not be aware that that's the main character." He goes on to describe how Charles Xavier was technically the protagonist of "X-Men: Days of Future Past" because he undergoes the most growth. Similarly, he views Aneesha (Golshifteh Farahani) as the main character of "Invasion" because she changes the most.

However, every project presents the opportunity to learn something new, and learning how to build an ensemble wasn't the only thing Kinberg took from the "X-Men" franchise. He discussed how "Logan" influenced the show as well, "Going back to like what 'X-Men' and the 'X-Men' comics and [what] the best of the 'X-Men' movies do really well — or 'Logan' as an example, does extraordinarily well — they tell a story. It's a science fiction story, but through the lens of a very deeply human perspective." These lessons are good to know for any writer wanting to create more compelling stories, and hopefully, they carry on into "Invasion" Season 2.