Olivia Munn will play Betsy Braddock, aka Psylocke in X-Men: Apocalypse, director Bryan Singer has announced on Instagram. The character made her first appearance in the X-Men comic-books in 1976 though has hitherto been only a minor presence in the movies.  

Olivia MunnOlivia Munn will play Betsy Braddock in X-Men: Apocalpyse 

In fact, Psylocke's only movie appearance was in 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand where she served as one of the minor villains - as played by Mei Melancon. The character's powers include telepathy and telekinesis.

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Munn joins a swelling cast for Apocalypse including newcomers Lana Condor, who's playing Jubilee, Oscar Isaac and Kodi Smit-McPhee. Returning stars include James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult and Rose Byrne. Sir Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart - who played Magneto and Professor X - will not be returning, while Jennifer Lawrence recently confirmed she will be making her last appearance as Mystique. 

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Munn is probably best known for appearing as Sloan Sabbith in HBO's The Newsroom, though recently starred in Johnny Depp's Mortdecai and last year's Deliver Us From Evil. She's currently filming Ride Along 2, with Ice Cube and Kevin Hart.

"Dear OMFG, From G4 to XMEN you've been THE BEST road dogs. Thanks for staying on the ride with me. This one's for you. #Psylocke #XMEN," she tweeted after Singer has made the announcement.

Bryan Singer is directing X-Men: Apocalypse from a script from Simon Kinberg, Dan Harris and Michael Dougherty. The film is set to bow on May 27, 2016.

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