Nine hours to transform into Mystique

This is how Rebecca Romijn was transformed into Mystique for X-Men: textured prosthetics, blue paint, and a red wig. Preparing for filming took several hours.

In an interview about the sequel, the actress shared that on the first X-Men, applying the makeup took nine hours. By the filming of the sequel, the process was reduced to six, but the makeup still had to be maintained throughout the day.