It’s surprising to me that at this late stage there are still major casting choices to be ironed out, and as always you need to take what actors say about their casting and alleged casting with a pinch of salt, it may be part of the negotiations to them. However, this comment can’t really be misconstrued. From Comic Book Movie, the actor James Marsden who plays Cyclops in the X-Men series was asked if he’ll be in X-Men 3:
It’s very complicated. I want nothing more than to be a part of X-Men 3, especially since they’re probably going into the Dark Phoenix saga, which would include my character a lot, but the schedule might conflict. I hope it all works out. I told them I’d do it for free.
He’s not cast yet? If he isn’t cast then there’s a serious dark cloud over that Dark Pheonix storyline. Surely a lot of the angst there is about Cyclops seeing her again and her attitude back to them? How would that work without Cyclops?