Naturi Naughton will be taking her off her bunny ears briefly to get in on a little mutant prequel action. The 27-year old actress will star in The Wolverine, the sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, according to Shadow and Act.

This installment, directed by James Mangold, will also star Hugh Jackman and Kelly Hu. It features a plotline where Wolverine travels to Japan to train with a samurai warrior.

Naughton will play Cecilia Reyes, a former X-men member and doctor, who has the abilities to generate a forcefield that is tied to her life force. A little detail for the X-Men fanboys and girls; she can also use that force to provide her with basic weapons like spikes, hammers and battering rams.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine starts production in October and is set for release in 2012.

Since debuting as Lil’ Kim in Notorious, Naughton has steadily upped her acting ante by mixing urban comedies (Lottery Ticket) with high profile roles in critically acclaimed mainstream dramas (AMC’s Mad Men.)

She will next star in the upcoming period drama The Playboy Club this fall on NBC.

(Photo: Vibe)