Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: X-Men

  • Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo Reunited to Beef Up MCU’s ‘X-Men’

    Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo Reunited to Beef Up MCU’s ‘X-Men’

    Marvel Studios isn’t just looking for superheroes to lead Phase 7—they’re looking for the best storytellers in the business. In an exclusive update first reported by Collider, Thunderbolts* and X-Men director Jake Schreier has confirmed that he is bringing his heavy-hitting Beef and The Bear collaborators into the X-Mansion.

    Lee Sung Jin (creator of Beef) and Joanna Calo (showrunner of The Bear) are officially working on the latest draft of the X-Men reboot script.

    “We’re still developing. You know, one of the exciting things that’s tying into Beef is that Sonny [Lee Sung Jin] and Joanna [Calo] both worked on this season,” Schreuer explained . “Obviously, I mean, Beef is Sonny’s show, and Joanna worked on the season as well, and we worked together on Season 1 of Beef and on Thunderbolts*. They have come in and are working on a draft right now, which is really exciting to be able to put that group of people together again.”

    Marvel has leaned into prestige TV talent lately, but this move reunites the creative trifecta that turned Beef into an Emmy-sweeping phenomenon. Schreier, confirmed that Lee Sung and Call are currently “in the room,” refining the story originally penned by Michael Lesslie (Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes).

    Schreier and Calo already have MCU chemistry, having worked together on the script for Thunderbolts*. Schreier explained that Lee’s “ability to take small interpersonal dynamics and explode them into a much larger canvas” made him a perfect candidate to work on an ensemble film like X-Men. Additonally, Schreier believes that the melodrama that defined a few decades of X-Men comics plays into the strengths of the new pair of writers.

    When you go back and read X-Men [comics], there’s ideology but also interpersonal drama, almost of a soap opera quality. Having writers who understand both how to drive ideology from personal stakes, if we get that right, that’s what will feel most honest to what X-Men can be.

    –X-Men director Jake Schreier

    For years, the complaint against the Fox X-Men movies was that they focused too much on the spectacle and not enough on the school or the family. By hiring the people responsible for two of the most intense character studies on television, Marvel is signaling that the MCU mutants will be defined by their relationships first, and their powers second.

    Source: Collider

  • Marvel Studios Reportedly Set to Move Forward with Second X-Men Project

    Marvel Studios Reportedly Set to Move Forward with Second X-Men Project

    With additional photography on Avengers: Doomsday and principal photography on Avengers: Secret Wars all the remain on the docket for the Multiverse Saga, Marvel Studios looks to be fully invested in making sure the next saga gets off to a solid start.

    Though nothing has been made official yet, the new saga–which will get underway in 2028–looks be kicking off with Jake Schreier‘s X-Men reboot and Ryan Coogler‘s Black Panther 3 with a sequel to The Fantastic: Four First Steps and a potential team-up film, Midnight Sons, among the projects reported and rumored to be on the way. While MCU fans wait for Marvel Studios to give some insight into what to expect, another project may find itself in contention for a spot in the first phase of the new saga.

    According to industry insider Daniel Richtman, Marvel Studios has decided to move ahead with an X-Force project in the new saga.

    In May 2025, THR reported that Ryan Reynolds was “working on various treatments for an ensemble film featuring three or four X-Men characters.” Shortly afterwards, rumors emerged that Reynolds’ project was indeed an X-Force film that would feature Deadpool, Hugh Jackman‘s Wolverine, Josh Brolin‘s Cable and a new actress as Storm. Though Richtman’s new report does not make the claim, it seems possible the two projects are indeed one and the same.

  • New Rumor Has Millie Bobby Brown Headed to the MCU Again in Major X-Men Role

    New Rumor Has Millie Bobby Brown Headed to the MCU Again in Major X-Men Role

    Millie Bobby Brown is no stranger to rumors about her involvement in MCU things. Her visit to the set of Avengers: Infinity War had fans convinced she was joining the franchise. Rumors persisted that Brown was set to play Eternals Peter Pan analogue, Sprite, and while Brown teased that she’d had discussions with Marvel Studios, that role went to Lia McHugh and Brown has spent the last several years filming Stranger Things Season 5, limiting her availability for other major projects.

    The return of the directors Anthony and Joe Russo to the MCU to helm Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars has lead to renewed rumors and speculation that Brown, who the lair directed in the Netflix’s Electric State, would join the MCU now that shes closed the book on Stranger Things. The directing duo have made no bones about their admiration for the young actress, saying they would “put her in anything” they make moving forward.

    Millie is on the list for every project. You just can’t ask for a bigger star right now. And [she is] somebody who is passionate about the work, passionate about promoting the movie, passionate about getting up every day and coming to set, making the crew feel good, she has adopted hundreds of dogs, she brings them to set with her; it is like everybody is having an emotional care day with he dogs. She is just lovely. Yeah we will put her in anything.

    -Russo Brothers

    Though there’s been no word of Brown joining the cast of either film just yet, it’s possible she’s poised to join one or both film, with additional photography planned for Doomsday this spring ahead of principal photography for Secret Wars. However, even as Marvel Studios prepares to end its current saga, work is already underway for the next, which will feature a heavy dose of mutants…and new rumor suggests that Brown may be in line for a key role as a member of the studio’s first team of X-Men.

    According to social media scooper My Time To Shine Hello, Marvel is considering casting Brown as one of the core members of the team, though stops short of naming the role.

    After several years with little to no movement, Marvel Studios X-Men reboot began to gather some momentum in the Fall of 2023 when Kevin Feige began meeting with writers to discuss pitches for the project. By April 2024, Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes writer Michael Leslie had landed the gig and rumors quickly emerged that that the MCU’s first X-Men film would feature two fan-favorite characters as the leads: Kitty Pryde and Gambit.

    In May, Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier signed on to direct what he’s called a “complex” take on the X-Men. With the Russos rumored to be joining the Marvel Studios’ Parliament to help oversee the “Mutant Saga,” could Brown be in the mix for Kitty Pryde, a character Feige has long been rumored to want to have at the center of Marvel’s X-Men stories? She certainly carries a ton of cache with young audiences and, at 21, fits the bill for the studio’s “youth-focused reboot.” Casting on X-Men should get heated up after the New Year–it not even in the next few weeks–so this particular rumor may resolve itself one way or another relatively soon.

  • Marvel Reportedly Set to Place Controversial Character Front and Center in the Mutant Saga

    Marvel Reportedly Set to Place Controversial Character Front and Center in the Mutant Saga

    For over two decades, Hugh Jackman has been the face of live-action X-Men films. After leading Fox’s original X-Men trilogy and a Wolverine trilogy and appearing in cameos across other Fox films, Jackman brought Wolverine into the MCU in 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine. The ending of Deadpool & Wolverine seemed to make it fairly clear that the heroic duo’s story had another chapter and in late 2024, a report indicated that Marvel hoped to keep Jackman on in the role beyond its rumored plans for him in Avengers: Secret Wars.

    The potential return of Jackman has already raised concerns that Marvel Studios will continue shining the spotlight on Wolverine, relegating other traditional X-Men big timers to the shadows as Fox often did. Among that group, none were done as dirty as Scott Summers. Portrayed in Fox’s films by both James Marsden and Tye Sheridan, Cyclops never rose to the same heights as his comic book counterpart, who was one of Stan Lee’s favorite characters and has undergone a wonderful and transformative journey in the comics. And a new report claims that Marvel Studios has decided that Scott Summers’ story will be at the center of its Mutant Saga.

    According to longtime industry insider Kristian Harloff, Cyclops and the Summers family “will be the focus of the new mutant saga.“

    While the move might initially stir controversy, if planned and executed correctly, a Summers-centric saga would allow for Marvel Studios to introduce numerous characters either underutilized or unused by Fox AND tell some of Marvel Comics greatest X-Men stories.

    Mister Sinister is rumored to be one of two main villains Marvel hopes to unleash in the Mutant Saga, set to kick off in 2028 with director Jake Schreier‘s youth-focused X-Men film, and his fascination with the Summers bloodline would indeed make him the perfect antagonist for a Cyclops-centric arc. Keeping Cyclops at the center also allows for the Starjammers, the Shi’ar and the Imperial Guard and the Mutant Messiah, Hope Summers, to organically enter the MCU. And given the quality of the comic book stories featuring those characters, that could only be a net positive as Marvel moves away from the roller coaster ride that has been the Multiverse Saga.

  • Marvel Studios Reportedly Sets ‘X-Men’ Release Date

    Marvel Studios Reportedly Sets ‘X-Men’ Release Date

    Work is well underway on Marvel Studios X-Men which Kevin Feige has said will come after Avengers: Secret Wars, kicking off “a new age of mutants.” Directed by Jake Schreier, the “youth-focused reboot” will be markedly different than Fox’s take on the mutant heroes and has been expected to be on track to be one of the studio’s four 2028 releases. Now we know which one.

    According to Jeff “The In” Sneider, Marvel Studios plans to release X-Men on May 5, 2028.

    As Sneider mentioned in his report, the film will be releasing nearly 20 years to the day after Iron Man kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Given the studio’s struggles during its current Multiverse Saga, Disney will be looking to ensure Marvel’s X-Men gets the next saga off to a hot start, especially with Feige’s claim that finally having the live-action rights to the characters is a “dream come true.”

    Source: The InSneider

  • Marvel Studios Reportedly Set to Unleash Two Classic X-Men Villains in The Mutant Saga

    Marvel Studios Reportedly Set to Unleash Two Classic X-Men Villains in The Mutant Saga

    As Marvel Studios Multiverse Saga continues to speed to an end, plenty of work is already being done on the next group of stories which will introduce an all-new, all-different batch of mutant heroes and villains into the MCU. Marvel’s One Above All, Kevin Feige, has made it clear that while “some X-Men players that you might recognize” will continue to pop up over the next few films, “the whole story of Secret Wars really leads us into a new age of mutants and of the X-Men.”

    As it stands, all signs point to the studio’s X-Men movie, directed by Thunderbolts* helmer Jake Schreier, being in theaters in 2028. Schreier’s “complex” take is said to be recognizably different than the angle taken by Fox during its two-decade long run bringing the mutants to the big screen. Part of that, according to Feige, comes from Schreier working on a “youth-focused” reboot but a new rumor suggests that won’t be the only way the new film diverges from its predecessor.

    They have been a place to tell stories about young people who feel different and who feel Other and who feel like they don’t belong. That’s the universal story of mutants, and that is where we’re going.

    -Jake Schreier on the X-Men comics
    According to longtime Marvel Studios insider Daniel Richtman, the studio will look to move away from Magneto and focus on a pair of classic X-Men villains as the new saga gets underway. Richtman’s new report indicates that Mister Sinister and Apocalypse are set to share the spotlight as big bada of the Mutant Saga.

    It’s an interesting pairing, especially given the villains’s shared history in the comics, that could point to the studio choosing to really delve into mutant lore and mythology as well as potentially keeping an eye on adapting Jonathan Hickman‘s modern Krakoan Age stories down the line.

    Though Fox attempted to utilize Apocalypse, played strangely by Oscar Isaac, it’s unlikely Marvel’s plans for the character would even slightly resemble the choices made by Fox. And as for Sinister…he may be the most delightfully evil Marvel Comics villain to have never made it to the big screen and his inclusion alone would allow the studio to explore some of the best X-Men arcs ever written. Teaming him up with Apocalypse, who transformed the scientist into something more evolved in the comics, would seem to set the sky as the limit for the stories that could be told in the new saga.

  • A vs. X: ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Teases Epic Clash Ahead

    A vs. X: ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Teases Epic Clash Ahead

    When Marvel Studios revealed the main cast of Avengers: Doomsday, a number of surprising names graced the backs of chairs, including a half dozen stars from Fox’s X-Men franchise. Fans immediately began to speculate that the return of the OG X-Men could mean only one thing: a war between worlds featuring the Avengers and X-Men. And according to one star, it looks as that’s what we’ll see.

    In an interview with Variety, Cyclops actor James Marsden talked about his role in Avengers: Doomsday and teased that “worlds are ready to collide.”

    You can feel that it’s something special. The world is ready for this movie and these worlds are ready to collide.

    -James Marsden

    With Avengers: Doomsday believed to be largely inspired by Marvel Comics writer Jonathan Hickman‘s work on Avengers and New Avengers titles, it’s possible that the Fox X-Men’s Earth could serve as a stand-in for Earth-1610 (the original Ultimate universe) which went to war with Earth-616 during the final incursion before 2015’s Secret Wars.

    Doctor Doom has officially arrived in the MCU. This villain, a master of cutting-edge science and powerful magic, will unleash a cascading crisis across the entire multiverse.

    -First synopsis for Avengers: Doomsday

    Rumors from the set of Avengers: Doomsday have indicated that any potential clash between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the Children of the Atom would be engineered by Doctor Doom. Given the powerful looking Doom seen recently at a merchandising expo in Shanghai, it’s safe to assume he’ll be pulling a lot of strings when Avengers Doomsday hits theaters on December 18, 2026.

  • Marvel Studios Has Begun Work on Its First Post-Multiverse Saga Film

    Marvel Studios Has Begun Work on Its First Post-Multiverse Saga Film

    “Right after that, the whole story of Secret Wars really leads us into a new age of mutants and of the X-Men,” teased Feige in November 2024. “Again, [it’s] one of those dreams come true. We finally have the X-Men back.” Now, following a recent report that casting for the film would “begin soon,”work on the age of mutants has finally begun at Marvel Studios.

    What I can say is, it’s just inherently interesting and complex material. The core idea of what X-Men is involves complexity.

    -X-Men director Jake Schreier
    In an interview with Empire, director Jake Schreier confirmed that he he is now on the clock for Marvel Studios X-Men.

    “I can’t say anything about it, but we’ve started work on X-Men, and that’s obviously very, very exciting,” said Schreier, who directed the very well-received Thunderbolts* which debuts on D+ August 27th.

    “There are so many things that I didn’t know about before I started [Thunderbolts*],” he explained. “The biggest learning curve for me was the proportion of the action to the more emotional, character-driven scenes, and how, even though it’s more shooting days than I’ve ever had, they get eaten up quite quickly by the action stuff. By the time we got to the end of it, it felt like, ‘Oh, now I feel like we get how to do this a little bit better.’”

    After officially taking the reigns of the film in May, Schreier teased the studio’s complex take on the team of mutant heroes in a July interview with The Playlist. “It’s an incredible opportunity with super interesting characters and [much] internal conflict,” he said of helming the first MCU-set X-Men film. “These characters are wrestling with their identity and place in the world—that’s inherently interesting and complex material.”

    X-Men is expected in theaters in 2028.

    Source: Empire

  • New Report Provides Casting, Release Date Updates for Marvel Studios ‘X-Men’

    New Report Provides Casting, Release Date Updates for Marvel Studios ‘X-Men’

    As The Fantastic Four: First Steps enyers the second weekend of its global launch, Marvel Studios is reportedly preparing to begin work on another project made possible by the 2019 Disney-Fox deal.

    According to Variety’s Tatiana Siegel, Kevin Feige and the Marvel Studios Parliament are currently “fine tuning” the script by Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes writer Michael Lesslie and that casting for the project will “begin soon.”

    Though there’s been no word from Marvel on which X-Men will comprise the team, rumors have claimed that the team will be female-focused and though it will introduce some characters who have not yet appeared in live-action, the plan is to include “main characters we all know” with Kitty Pryde and Gambit set to play large roles.

    Jake’s going to make a youth-focused reboot. That may be reflected in mutant castings, and it’ll definitely be felt in the tone and perspective of the film.

    -Kevin Feige

    Director Jake Schreier, who also helped Thunderbolts* for the studio, has called the source material “inherently interesting and complex”  adding that “the core idea of what X-Men is involves complexity.” And while that sounds like a story that might be better suited for experienced stars, Siegel ‘s report indicates that Marvel is “looking for younger talent, rather than A-listers” in an effort to shrink the film’s budget. That idea certainly meshes well with recent comments by Feige, who describedarvel Comics line of mutant books as places to “tell stories about young people who feel different and who feel Other and who feel like they don’t belong,” adding that’s the same direction the studio is heading with the new film.

    Even as the studio begins the casting process, Siegel’s report cautions that fans should not get too excited about the film hitting theaters soon. Despite having a July  23, 2027 date set aside for an unnamed film, Marvel does not intend to use it for X-Men. As previously stated by Feige, the studio’s “new age of mutants” won’t get underway in full until after Avengers: Secret Wars which will cap off the Multiverse Saga on December 17,2027.

    Updating…

    Source: Variety

  • New Details Emerge on Marvel Studios “Complex” Take on the X-Men

    New Details Emerge on Marvel Studios “Complex” Take on the X-Men

    After helping bring the X-Men to the screen in the early 2000’s at Fox, Marvel Studios Head Honcho Kevin Feige is preparing to do so again, this time as a flagship property at Marvel Studios. With a script being written now, X-Men is primed to launch the studio’s post-Multiverse Saga plans in 2028.

    Feige has entrusted the first of what will be many X-projects to Jake Schreier, whose work on Thunderbolts* helped boost Marvel back toward the stratosphere the studio had inhabited for well over a decade before coming back down to Earth following a string of disappointing projects. Ahead of the release of Thunderbolts* on physical media, Schreier met with The Playlist and, for the first time,  discussed taking on X-Men.

    Jake’s going to make a youth-focused reboot. That may be reflected in mutant castings, and it’ll definitely be felt in the tone and perspective of the film.

    -Kevin Feige

    “I mean, yeah, without going into too much—really almost any detail,” said Schreier when asked if he could talk about his involvement with the new Marvel Studios project. “What I can say is, it’s just inherently interesting and complex material. The core idea of what X-Men is involves complexity,” he added.

    Since launching during the Civil Rights Movement, X-Men stories have always been subtextually complex, featuring characters who are often feared and hated for being different, something Schreier looks to putting front and center in his film. “It’s an incredible opportunity with super interesting characters and [much] internal conflict. These characters are wrestling with their identity and place in the world—that’s inherently interesting and complex material,” said Schreier.

    They have been a place to tell stories about young people who feel different and who feel Other and who feel like they don’t belong. That’s the universal story of mutants, and that is where we’re going.

    As with Marvel Studios The Fantastic Four: First Steps, X-Men will need to be fundamentally different from Fox’s previous big screen efforts. While Schreier chose not to elaborate on how the studio will accomplish that, he did confirm the studio’s plans to set the new film apart from the films in the Fox franchise. “Yeah, I think that’s fair to say,” said Schreier when asked if his film would be “recognizably different” from the prior projects, adding  “There’s that red sniper dot out there somewhere, you know…“

    It seems unlikely that Marvel sniper will be coming for Schreier, however, as he seems not only to have a handle on how to bring a fresh perspective to a genre that continues to fight audience fatigue (whether real or imagined) but also stay true to the stories that made fans fall in love with the characters. “…to be able to explore all of the ideas that are inherent to that rich source material, but also at the scale inherent to the source material, that’s like a very rare and fortunate opportunity. That’s very exciting,” he said. With enough ideas in the source material to last a decade or more, it is indeed a very exciting time for X-Men fans.

    Sources: The Playlist