The House of Mouse has always liked to work in-house, often sharing talent across its major studios. Paul Bettany, Oscar Isaac, Samuel L. Jackson and Mads Mikkelsen, Lupitia Nyong’o are among those who have starred in both the Star Wars and Marvel franchises; Jon Favreau has directed projects for three of Disney’s major production studios; and…Pedro Pascal.
According to Jeff “The In” Sneider, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, the young star who plays Tuk in James Cameron‘s Avatar films, is being considered for the role of Jubilee in Marvel Studios’ X-Men.
A central character in X-Men: The Animated Series and Marvel Animation’s X-Men ’97, Jubilation Lee never made it out of the background in Fox’s original X-Men trilogy. However, Kevin Feige has reportedly been keen on including the character in the MCU reboot and, over a year ago, she was been reported to be part of the upcoming film’s core cast.
With Schreier boarding the project now, it’s likely the studio is looking to get production underway next summer, allowing X-Men to hit theaters in July 2027, launching the studio’s post-Multiverse Saga era.
Marvel Studios has set a familiar director to helm its forthcoming X-Men movie. Deadline announced on Thursday that Thunderbolts* director, Jake Schreier, is in talks to direct the upcoming X-Men movie for Marvel Studios. This comes after Thunderbolts* has been received well among both fans and critics alike. Talks appear to be early still, however, Schreier met with Marvel Studios last week regarding the project and appears to be the frontrunner for the movie. Should he officially sign on, he would be directing the movie from a script by Michael Lesslie.
Per Deadline, Marvel has been keen to find the right director for its first X-Men movie, as the studio doesn’t want to rush the project. The studio has reportedly been meeting with potential directors for months, however, it was the positive response to Thunderbolts* that truly made Schreier stand out as the top choice. Schreier is said to be a big fan of the X-Men comics, and that made him stand out further, as the studio had successfully launched Thunderbolts* with the in-demand director. With Schreier said to be turning down potential directing gigs, it seems likely he’ll officially sign on for X-Men. For now, fans can at least be excited knowing the studio is moving ahead with its first X-Men movie.
As of now, the only other X-Men movie said to be in development at Marvel Studios is an X-Men and Deadpool movie from Deadpool star, Ryan Reynolds. That project, however, is not guaranteed to come to fruition and is simply in development as of now.
Stranger Things star Sadie Sink will co-star with MCU vet Tom Holland in Spider-Man 4 in what’s only been described to this point as a large role. Previously rumored to be a front-runner for the role of Omega mutant and original X-Men Jean Grey, the identity of Sink‘s character has generated a lot of conversation online though it remains unknown. With that in mind, we’re jumping into the conversation, adding a few dark horse candidates for the young ginger star’s MCU alter ego.
Given that the new Spider-Man film will follow Avengers: Doomsday, there’s no telling just yet what the project’s setting might be, so ruling out any one particular character on the grounds of a “why would they be there?” argument is nonsensical at this point. In a collapsing Multiverse, all bets are off.
Firestar
Insider Jeff “The In” Sneider’s late 2024 report that Sink was leading a pack of actresses for the part of Marvel Studios’ Jean Grey seems to still be carrying a lot of weight in the current conversation about Sink’s Spidey 4 role. On one hand, we’ve heard on more than one occasion that the studio wants to introduce its own variants of the mutant heroes into the MCU before the X-Men film hits in (probably) 2027, so Grey makes a lot of sense for Sink; on the other hand, another red headed mutant has a much richer history with the Web-Slinger.
When rights issues blocked the use of Johnny Storm in 1981’s for NBC’s animated Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Firestar was created to be the fire to Bobby Drake’s ice. In 1985, the character was written into the mainstream Marvel Comics continuity where she has been an X-Man, New Warrior and Avenger. As much as folksight want to write the character off as a random Z-lister, remember a whole generation of kids–the generation that includes director Destin Daniel Cretton–grew up believing Firestar was pretty amazing. And, in some ways, it might be easier for a non-major member of the X-Men to be introduced as native to Earth-616 than for Jean Grey to suddenly appear.
Hope Summers
If one host of the Phoenix is possible, why not another? Raised in the future by Cable, Hope Summers, the Mutant Messiah, is as powerful of an Omega-Level mutant as has ever existed and one of the most important X-Men characters created this century.
Hope was never even close to fully utilized by Fox, only having briefly appeared in Deadpool 2 and Marvel could tap into her role as the mutant savior by throwing her into the mix as the Multiverse (likely) collapses and is then remade. Spidey has long been a mutant ally, so it wouldn’t be out of place for him to work with Hope to solve whatever is going on after the events of Avengers: Doomsday.
Rachel Summers
Of all the possibilities here, I actually like this one the best. Rachel Summers stands out among potential choices because of her identity as a Multiversal anomaly: across all timelines, there is only one Rachel Summers. Though not Omega-Level like her mother, Jean Grey, Rachel is a powerful telepath who has also demonstrated the ability to control time and travel to other realities.
While it may be a bit of a stretch, it’s important to remember that actions have consequences so when Monica Rambeau found herself stuck in whatever reality she ended up in during the third act of The Marvels, a response is due. With the Multiverse in jeopardy, it’s possible an older Rachel Summers, complete with her Hound skills intact, could be sent to explore things in Monica’s home universe where she meets up with Peter Parker.
According to Jeff “The In” Sneider, Babygirl star Harris Dickinson is among those being a considered for the role of Scott Summers, aka Cyclops.
Even as he shared the rumors, Sneider was careful to point out that his information should be taken with a grain of salt and that Dickinson was in no way locked into the role. In that sense, perhaps the most important take away then isn’t Dickinson’s name but rather his age and relative notoriety. While the actor is a talented up and comer, he’s hardly a household name just yet, suggesting the studio will be searching for such actors to fill out its roster of X-Men.
Whether it’s Dickinson or another young star in the role, X-Men fans will cling to hope that the next iteration of Cyclops is not done as dirty as James Marsden and Tye Sheridan‘s versions were by Fox. Since the earliest days of the team’s comic book adventures, Cyclops has been a central and often controversial character. Here’s hoping that Lesslie‘s script draws influence from the comics and not Fox’s poor choices with the character.
As the sixth anniversary of Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox approaches, Marvel Studios has done very little with the treasure trove of live-action rights that fell to them in the merger. While Deadpool & Wolverine was a box office success for the company and Hugh Jackman‘s return as the best their is at what he does was a wonderful treat, it’s safe to say that Wade Wilson was well down the list of characters MCU fans were anticipating to appear.
That’s all about to change, of course, as Marvel’s First Family, The Fantastic Four, will make their MCU debut this summer. And then, there’ the X-Men. Though mutants have been sparsely sprinkled into several projects over the past few years, fans are craving an all-new take on Marvel’s Children of the Atom and things are indeed gathering some Juggernaut-ish momentum on that front.
Since it’s still in the scripting stages, Marvel Studios’ X-Men reboot hasn’t been placed on Disney’s release calendar; however, with a trio of films set for 2028, it’s beginning to look increasingly likely that the X-Men will indeed make it into the MCU within a decade of the Fox merger.
Don’t call it typecasting but Bill Skarsgård continues to land villainousroles and deliver his best performances. Whether as Pennywise, Marquis de Gramont or, most recently, Count Orlolk, Skarsgård inhabits sinister roles in a way few have been able to do consistently.
You’ll be forgiven if you don’t recall that Skarsgård also played a (sort of) big bad in a Marvel Studios films, having voiced the Deviant leader, Kro, in 2021’s Eternals. While the actor recently generated some buzz after expressing his opinion of his ability to pull of a “pretty cool Joker” in Andy Muschetti‘s The Brave and the Bold, a new rumor suggests he may be in line for another turn in a new MCU role.
According to social media scooper My Time To Shine Hello, “Marvel Studios is interested in Bill Skarsgård for a new MCU role. Not his Eternals role.”
While that’s all the scooper had to share, with Marvel Studios finally turning its attention to the X-Men and Mister Sinister strongly rumored to be an ongoing antagonist, it’s easy to imagine Skarsgård becoming the fabulous supervillain.
Of course there are plenty of other roles, both heroic and villainous, that Skarsgård might fill as well (The Beyonder comes to mind) and it must be remembered that this is simply a rumor. However, with the mutant movement underway and the studio potentially looking to introduce at least one key member of the X-Men before the end of the Multiverse Saga, it’s believable enough that the Marvel Parliament may also consider introducing a major new villain as well.
Marvel Studios had a fairly large presence at Disney’s D23 Expo in Brazil which ran from November 8th through November 10th. While no new projects were announced, footage was shown from upcoming projects from all the studios under the Marvel umbrella. Marvel Studios showcased its 2025 film slate with Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps; Marvel Television shared a look at next March’s Daredevil: Born Again; Marvel Animation unveiled the first trailer for Season 3 of What If…?, which debuts on December 22nd, and gave the fans a look at Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, which hits D+ on January 29th, 2025.
Despite not breaking any news on the stage, Marvel Studios One Above All, Kevin Feige, did have plenty to say to the Brazilian outlet Omelete about the potential futures of several big-time MCU players.
Blade
“We are committed to Blade,” said the Feigster. “We love the character. We love Mahershala’s take on him. And rest assured: whenever we change direction with a project, or are still figuring out how it fits into our schedule, we let the audience know. You’re all up to date on what’s happening. But I can tell you that the character will indeed make it to the MCU.”
Parsing words a bit, it does seem interesting that Feige chose to say that “the character would indeed make it to the MCU” rather than the film. It may ultimately be nitpicking but it is worth noting and tracking as things continue to develop.
Deadpool and Wolverine
After finishing up an incredible run in theaters, Deadpool & Wolverine is now available digitally and, as of November 12th, is streaming on Disney Plus where it’s sure to generate another round of hype. According to Feige, fans can probably expect to see more of the odd couple. “The plans with Deadpool and Wolverine will always be the same,” teased Feige. “We’re always wondering where we can fit them in, and how quickly.” With rumors that both characters will have roles in the studio’s 2027 Multiverse Saga finale, Avengers: Secret Wars, it may not be too long before the deadly duo suits up again.
And now, whatever room remained to harbor doubt was wiped out by Feige in Brazil.”We had Agatha All Along on Disney+ just now, and that series was great for us. Since then, there have been a lot of questions about Wanda in fans’ minds,” said Feige. “So all I can say is that we’re excited to find out when and how Scarlet Witch can come back.” New rumors suggest the character will play a large role in Avengers: Doomsday; if those rumors are true, we’ll likely find out soon as the film is expected to go before cameras in early 2025.
X-Men
Fans have been eagerly awaiting Marvel Studios’ take on the X-Men since the live-action rights to the characters were acquired as part of Disney’s 2019 merger with Fox. And while some mutants have been sprinkled into other projects over the past few years, the studio does have much larger plans for the X-Men, including a film being written by Michael Lesslie. While there was some hope it might end up in the Multiverse Saga, Feige put all that talk to bed in Brazil.
“When we were preparing for Avengers: Endgame years ago, it was a matter of getting to the grand finale of our narrative, and then we had to start all over again after that,” Feige explained. “This time, on the road to Secret Wars, we already know very well what’s going to happen. be the story until then and beyond. The X-Men are an important part of that future.” With a script already in the works, it’s very possible that Phase 7 of the MCU (if Phases are even a thing anymore) could lead off with Marvel Studios X-Men.
Eternals
Perhaps in part because of the success of Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel Studios made the choice to develop a film around the Eternals, an obscure group of characters created by Jack Kirby in the 1970s. However, rather than lean into what Kirby intended the characters to be, the studio stripped them of everything their creator built into them that was of interest. The result was a film that was poorly received critically despite having one of the MCU’s most impressive ensemble casts.
Before it flopped in theaters, there seemed to be big plans for the characters introduced in Eternals. That no longer seems to be the case with Feige already saying “there are no immediate plans forEternals 2” earlier this year and now indicating that whole the studio remains “very proud of that movie” adding that cast was incredible” while giving no indication that’s something he’s actually attempting to do.“We’d be lucky to get any of them back at some point,” he closed, which would be a strange thing to say if he were planning on using the characters.
Inhumans
Originally in development as a film for a 2019 release, Marvel’s Inhumans was pulled from the slate in 2016. From there, the property moved to Marvel TV and ultimately turned into one of the most ridiculously embarrassing projects the company ever produced.
Though Anson Mount‘s Black Bolt did appear in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it’s never really seemed as though Feige had large-scale plans for the Inhumans within the confines of the MCU. And if his response to a question about the characters is any indication, he still doesn’t have any. “We’ll see where, if, and when, they return,” replies Feige to an inquiry about their MCU future. At least we’ll always have that great moment where one of Marvel’s most disciplined heroes accidentally killed himself!
Even though what he does isn’t very nice, Wolverine is, of course, the best there is at what he does. And for two decades, Wolverine was the best there was at carrying Fox’s otherwise unremarkable X-Men franchise on his back with Hugh Jackman carving out an iconic place in film history as Weapon X. Though Jackman thought he’d bowed out of the role following 2017’s Logan, it turned out the actor had one more turn to take, bringing the character into the MCU in 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine. It’s safe to say that despite the hard work to get back in shape for the role, it was a win for everyone as the film put Marvel Studios back on top at the box office and Jackman admittedly had a great time working with friends Ryan Reynolds and Shawn Levy on the film.
With Deadpool & Wolverine serving as a farewell to the Fox universe and Marvel Studios preparing to move ahead with its own version of the X-Men, rumors have once again begun to fly about who will fill the role of Logan in the MCU. And as word about the roster of the MCU’s team of X-Men hits the web, there is reportedly a leader in the clubhouse to portray Logan…at least in the short term.
According to MCU insider Daniel RPK, Marvel Studios is hopeful that Jackman will stay on as Wolverine, not only for Avengers: Secret Wars but potentially beyond.
The ending of Deadpool & Wolverine seemed to make it fairly clear that the heroic duo’s story had another chapter and rumors about Jackman staying on as Logan for Avengers: Secret Wars have been around for some time. The idea that the star, who is now 55 years old, might stay on beyond 2027 might be a tougher pill to swallow, though he’s seemingly found the fountain of youth. From a storytelling standpoint, having an older, grizzled, Multiverse-saving Logan eventually lead a young team of X-Men in a Wolverine and the X-Men film isn’t honestly as far-fetched as it seems…as long as Jackman is willing to get back in the weight room and don the mask once more.
Before Marvel Studios’ live-action X-Men reboot hits the screen, the uncanny team of mutant heroes will already have some significant positive momentum. After Fox’s two-decade run of films went out with a whimper, X-Men ’97 led off the all-new, all-different Disney era with a bang, reminding audiences just how exceptional the characters can be with solid storytelling as the foundation. The successful streaming series was shortly followed up by Deadpool & Wolverine which not only brought the two leads into the Marvel Studios Multiverse but also resuscitated interest in seeing Channing Tatum as Gambit after the character’s solo film fell victim to the Disney-Fox merger.
While those projects stood in the spotlight, Marvel Studios continued work on the X-Men project first teased by Kevin Feige at SDCC ’19. With writer Michael Lesslie putting together a script, the studio is closer than ever to putting their own Children of the Atom on screen. Now, a new rumor sheds some light on who will and won’t be on that team.
According to trusted insider Daniel RPK, the first iteration of the MCU’s X-Men will closely resemble the team seen in X-Men ’97…with one notable exception.
While the report doesn’t expand upon which characters from the animated series fans can expect, it seems likely that the following characters would be all but sure bets, should the plan come to fruition.
When the X-Men first appeared in the pages of Marvel Comics in 1963, Charles Xavier’s team consisted of Scott Sommers, Jean Grey, Hank McCoy, Bobby Drake and Warren Worthington III. Obviously, three of those heroes (Scott, Jean and Hank) were featured in X-Men ’97 and should be expected to lead the MCU’s team of mutant heroes.
The Cameo Machine
Kevin Sydney, aka Changeling, aka Morph, doesn’t have the illustrious comic book history that the other X-Men here have; however, as portrayed in X-Men ’97 he offers something no other character can: the potential for limitless cameos which equals the potential for limitless merchandise!
The Giant-Size Additions
In 1975, Len Wein and Dave Cockrum gave the X-Men new life with an all-new, all-different crew that featured Storm, Nightcrawler and Wolverine among others. While Storm and Wolverine are X-Men animated series mainstays, RPK’s report indicates that Wolverine isn’t expected to be part of the new team. That leaves Storm and Nightcrawler to do the heavy lifting which both characters are more than capable of doing.
Dat 90’s Couple, Sugah!
For old-school X-fans, Scott and Jean are the power couple; however, X-Men: The Animated Series offered up a new possibility that has dominated the pages of the comics ever since. Given Channing Tatum‘s performance in Deadpool & Wolverine, it’s almost impossible to imagine that he won’t be back as Gambit. And while fans could debate all day about which character was done dirtiest in Fox’s X-Men movies, if Rogue isn’t near the top of that list, nobody’s listening anyway. These two deserve their time to shine in live-action and Feige may well give it to them.
While there have been mutants aplenty in the Multiverse Saga, Lesslie’s story is reportedly introducing the studio’s own live-action take on the team of mutants rather than dipping back into Fox’s well. To that end, it would be necessary to make efforts to set the new adaptation apart from what’s come before. One way to ensure fans don’t cross the streams would be to put the focus on characters other than Wolverine and Jean Grey and according to a new rumor from a trusted insider, it sounds as though Lesslie’s script does just that.
Daniel RPK is reporting that the MCU’s first X-Men film will feature two fan-favorite characters as the leads: Kitty Pryde and Gambit.
The focus on Pryde lines up with a previous report from the insider that suggested the X-Men reboot would focus on “main characters we all know” and be female-focused. Though Pryde appeared in the Fox films, the studio’s version–like most of the mutants in those films–was a poor interpretation of who the character truly is. It has long been expected that Kitty would be a featured character in Marvel Studios’ new take on the team of mutants heroes and that Feige would elevate her from the “sidekick” status she had in the Fox films.
Equally unsurprising is the news that Remy LeBeau, one of the company’s most popular mutants for over 30 years, will be a central character. Gambit’s star is shining brightly on the heels of his incredible journey in X-Men ’97 and his appearance in Deadpool & Wolverine where Channing Tatum finally got the chance to show off his take on the Cajun.
Putting Shadowcat and Gambit at the center of the reboot provides interesting options to not only build out the rest of the team based on key relationships with those two but also sets the stage for expanding the narrative well beyond what Fox accomplished.
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