The MCU's X-Men Is Immediately Correcting Fox's Biggest Missed Opportunity

Published Nov 4, 2026, 8:30 AM EST

Cooper Hood is the Associate Editor for all new movie releases, in theaters and on streaming. In addition to writing articles about these titles and upcoming releases, he also oversees content planning for each, ensuring that ScreenRant continues to cover major releases for months after their release.

He has written various reviews for ScreenRant that appear on Rotten Tomatoes, coordinated Oscars and San Diego Comic-Con coverage, appeared on CNN to talk about Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning, and done select interviews with talent over the years.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is taking advantage of Fox's missed opportunity with X-Men from the very beginning. While Marvel Studios has brought mutants into the MCU over the years through many means, it won't be until 2028 that the franchise introduces its first proper X-Men team.

After making Jean Grey (Sadie Sink) the villain of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, she'll return as a central figure in the new film. Amid speculation about Sink's role, questions swirled about what other mutants would join her. Answers continue to come as Marvel Studios fills out X-Men's cast with actors playing known heroes and villains from this corner of the universe.

The assembled talent for the MCU's X-Men have brought plenty of insights into Marvel's approach, especially regarding how it compares to Fox's handling of the IP for decades. The MCU's X-Men skews younger than the originals, but older than Fox's prequels. Adam Driver's Mister Sinister will be the villain, rather than Magneto. The X-Men team he'll fight is notable, too.

While Fox delivered multiple iterations of X-Men teams throughout its various timelines, they missed out on uniting the original comic team. That mistake in the eyes of Marvel Comics readers is immediately being fixed for the MCU, as that's the team X-Men is starting with based on how casting has shaped up.

The MCU Is Focusing On X-Men's Founding Team Members

Marvel

The X-Men were introduced in 1963's The X-Men #1 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby with a roster constructed of Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman, and Jean Grey, with Professor X teaching them. While the team has grown and changed in many ways throughout the years since then, those characters are the core of X-Men storytelling.

Marvel Studios is ensuring that is the same for the MCU by having all of them appear from the very first X-Men movie, as all of these characters have been cast. Jean was cast first for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, while Professor X (Christopher Abbott) and Cyclops (Kit Connor) were announced at D23 2026.

Since then, trade reports have come announcing the casting of Angel (Asa Germann) and Iceman (Ben Wang). There is also a report that Game of Thrones' Peter Claffey will play Beast, but that has yet to be confirmed. But given previous rumors that Charles Melton was in consideration for that role, all signs point to Beast being in the movie.

This makes the six founding X-Men members part of the team from its inception in the MCU. Jean, Cyclops, Angel, Beast, and Iceman should all be active team members, while Professor X remains their teacher. There may be more mutants on the team or teaching the students, but this will be the first time these six X-Men will be together in a movie.

Fox Never Brought The Founding X-Men Comics Team Together

Fox's X-Men movie franchise repeatedly missed the chance to bring the founding mutants together. Beast and Angel were missing from the first team in X-Men and X2. All but Professor X and Beast were absent from X-Men: First Class' initial roster, and that carried over into X-Men: Days of Future Past. The new-look team introduced in X-Men: Apocalypse brought Cyclops and Jean into the mix, and Angel eventually, but Iceman remained missing.

The closest Fox ever came to assembling X-Men's founding members was in X-Men: The Last Stand. The trilogy ender included all six characters in some capacity, but they did not all interact. Jean killed Cyclops early on and Professor X later before abandoning the X-Men to join Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. Angel and Beast joined Iceman as official X-Men members, but the rest of the team was different: Wolverine, Storm, Kitty Pryde, and Colossus.

It's a stunning oversight for Fox (one that likely left Kevin Feige scratching his head as he worked on those films early in his career). The franchise had seven core X-Men movies to bring these six characters together but failed to do so at every turn. Now, that missed opportunity has become the linchpin to the MCU's take.

The MCU Starting With The Original X-Men Team Is Brilliant

Starting the X-Men franchise with the original team is the latest example of the MCU going back to fundamental comic elements when redoing previously adapted characters and stories. For instance, Tom Holland's Spider-Man spent an entire trilogy in high school, rather than speeding him to adulthood. Something similar is happening with the X-Men, as Marvel has clearly made the founding members a priority for the MCU.

This immediately sets the reboot apart from past adaptations and brings it closer to the comics fans know and love. X-Men may target younger audiences, but it will have the nostalgic lineup that lifelong comic readers know. It will feel incredibly familiar and new at the same time.

However, the MCU isn't just blindly following the comics either. Storm (Maya Boyd) and Rogue (Inde Navarrette) are confirmed to appear, and both should be part of the X-Men team. Emma Frost (Samara Weaving) also remains a wildcard regarding what side she will fall on. Some of these characters could have larger roles than some of the founding members, but the important thing is they all get to be together at last.

The MCU's X-Men Approach Solves Its Wolverine Problem Too

Other mutants are sure to appear in X-Men, with Gambit and Nightcrawler two popular suggestions. Wolverine's potential presence looms over the whole project, as the MCU needs to figure out if the iconic hero will be recast, replaced by X-23, or continue to be played by Hugh Jackman (until he's 90). But that decision can be delayed thanks to X-Men's focus.

With the founding members taking precedence for the MCU, Wolverine sitting out the movie becomes easier to explain away. He is not part of the original lineup, as his comics debut didn't come until 12 years later. Wolverine's popularity quickly led to him taking a prominent role in X-Men titles, and that will happen for the MCU once he is properly introduced.

Rather than have Wolverine overshadow the rest of the X-Men from the start, he can sit out the first movie and allow the founding members more time to shine. This will be a better approach for the health of the MCU's future, as audiences need to care about more than just the adamantium-strengthened mutant.

X-Men could still wind up referencing Wolverine, but it's easier for comic readers and general audiences to understand why he isn't in the 2028 movie if Marvel sells the founding members' focus. Those mutants could then encounter him in a follow-up project after being more established as the core of the team concept in the MCU.

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  Jean Grey

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  Rogue / Anna Marie

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  Scott Summers / Cyclops

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  Samara Weaving

  Emma Frost