Now that the X-Men movie rights are finally back in Marvel's hands, MCU fans are running
wild with speculation as to which mutants might show up in the franchise first.
From A-list icons to ambitious wildcards, these are the X-Men who most deserve a place
in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
2018's Black Panther was more than just a huge money-maker for Marvel Studios.
Sure, it grossed a cool $1.3 billion at the box office, but it also kicked the franchise
up a notch by introducing a genuinely compelling villain, a thought-provoking premise, and
arguably the best MCU romance to date.
But while Lupita Nyong'o's and Chadwick Boseman shared some undeniable chemistry as Nakia
and T'Challa, the King of Wakanda actually married someone completely different in the
comics: Ororo Munroe, also known as Storm.
In comic lore, Ororo and T'Challa first met as children, when she used her weather-manipulating
powers to save the young prince from a kidnapping in Africa.
The two young lovers remained close through the years, eventually marrying in 2006.
Although they eventually had their marriage annulled after the events of the Avengers
vs. X-Men story-line in 2012, they still shared a good six years of marital bliss.
With Black Panther 2 officially slated for release on May 6, 2022, Marvel has the perfect
opportunity to introduce Storm while staying true to the source material.
Back in February 2018, Comicbook.com asked director Ryan Coogler about a potential Storm
sighting in a future sequel.
He replied:
"I don't know enough about that acquisition to even talk about it [...] if it's something
that goes through, I can't think of better hands for those characters to be in than Kevin
Feige."
With the rights finally in hand, a Storm may indeed be brewing for Black Panther 2.
He may not have been part of the original comics team, but these days it's hard to imagine
the X-Men without Wolverine.
Hugh Jackman played the iconic role for 17 years and nine movies before finally deciding
to hang up his claws after 2017's wildly successful swan song, Logan.
And while Wolverine might be pivotal to the X-Men universe, his first major comic book
appearance didn't have anything to do with them.
Logan's first outing was in 1974's Incredible Hulk #181, in which he first fought the Jade
Giant - yes, he appeared in the last panel of the prior issue but we said “fought”
- so relax.
What could this mean for the MCU?
Obviously, you could make the argument that it would be fitting to introduce Wolverine
in a future Hulk project, either on Disney+ or on the silver screen.
Given that Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner lived through the events of Endgame, you'd have
to assume that Bruce will show up in the MCU again, too, right?
So what better way to bring him back than to have him square off against an ultra-powerful
threat like Wolverine?
Most MCU fans were pretty excited to hear that Tom Hiddleston's Loki would be getting
his own streaming series on Disney+.
And given that Endgame's alternate-reality version of Loki is still hellbent on world
domination, it sounds like the ambitious trickster will be getting back to his villainous ways.
“Surprise.”
In the comics, Loki once captured one of the original X-Men, Iceman, to try and use his
freezing powers to make his Frost Giants stronger.
Given that the MCU's Loki is also portrayed as the heir to Jotunheim, the land of the
Frost Giants, it's possible that Hiddleston's iteration of the character will try this ploy,
too.
Bobby Drake's Iceman, one of the founding members of the X-Men, has seen his popularity
grow throughout the years, but that's not just because of his incredible, ice-powered
abilities.
In 2015, he came out as gay, making him an important figure for representation in comics
the kind of representation that's long overdue in the MCU.
Of course, tying your hopes to the God of Mischief is usually a fool's errand and only
time will tell what Loki has up his sleeve for his own series.
Comic book fans might know that Carol Danvers has a seriously twisted history with longtime
X-Men member Rogue, whose absorption powers made her one of the X-Men's most formidable
members.
Their beef began when Rogue, while working with Mystique and the Brotherhood of Evil
Mutants, drained Carol's powers and memories, stealing her powers of flight and super-strength.
Although Carol eventually reclaimed her identity and abilities, she and Rogue have remained
fierce rivals throughout the years.
Of course, the Fox version of Rogue never got to do anything this cool, and that's because
Fox didn't have the rights to Carol Danvers so they obviously couldn't give her that backstory
in the first place.
Now that Marvel has reclaimed their mutants, however, it's entirely possible that fans
might finally get a comic-accurate version of Rogue in the MCU.
And where better to debut her than in Captain Marvel 2?
Poor Channing Tatum.
For years, the Magic Mike star has been vying for a Gambit movie with himself in the titular
role.
Sadly, it's looking more and more like that film is never going to happen.
But maybe there's another way Tatum can play the role of the Ragin' Cajun.
One of the many streaming series on the upcoming Disney+ roster is Hawkeye, a show focusing
on Jeremy Renner's archer Avenger.
Despite his involvement in the Avengers movies, Renner's Clint Barton isn't really perceived
as an A-list MCU character.
As such, his series isn't quite as hotly-anticipated as, say, Loki or WandaVision.
Perhaps a great way to inject some much needed pizzazz into Hawkeye would be to give Channing
Tatum what he's always wanted: a chance to play Gambit.
The two heroes have crossed paths in the comics, so it's not an entirely unprecedented move.
They both have somewhat similar powers, too, with Barton's bow precision being comparable
to Gambit's explosive card-throwing accuracy.
And whether you have them at odds or teaming up, it does seem like a great way to lend
some hype to a show that could probably use it.
One of the many lasting impacts of Endgame is that Gamora, longtime member of the Guardians
of the Galaxy, is no longer the same character fans have grown to love.
Her whole existence was thrown upside-down due to the one-two punch of her sacrifice
for the Soul Stone at the hands of Thanos and the repercussions of the Avengers' time
heist.
Now, the MCU is home to a Gamora who is alive but who hasn't gone on the journey fans have
witnessed, with no memories of her time with the Guardians or with Peter Quill.
But don't cry for Star Lord just yet because there could be a new flame appearing in his
near future.
Enter Kitty Pryde, the spunky, wall-phasing member of the X-Men.
In recent years, Pryde has developed a strong bond with Peter Quill.
They first met when the X-Men and Guardians teamed up on a space mission involving the
Shi'ar alien race.
After completing the mission, the two lovebirds remained close, giving the term "long-distance
relationship" a whole new meaning.
Although Fox's X-Men movies did include the Kitty Pryde character, you could argue that
her minor role in that universe didn't really do her justice.
This is a character who has done some seriously impressive things on the page, including traveling
through time and even killing Wolverine.
So here's hoping a more comic-accurate Pryde makes her debut in the MCU sometime soon.
James Wan's Aquaman hit theaters in 2018, dominating the worldwide box office with a
gross of a whopping $1.1 billion.
Now, for seemingly the first time in the past ten years, Marvel is staring at an opportunity
to take a page from the DCEU's playbook and try to capitalize on the musclebound fish-men
craze.
One of Marvel's first-ever characters was Namor the Sub-Mariner [NAY-mor the SUB-mair-ihn-uhr],
King of Atlantis.
It's been more than 80 years since his on-page debut, and although he has fought both for
and against the heroes of the Marvel Universe during that time, he is widely considered
a good guy.
He became an official member of the Avengers in 1985, but more recently, he joined the
Uncanny X-Men in their 2009 comic run.
Namor's affiliation with the X-Men has actually earned him a powerful rival in the past ten
years: Wakanda's King T'Challa.
During the epic Avengers vs. X-Men comic event, a Phoenix force-corrupted Namor even went
so far as to attack Wakanda with his Atlantean army, bringing great destruction to the African
nation.
Should Marvel choose to bring their "first mutant" into the MCU, Black Panther 2 could
be a great place to do so.
There was even a potential Easter egg in Avengers: Endgame that fans believe hinted to his arrival,
with Okoye mentioning a sub-oceanic earthquake off the coast of Africa.
"It was a mild subduction under the African plate.
“Do we have a visual how are we handling it?”
“Net.
It’s an earthquake under the ocean."
Fingers crossed for a clash of kings in T'Challa's next solo outing.
When Jubilee joined the X-Men at the dawn of the 1990's, she became one of the youngest
members of the team's roster.
A mutant capable of shooting firework-like energy plasmoids out of her hands, the young
Chinese-American heroine quickly became a fan favorite due to her quirky personality
and dazzling appeal.
However, after a run-in with a certain foe, she became much more than just a mutant.
In the Curse of the Mutants crossover event in 2011, the X-Men found themselves going
toe-to-toe with vampires.
Yeah, vampires.
Anyways, in the comics, Jubilee was bitten by Xarus, the son of Dracula, and actually
became a vampire herself, making use of a special amulet that allowed her to walk in
the sun.
Why should a vampiric mutant earn an early invitation to the MCU?
Because the day-walker himself, Blade, is coming soon to a theater near you.
If Feige and company add a fan-favorite like Jubes to Oscar winner Mahershala Ali's MCU
debut, the hype will be unreal.
Talk about an explosive opening weekend.
Any mutant fan will know that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are the biological children
of X-Men super villain Magneto, but you might not know that the twins actually have a secret,
lesser known sibling: Lorna Dane, the green-haired mutant also known as Polaris.
In the comics, Polaris shares similar abilities to those of her father, being able to manipulate
magnetic fields and lift metals.
Although she has had her fair share of conflicts with both heroes and villains, she eventually
joined the X-Men after they saved her from the mutant-hunting Sentinels.
Although Emma Dumont already portrayed her on FX's X-Men-affiliated series The Gifted,
there's no reason why the MCU couldn't adapt their own version of the character.
Should Disney+'s WandaVision choose dive into more of Wanda's origin story, discovering
a secretly gifted half-sister like Polaris could make for a juicy plot twist.
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