Credit: Inside the MagicNow that Deadpool & Wolverine wrapped up the Fox X-Men universe, it is time for Marvel Studios to bring in the mutants. The question now is: who are we going to see?
One of the more under-commented aspects of comic book superhero teams is how fluid their memberships tend to be. While we have a default idea that say, the Justice League always means Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, what about Green Lantern? Which Hawkperson? Is Martian Manhunter around there somewhere? How did Cyborg turn into a founding member?
Same deal for the Avengers. While the 2012 Marvel Cinematic Universe cemented the idea that the core team includes Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye, about half of those people weren’t founding members. Heck, the Hulk was originally their adversary, not their sullen/wisecracking science guy #2.
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Even among superhero teams, the X-Men roster is pretty convoluted. The original lineup consisted of Professor X, Cyclops, Beast, Marvel Girl, Iceman, and Angel, but that is only a tiny fraction of the mutants who have belonged to the team in the decades since.
Accordingly, we are evaluating (using a very scientific method known as “guessing”) the odds of which mutants join the team when Kevin Feige finally reboots them for the MCU.
Now, we’re not crazy here, so we’re not including outright villains like Magneto and Juggernaut who briefly joined the team at some point or every single mutant who has ever existed in Marvel Comics. We pretty much scooped all of the ringers (except for Wolverine, who apparently won’t be showing up to play) and a whole bunch of the random mutants across the decades.
So…place your bets!
Ms. Marvel: 100%
Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani), is pretty much a shoo-in to appear in some capacity in the new X-Men movie. She’s already part of a popular and critically acclaimed Disney+ show, and she is clearly being positioned as part of a Young Avengers project. The big cliffhanger of her series was the first use of “mutant” in the MCU. Even if we just see archival footage, she’s going to be around.
Slipstream: 5%
Davey Cameron is an Australian mutant whose power consists of being able to create a “wave” that allows him to teleport places while looking like he’s catching a sick ocean wave because everyone from Down Under knows how to surf. Marvel Studios is probably saving all the superhuman surfing scenes for whatever version of the Silver Surfer that comes around, so Slipstream is pretty unlikely to show up.
Boom-Boom: 8%
Tabitha Smith is one of those comic book characters that has never really stuck on a good name. Variously, she’s been called Time Bomb, Boom-Boom, Boomer, and Meltdown; as you might guess, her mutant ability is the power to make things blow up real good.
She’s a relatively minor character, but her background as “white trash” (Warren Ellis’s words, not ours) could make her an interesting contrast to the clean-cut Xavier School kids.
Morph/Mimic: 50%
Morph, sometimes known as Mimic, was created to die in heroic circumstances, so writers didn’t have to take flak for killing off the (at the time) only Native American character in X-Men. Not a great start, but the shapeshifting character has been heavily featured on X-Men ’97, so there’s a good probability they could appear.
Husk: 30%
Husk has the ability to rip off her own skin and generate a new one underneath, usually composed of something cool like metal or fire. Her appearance will be heavily dependent on the tone of the X-Men movie: if it has a body horror element or actually explores the implications of these heroes’ vastly different physiologies from humans, she very well could pop in.
Polaris: 25%
Maybe Kevin Feige just wants to include a magnetically powered mutant who isn’t Magneto to throw people off. It could happen.
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Chamber: 8%
If Chamber is included in the reboot, it would primarily be as a sad story of what happens when a mutant’s power manifests itself as a blast of psionic energy that destroys his own face and chest. Comic books are brutal.
Blink: 60%
Blink has cool teleportation powers and purple skin, which really pops on the big screen. Good chance she’ll be around.
Multiple Man: 40%
It’ll likely only be as a kind of background gag or Easter Egg, but a mutant with the power to create infinite copies of himself could be cool. On the other hand, Marvel kind of did the “multiple people” thing with a bunch of Paul Rudds in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), so maybe no.
Trinary : 15%
Shilpa Khatri can control any kind of technology in her immediate area, but more importantly, she is from India, where Disney is trying to build a larger audience base. On the other hand, she’s pretty vocally against incredibly wealthy CEOs, which Bob Iger might not be a fan of.
Thunderbird: 50%
Thunderbird has been used as a codename by two members of the Proudstar family, and it wouldn’t be that surprising for either to show up, given that the character has existed for decades in comics. On the other hand, their power description is “strong, fast,” which isn’t all that interesting.
Colossus: 80%
As one of the most iconic and visible mutants in comic books, there’s a good chance Colossus could show. After all, Deadpool will need to make a joke about recognizing him sooner or later.
Nightcrawler: 75%
Much like Blink, Nightcrawler is just weird enough looking to make him a supporting character. Plus, he’s got that Catholic guilt thing, which is a good substitute for character development.
Marvel Girl: 99%
One of the first members of Charles Xavier’s team, it would be surprising for Jean Grey, AKA Marvel Girl, not to appear. Hopefully, Marvel Studios has learned the lesson that the “Dark Phoenix” storyline is harder to adapt than you’d think.
X-23: 100%
If Marvel really is avoiding putting Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) in the reboot, they’re going to need someone with claws. Dafne Keen is waiting by the phone.
Rogue: 90%
If Marvel wants to get rid of Brie Larson after the disaster of The Marvels (2023), they could always do the storyline in which Rogue semi-permanently steals Captain Marvel’s powers in a fight. They probably won’t do that, but Rogue will probably be around anyway.
Xorn: 1%
Xorn has a star inside his head and may or may not be Magneto in disguise. That’s the kind of intriguing concept you get when you hire Grant Morrison to write the X-Men, but it probably won’t make it to the big screen any time soon.
Havok: 80%
The Summers family has a long and complex history in Marvel Comics, so it will not be surprising to see one of them appear. It won’t be Vulcan, so it might be Havok.
Forge: 30%
Much like Trinity, Forge has some tech-related powers that are both cool and irritatingly vague. If the new X-Men need a James Bond-style inventor for cool gadgets, he’d be the guy.
Lifeguard: 5%
Lifeguard is Slipstream’s sister. If he’s there, she’s there.
X-Man: 0%
Even among X-Men, Nate Grey has an absurd, ridiculously complicated background that could (and would) take an entire article to explain. He ain’t showing up.
Gambit Remy: 65%
If Channing Tatum’s schedule is free enough, he’ll be there.
Beast: 99%
Kelsey Grammer is probably up for another couple of days of voice acting after the post-credits scene in The Marvels. Good chance he’ll show up.
Iceman: 80%
Disney reportedly has some big issues with LGBTQIA+ representation because Lightyear (2022) flopped, and that’s all the excuse that they need. So, even if Bobby Drake shows up, he will likely be different from his current comic incarnation.
Kitty Pryde: 85%
Kitty Pryde has not been utilized particularly well in the past, so it could be Shadowcat’s time to shine. Disney could always use a new role for a Disney Channel star.
Angel: 85%
Once again, original X-Men member. Plus, being beautiful and having feathery wings but being hated by the public is a pretty easy persecution metaphor.
Professor X: 100%
There is zero chance that the Martin Luther King Jr. of mutants won’t show up.
Jubilee: 95%
See above: Shadowcat, re: youth representation.
Storm: 99%
Even if Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively won’t call Halle Berry, the people will want to see Storm.
Dazzler: 20%
It probably won’t be Taylor Swift, but it would still be interesting to see a mutant character whose entire life is not about superheroics. It’s about being a pop star.
Cypher: 10%
Cypher’s mutant ability was the power to understand any form of communication instantly and he’s most famous for tragically dying young. He’s obscure, but it could happen.
Cyclops: 100%
Are you kidding? Scott Summers is the heart and soul of the X-Men. He’ll be there.
Lockheed: 2%
He may not be a mutant, but we will absolutely lose it if the purple alien dragon known as Lockheed doesn’t show up. C’mon, Marvel: be bold. Bring in Lockheed.
What X-Men members do you want to see in the upcoming MCU reboot? List ’em below!