Marvel Studios has been trying to get an in-house cinematic X-Men reboot moving for years to little avail. But now, development is progressing faster than the growth of the mutant gene among humanity. From casting updates (which are now as solid as adamantium) to script progress and locking down a release window, details are coming faster and more furiously by the day.
First of all, Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier is taking charge of Charles Xavier’s Children of the Atom, and he brings with him a writing team he is very familiar with. He is teaming again with Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo, the writers of his previous Marvel outing that gave us the New Avengers, with a key change in strategy. Lee and Calo handled the script for Thunderbolts* at different stages, but not together. This time, Schreier’s X-Men places them all together in the writers’ room from the start.
Plans could change as everything is up for grabs, but Marvel currently has the X-Men film slated to release on May 5, 2028. That spot signals Marvel is banking on cameras rolling for X-Men very soon after principal photography wraps on Avengers: Secret Wars.
Within the industry, the feeling is that X-Men hinges on the success of Secret Wars and Avengers: Doomsday, which are releasing at the end of the year—perhaps more than anyone is willing to admit. Whether it’s a big gamble or a project Kevin Feige and Disney believe in immensely, should X-Men remain on its May 5, 2028 release date officially, the film would fall on the twentieth anniversary of the MCU, which began with Iron Man at the beginning of May 2008. That’s the same year as The Dark Knight and the less-talked-about The Incredible Hulk.
(Side note: that pivotal year in superhero cinema was capped off with the bloody standalone Punisher movie, Punisher: War Zone.)
No pressure or anything—though its makers might be steeling the production to withstand high pressure, regardless. A big component of that end, as always, is the casting; they have to pick actors who can handle the material and who are reaching (or already at) their peak. And they demonstrate a deep understanding of the assignment.
In the first official bit of casting that hit the trades Samara Weaving will play Emma Frost, the telepath who served as White Queen of the Hellfire Club and later as a teacher and leader of the group of gifted youngsters known as Generation X. Frost was underwhelming in the Fox X-Men franchise, but if Marvel is doing something monumental like bringing Weaving into a family her uncle (Matrix and Captain America: The First Avenger star Hugo Weaving) was once part of, when she is on the rise, they hint at hope in the villainous vixen's favor.
Sadie Sink will be returning as Jean Grey and we'll get to see Heartstopper star Kit Connor’s as Cyclops. Adam Driver's elusive inclusion grew more and more on the eve of the big day at D23. In the mass casting announcement, it was revealed Driver was joining the party as Nathaniel Milbury—better known to the world as the mad scientist Mr. Sinister.
Obsession star Inde Navarrette, who met with Jake Schreier and expressed interest in playing Mystique, shocked the world with the revelation she is playing the MCU's Rogue. This casting choice won the approval of Rogue voice actress Lenore Zann, and the job became the singular focus of Navarette. She turned down roles in films such as Heat 2 to keep her schedule clear. Finally, it was also confirmed that we got confirmation that Christopher Abbott will be our Professor Charles Xavier, while Maya Boyd has joined the film as Storm.
With the excitement building rapidly, it seems mutant liberation begins now—on the cusp of Doomsday. How fitting.
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