It sounds like the MCU finally has a plan for the X-Men that could be bigger than expected!
One of the most exciting developments for Marvel has been Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox, giving it access to the X-Men and Fantastic Four. The challenge is integrating the X-Men into the MCU. Deadpool & Wolverine got it started with the idea of alternate realities of numerous variants of the X-Men based on the 2000s movies and other worlds. The post-credits scene of The Marvels also showed a world based on the property, and it looks like Avengers: Doomsday will boast plenty of past X-Men actors reprising their old roles.
Speaking to Collider, Beef creator and upcoming X-Men director Jake Schreier shared some insight into how the MCU can use the X-Men and it seems like it’s going to be more than just one movie.
“I think that, obviously, first things first: We have to make one great movie. But we always have an eye as we’re talking about it too. What are the different places this can go? What are the places that [have] been in the comics? What hasn’t been explored as much, and how can that be incorporated? And what are some of the different avenues that we could take that feel like the kind of less-trodden path that we could go down? But those ideas are always out there, as we have the discussions.”
The script is being developed by Beef creator Lee Sun Jin and The Bear co-showrunner Joanna Calo. The two are used to shows utilizing large casts, major drama, and wild turns, all elements that lend well to the X-Men. It also means Marvel is serious about making this a mini-franchise in its own right.
The sheer number of potential X-Men projects boggles the mind. Thanks to so many teams and iterations over the decades, the X-Men can easily be home to numerous movies. Obviously, some big-screen films can adapt some of the most famous tales, giving an epic scope to the X-Men and how mutants can fit into the MCU.
There can be projects based on the New Mutants or easily a TV show about Xavier’s Academy and how a new generation of mutants adapts to their powers and a world that hates and fears them. There can be tales of the Morlocks, the outcast mutants living underground, or how mutants handle business or politics. Perhaps an X-Force-style tale of a government-backed mutant team, or ideas such as a “mutant neighborhood” where they try to live with humanity. That’s without mentioning the intergalactic adventures the mutants have often experienced.
It’s still unclear if the MCU would do a full reboot of the X-Men with brand-new actors or use Avengers: Doomsday to integrate the older movies’ history and legacy into the lore. Yet with the MCU needing a bit more spark lately, the X-Men can be just the thing to fire up the franchise and let the MCU mutate into a bold new direction.