The end of summer has always been an important time of year for Disney, and for Marvel Studios in particular.
While the studio attends San Diego Comic-Con every other year to promote its big tentpole releases, the D23 convention has proven to be a place where it makes important announcements.
Marvel Studios had plenty to show off during the D23 2024 expo, which featured looks at the then-unreleased Captain America: Brave New World, Agatha All Along, Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Daredevil: Born Again.
Now, the X-Men are finally up for their big reveal in this year’s edition of the convention.
The weeks leading up to D23 were filled with rampant speculation about what exactly Marvel Studios has in store for the expo. Kevin Feige had already made waves at San Diego Comic-Con a few weeks ago, where it was announced that Shawn Levy would be directing a Ghost Rider film starring Ryan Gosling, and that David Jonsson is set to star in Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther III.
A new trailer for Avengers: Doomsday also debuted at the convention, and all the announcements helped to reinvigorate excitement in the MCU. With D23 underway, it’s time to learn who is playing the mutant superhero team in X-Men.
The X-Men reboot, directed by Thunderbolts* Jake Schreier, is set to feature a fresh cast playing the superheroes marginalized by society for their mutations.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day established the mutants with the introduction of Sadie Sink as Jean Grey, while it was already reported that Samara Weaving (Ready or Not) is joining the MCU as another telepath, Emma Frost.
Now, Marvel Studios announced at D23 that the official cast for X-Men includes: Sink, Weaving, Adam Driver, Christopher Abbot, Inde Navarrette, Maya Boyd, and Kit Connor as iconic characters from the Marvel franchise. The film is set to hit theaters on May 5, 2028.
Abbott will be playing the role of Professor Charles Xavier, who runs a school and safe haven for young mutants learning to control their abilities and use them for good.
Driver is set to play Nathaniel Essex/Mister Sinister, a supervillain scientist who makes himself a mutant and constantly clashes with the X-Men in the comics.
Connor will be bringing Scott Summers to life, with the character going by the alias of Cyclops as one of the most well-known field leaders of the team. Navarrette has been cast as Rogue, the fan-favorite mutant hero whose abilities include being able to absorb powers, memories, energy, and everything in between.
Boyd is set to play Storm in the upcoming film, the iconic mutant known for weather manipulation that was previously portrayed by Halle Berry.
Marvel Studios’ X-Men has been a long time coming since Disney first acquired 20th Century Fox, and a team that fans of the franchise have wanted to see as much as the Fantastic Four, who finally got their MCU debut just last year.