X-MEN: 10 Characters Marvel Studios Needs To Bring To The Marvel Cinematic Universe As Soon As Possible

Mutants are coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe - at some point - but which characters need to be brought back to the big screen as soon as possible? We break down those who need to be a priority...

By JoshWilding - Oct 29, 2020 08:10 AM EST

Filed Under: X-Men

The X-Men are coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and while we don't know exactly when and where that will happen, it goes without saying that mutants will change this shared world forever.

With not so much as a single rumour about what Marvel Studios has planned for these characters, it's hard to predict where they'll first appear. However, one thing we do know is that there are certain mutants who need to be brought back to the big screen as soon as humanly possible.

We're not just talking about the obvious candidates like Cyclops and Magento, though; instead, this feature focuses on those who were wasted by Fox and now need another chance to shine.

To find out who we've singles out, all you guys need to do is click on the "Next" button below!

10. Emma Frost

January Jones didn't receive the warmest of responses for her performance in X-Men: First Class, but the movie did a good job of portraying her powers and the Mad Men star certainly had the right amount of sex appeal for the Hellfire Club’s White Queen. Jean Grey's story has played out multiple times now, so if Cyclops is returning, a new love interest would obviously be no bad thing.

Hopefully, she’ll use an English accent this time, while having her join the X-Men after serving the Hellfire Club is a storyline with a lot of potential (that group definitely needs to be revisited).

There are a lot of different ways Emma can be reinvented for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and her powerful psychic abilities and ability to turn into diamonds would bring a lot to this shared world.

9. Siryn

Played by Shauna Kain, Siryn made a cameo appearance in X2: X-Men United when her damaging sonic scream saw William Stryker’s men forced to take her down with a tranquillizer. She was saved by Colossus (another mutant who made frequent, forgettable cameo appearances before Deadpool), and showed up briefly at the funeral of Professor X in X-Men: The Last Stand.

Given what a limited role she played in Fox's X-Men Universe, it would be easy for Siryn to be overhauled, and she could even take the place of her father, Banshee, in an early iteration of the team.

Perhaps the best use for the character, though, will be using her as a love interest in the next Deadpool movie. Their dynamic is one that definitely deserves to be explored sooner rather than later.

8. Multiple Man

Multiple Man is a great character, something which makes it all the more frustrating that he was squandered in X-Men: The Last Stand (then again, so was every other mutant unfortunate enough to be sandwiched in for a cameo). In that film, he played a very minor role as a member of Magneto’s Brotherhood, but the movie at least gave us an idea of Jamie Madrox's potential.

With the ability to create almost countless duplicates of himself, recent comic books have actually seen some of those doubles take on a life and personality of their own, a dynamic we'd love to see explored. That was likely the plan for the movie James Franco was set to star in before Disney acquired Fox, and an idea Marvel Studios could very easily borrow for the MCU.

If this sets the stage for X-Factor Investigations on Disney+, we would be 100% on board with that.

7. Rogue

This fan-favourite mutant was a focal point of the original X-Men trilogy, but has been sidelined in the years which followed. Considering the fact she's one of the most powerful mutants on the planet, Rogue is a character who needs to be a massive priority for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Rogue's history with Captain Marvel is well-worth exploring, and it would be nice to finally see her romance Gambit (which wasn't even planned for that hero's now cancelled solo movie).

It would be pretty cool to introduce Rogue as an antagonist before she sees the error of her ways, and if Marvel Studios takes a slow burn approach, her story could play out over several years.

6. Lady Deathstrike

Of all the characters listed here, it could be argued that Lady Deathstrike was perhaps handled better than them all. However, the fact that she was little more than Stryker’s mind-controlled pawn meant that she had little to no personality, despite that downright awesome fight scene with Wolverine at the end of X2: X-Men United.

It’s hard to say where Deathstrike could show up; a Wolverine movie is certainly one option, though there’s a risk that will feel like a retread of old ground. The Deadpool franchise could do something fun with her, but having the villain given some much-needed personality as a big bad and having her face off with the X-Men would ultimately be just as good.

Whatever the case may be, this is definitely one villain who shouldn't be overlooked.

5. Juggernaut

Arguably one of the greatest X-Men villains of all time, the Juggernaut was handled in a predictably appalling fashion when he showed up being played by Vinnie Jones. Deadpool 2 made up for that X-Men: The Last Stand appearance to some extent, and rightly portrayed him as a CGI creation.

He had no personality, though, and that's something we'd like to see change in the MCU.

An interesting fact about Cain Marko is that he actually became a member of the X-Men for a time, but ended up leaving when it became apparent that his teammates would never view him as a hero. That could be worth exploring should Marvel decide against heading down the route of using him as a villain. It would certainly be an unexpected, less predictable, decision.

4. Wolverine

Honestly, this should be a given. We know that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is set to revisit Madripoor, and Marvel Studios can lay the groundwork there for Wolverine by mentioning Patch. That was the persona Logan took on during the time he spent on that fictional island nation.

Regardless of whether that happens, Wolverine should again be a focal point of whatever happens with the X-Men, but hopefully not in a way that completely overshadows them as Hugh Jackman did.

This Wolverine really needs to be the star of his own solo franchise, and like Spider-Man with the Avengers, only make supporting appearances in the core X-Men series of movies in the MCU.

3. Iceman

Say what you will about X-Men: The Last Stand, but it was the first instalment in that franchise which portrayed Iceman in a way that comic book fans recognised when he fully "iced up."

In recent years, comic books have seen Iceman use his abilities in inventive new ways, growing to the size of a skyscraper and basically being portrayed as one of the most powerful mutants in existence. That's something Marvel Studios can explore with the hero, differentiating him from what's come before.

As a founding member of the X-Men - and an openly gay man these days - there's a lot Bobby Drake can bring to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and we'd like to see him from the start.

2. Deadpool

It's thought that Deadpool 3 is happening at Marvel Studios, but complicating that is the fact the Merc with the Mouth can't really be introduced in the MCU until mutants finally make an appearance.

The casting of actors like J.K. Simmons and Jamie Foxx in the Spider-Man franchise proves that Kevin Feige and company have no issues with bringing back familiar faces as new versions of characters they played before, so the door definitely isn't closed on Ryan Reynolds reprising the role.

Unfortunately, the door may be shut on R-Rated adventures featuring Deadpool. Once Upon a Deadpool proved the franchise can work without F-Bombs and crude humour, though, so we'll see.

1. Sabretooth

Bryan Singer handled Sabretooth very poorly in the first X-Men movie, and while X-Men Origins: Wolverine was pretty terrible, Liev Schreiber’s awesome take on this villain proved he has potential.

Logan could have made great use of the character - instead, they went with "X-24" - but the fact he didn't appear there no doubt makes it more likely he'll show up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe sooner rather than later. Whether it's as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants or as the big bad in Wolverine's next solo outing, Sabretooth deserves another chance.

If anyone can get him right on the big screen, though, it's definitely going to be Marvel Studios.

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37 Comments

Doomsday8888 - 10/29/2020, 8:06 AM

Origame - 10/29/2020, 8:15 AM

I really don't see how it was a choice between Sabretooth and x-24 in Logan. I don't think you realize what they were going for. x-24 was a counter to Laura as well as a reminder of what could've been for Logan if Weapon x had gone as planned for him. Hence why after the fight, Logan told Laura not to be the weapon HE was. Not to mention facing off against a younger version of Logan in a story all about how he's losing his edge is poetic justice. This is a prime example of fan service vs story. Sabretooth in this position is fan service. X-24 is better for the story.

Repian - 10/29/2020, 8:16 AM

Angel can also be a great character in the MCU.

He has a great story. Angel, The Fallen Angel and Redemption

RingSlinger700 - 10/29/2020, 8:21 AM

Has Emma always had an English accent?

adamcawa - 10/30/2020, 6:03 PM

@RingSlinger700 - no she never has. She's from Boston. She speaks with a Brahmin accent.

RingSlinger700 - 10/30/2020, 6:24 PM

@adamcawa - Thought I heard somewhere that she had a psychic connection with an English roommate and picked up on her speech patterns.

GhostDog - 10/29/2020, 8:28 AM

Familiar article...

Goldboink - 10/29/2020, 10:46 AM

@BlackBeltJones -
Yea, slow news year.

BTW it will be years before we get a glimpse if any X-People. Fox was all over them like a guy trying to make out with the passed out girl on the couch at the end of a party. Not Pretty!

aunit1390 - 10/29/2020, 8:29 AM

All I know is I hope they ease into Magneto & Mystique. We have seen enough of them. I would love to see Psylocke and Shadowcat, I believe they have a lot of potential.

MrDandy - 10/29/2020, 8:31 AM

#1- Scarlet Witch

After the last list I wouldn’t have been surprised.

lawndart - 10/29/2020, 8:58 AM

If you debut Emma, keep her with the HellfireClub at least for a while. She was an excellent villain for many years before canoodling Summers. Be nice to give some others like Sabertooth a break and use villains we haven’t seen yet, like Sinister, the brood/Shiar or Mojo.

lawndart - 10/29/2020, 9:01 AM

And if they use the brotherhood, I hope we get Mystiques version with Pyro, Blob, Avalanche, Rogue, and Destiny. I always preferred this version vs. the original. Rogues former affiliation was a good source of conflict within the X-Men for a while.

Sosocaltech - 10/29/2020, 9:12 AM

If anything, Emma Frost should have a Boston accent. Because, like, she’s from Boston.

99OPTIMISTPRIME - 10/29/2020, 9:13 AM

I like the idea of Cyclops going from being underutilized in the FoX-Men Universe, to replacing Steve Rogers as the MCU's main leader/tactician.

UXASIS - 10/29/2020, 9:15 AM

I know Cyclops is a perfect boy-scout, but I also think Kitty Pride has been a badass leader for a few years now.

UXASIS - 10/29/2020, 9:22 AM

Anyway I think that mutants generally can fuel Marvel for at least 20 years.

I hope we get a lot of movies AND tv shows, not only about various teams (there are milions of X-teams) but also solo's.

I want:

A Weapon X (tv show or a movie) NOT about Wolverine, but all the test subjects, who want to take revenge against their makers.

Domino (movie)

Marauders (tv show) with Iceman, Emma Frost, Storm and Bishop against the Shaw family.

And last: Cable (tv show) about time-traveling (young) Cable, who gets to meet his older self (played by Brolin) and together they frick the timeline.

Goldboink - 10/29/2020, 10:49 AM

2025 is the soonest anyone will see these characters unless they are introduced in D+. Their fate will not be decided until after The Eternals explains everything.

UltimaRex - 10/29/2020, 10:53 AM

...

Tell me Squirrel Girl is on that list.

r1g0r - 10/29/2020, 11:16 AM

there's absolutely NO reason why DP has to "wait until mutants have been introduced".

they don't need to say "he's a mutant" at any point or in any way. he's just another character with powers, who could be revealed as a mutant later when those have been discovered.

again, JW has shown his own mutant power. the "ANTI-JOURNALIST", who can incorrectly report and editorialize on anything.

hmm... maybe JW works for t-rump?

Spike101 - 10/29/2020, 12:04 PM

If I could chose I’d see a few more classic Spider-Man villains and supporting characters, the Thing squaring off with the Hulk, and some classic FF villains Doctor Doom, the Sub Mariner and Galactus with the Silver Surfer