Marvel just loves to throw spanners into the works, don’t they? With the announcement of the cast ofAvengers: Doomsday,via an innovative yet somewhat grueling reveal of names on the backs of director’s chairs, Marvel has many of its fans guessing what might take place in the June 27, 2025 release. There were many expected names on the roster, including long-time MCU players likeChris HemsworthandTom Hiddleston, but things really started to get interesting whenKelsey Grammer’s name appeared on a chair. Soon after, the names ofSir Patrick StewartandSir Ian McKellenwere announced, reuniting the original Professor X and Magneto, who were introduced back inBryan Singer’s 2000X-Men.That certainly got the fans excited, but thenAlan Cumming’s name also appeared on a chair, and after that,Rebecca Romijn’s.James Marsden,aka the original Scott Summers/Cyclops was next, followed byChanning Tatum, who played Gambit inDeadpool & Wolverine.
Now, it might make some sense for Grammer to return, since we last saw his Dr. Hank McCoy, aka The Beast, in an end credits scene in 2023’sThe Marvels,not that long ago. Stewart also returned as a Multiverse version of Professor X in a key scene forDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. On the other hand, McKellen seems to have retired as Magneto, replaced byMichael FassbenderinX-Men: First Class,but even he returned forX-Men: Days of Future Past. So what exactly is going on here?It’s doubtful Marvel is deliberately pranking the fans, because they could have just waited until April 1 if they really wanted to do that. Therefore, this seems like something that should be taken seriously.
Is Marvel Going to Keep These X-Men Actors in the MCU?
Few people thought that Marvel Studios would just keep the original 20th Century Fox X-Men going after Disney bought the studio. Presumably, part of that expensive purchase was to allow Marvel to figure out a way to relaunch its popular Marvel mutant team. Few of the original cast of the 2000 cast have appeared in more than cameos sinceX-Men: The Last Standin 2006; to put it lightly,that movie was a mess. Cumming’s return as Nightcrawler may be the most interesting addition to theAvengers: Doomsdaycast, because we haven’t seen him playing Kurt Wagner sinceX2: X-Men Unitedin 2003. He didn’t even return forThe Last Stand. Even Rebecca Romijn’s Mystique (aka Raven Darkhölme) had a witty cameo inMatthew Vaughn’sX-Men: First Class, which already rebooted the characters with new actors. No one probably ever expected Marsden to return as Cyclops, since he seemingly had moved on, and Tatum? We’ll get back to him.
The X-Men Confirmed for ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Thanks to Everyone’s Favorite Big Blue Mutant
X-Men Assemble!
What really makes this announcement a little frustrating is that most of the fans had a chance to say a semi-tearful “goodbye” to many of these characterswith 2017’sLoganand then once again with last year’s mega-blockbuster,Deadpool and Wolverine. The latter even had an entire tribute montage to all the 20th Century Fox Marvel characters, which included the X-Men. Tatum’s Gambit seemed to be more of a nod to what could have been, but Marvel’s overlords at Disney didn’t seem to have much interest in him leading aGambitmovie. There’s also the fact that Professor X died and was buried inLogan, something that was probably negated by what happened inDeadpool and Wolverine, though it was never fully addressed.If nothing that happens in either of those movies matters anymore, thenshould we assume that the X-Men ofAvengers: Doomsdaywill be another multiverse-type situation, and does anyone really want that?
Does This Mean ‘Doomsday’ Might Be Connected to ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’?
When director Bryan Singerreturned to theX-Menfranchise in 2014 forX-Men: Days of Future Past,it was one of the more exciting announcements to happen in the world of movie mutants in a very long time, mainly because the originalChris ClaremontandJohn Byrnecomic book storyline with that title remains one of the most popular X-Men stories even 40 years later. That movie allowed Singer to take the newer actors cast for 2011’sX-Men: First Class– most notablyJames McAvoy,Michael Fassbender, andJennifer Lawrence– to interact with some of the popular actors from the first three movies. That movie was fairly well-received, both byfans and critics, and though Singer did direct one more movie, the franchise certainly seemed to have peaked.
TheAvengers: Doomsdayannouncement certainly seems as if it’staking a cue fromDays of Future Past, especially by reteaming the popular duo of Patrick and McKellen. It then doubles down with the other X-Men actors announced, since Grammer only had a cameo in that movie. There’s definitely a possibility that the events fromDays of Future Pastmight be referenced, but there’s a better chance thatDoomsdaydirectorsAnthonyandJoe Russoare just cherry-picking their own favorite X-Men characters and Marvel is writing the checks.
So far, none of the actors cast in key roles forX-Men: First Classhave had their names on the back of chairs just yet. Despite that fact,it’s now been made quite clear that Feige, Marvel, and the Russos are going to bring the X-Men back in a big waywithout necessarily recasting or reinventing the mutant wheel. Fans of those original movies andDays of Future Pastwill be quite thrilled by the casting announcement, but we’ll have to see how things play out and whether the X-Men play as big a role inDoomsdayas many will now be hoping.
Avengers: Doomsdaycomes to theaters on August 16, 2025.
Avengers: Doomsday
