The modern era of comic book movies and television wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the X-Men. With all due respect to 1998’s Blade, the 2000 blockbuster X-Men was the film that helped convince Hollywood of the immense potential that exists in superhero cinema, and that hit then spawned a big screen franchise that lasted for more than 20 years and included 13 features.
But now that era is over and a new one is beginning. Thanks to the completion of the Disney/Fox merger, the rights for Marvel’s mutants now belong to Marvel Studios, and all upcoming Marvel movies and upcoming Marvel TV including X-Men characters will be made as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. What does this future include? We’ve put together this feature to address that exact question. Read on to learn about all of the confirmed and theoretical X-Men movies and shows that are currently in the works, and be sure to keep coming back to this feature as we learn more about the projects that are on the way.
Confirmed Upcoming X-Men Movies
The new era of X-Men movies is currently in its infancy, and fans are eagerly awaiting to know about Marvel Studio’s big picture plans for the mutants… but this is what we know about for now.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Some of the biggest questions surrounding the future of X-Men characters on the big screen concerns casting. Will versions of the heroes from the first half of the original franchise return? Is there a future for the actors from the prequel movies? Or will Marvel Studios be dumping them all and finding new stars for key roles like Cyclops, Storm, Jean Grey and Beast?
We don’t presently have answers to most of those questions right now, but we do at least know one thing: Ryan Reynolds is going to stick around and keep playing Wade Wilson a.k.a. Deadpool. Deadpool & Wolverine will be released as the MCU’s first mutant-centric feature, and it will serve as both a Deadpool 3 (in that it’s a sequel to Deadpool and Deadpool 2) and it will give the Merc With The Mouth a proper introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It was revealed in the first Deadpool & Wolverine trailer and the footage that was shown at CinemaCon 2024 that the movie will begin with Deadpool living a non-super, peaceful life in an alternate timeline (thanks to his time travel antics at the end of Deadpool 2). During a birthday celebration, Wade gets a knock on his door from the Time Variance Authority, and agents abduct him and bring him to their headquarters. There, he meets Mr. Paradox (Matthew McFadyen), and he is told that it is his responsibility to become a new savior for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
As the title tells us, the Shawn Levy-directed film will finally see Wade Wilson get to team up with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine… but that’s not all. The Deadpool & Wolverine cast is stacked with returning stars from the first two movies, including Morena Baccarin, Stefan Kapicic, Leslie Uggams, Karan Soni, Rob Delaney, Brianna Hildebrand, Shioli Kutsuna, and Lewis Tan. But that’s not all either. In addition to the blockbuster featuring Emma Corrin as the villainous Cassandra Nova, it’s also been reported that the adventure is going to be filled with surprised cameos that are being kept hush-hush for now.
Theoretical Upcoming X-Men Movies
Marvel Studios’ long established reputation for secrecy and playing cards close to the vest means that there is a lot that we can’t be certain about when it comes to mutant characters in upcoming films. That being said, this section is all about the movies that we expect will include at least one X-Men-related character.
Avengers: Secret Wars
When Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame were in the works, one of the most exciting things about the sibling blockbusters was the fact that the adventure was finally going to see Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the Guardians of the Galaxy fighting side by side. In retrospect, that worked out blissfully... but Marvel Studios is going to have to raise the bar when it comes to the next big crossover event, which is why it feels safe to assume that we’re going to get at least some mutant action in the upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars.
Avengers: Secret Wars is currently set for release in May 2027, and it is set up to be the capstone film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s ongoing Multiverse Saga. While we likely won’t know much about it until Avengers 5 is released in May 2026 the assumption is that it’s going to see universes colliding, which is what happens in the 2015 Secret Wars crossover event in the comics. Nothing has been confirmed, but it would certainly add to the scale of Avengers: Secret Wars if it included a version of the X-Men team fighting alongside the Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Fantastic Four.
X-Men
Just as it feels safe to assume that at least some mutant characters will be playing a role in Avengers: Secret Wars, it also feels safe to assume that we will eventually see Marvel Studios tackle the creation of their first live-action X-Men movie centering on Professor Charles Xavier’s eponymous team of gifted youngsters. Unfortunately, an assumption is all we have at present, as the franchise has not yet officially announced such a project or even vaguely hinted at what we might expect from it.
Because it looks like a new X-Men movie won’t come together until after the completion of the Multiverse Saga, we may still be years away from hearing anything about it truly moving forward. For now, all fans can do is speculate about the characters who will be included in the lineup, who will be playing the key parts, and what talented filmmakers will be given the task of shepherding the project.
Confirmed Upcoming X-Men TV Shows
Since 2021, the small screen has become a vital part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not all shows are technically in canon with the main continuity, but it’s definitely a space where Marvel Studios will be telling mutant-related stories.
X-Men ’97 Season 2 And Season 3
Earning critical raves for being an ideal throwback to the beloved X-Men: The Animated Series from the early/mid-1990s, X-Men '97 was instantly deemed a big win for Marvel Studios when it premiered in March 2024. Following the 10-episode adventure in Season 1, the superhero franchise already has big plans for more, as a Season 2 was officially announced in July 2022, and a Season 3 is in the works as well
Beau DeMayo, the credited creator of X-Men ’97, reportedly completed work on the second season of the series in 2023, but he was fired by Marvel Studios shortly before the series’ premiere on Disney+. Producer Brad Winderbaum has confirmed that a third season of the show is in development (via Entertainment Weekly), but it is not yet clear who will take over DeMayo’s role as the head writer for the episodes.
A release date has not yet been announced for either X-Men ’97 Season 2 or X-Men ’97 Season 3.
Past X-Men Movies
X-Men (2000)
X2: X-Men United (2003)
X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
X-Men: First Class (2011)
The Wolverine (2013)
X-Men: Days Of Future Past (2014)
Deadpool (2016)
X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)
Logan (2017)
Deadpool 2 (2018)
X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019)
The New Mutants (2020)
Past X-Men TV Shows
X-Men: The Animated Series (1992-1997)
Generation X (1996)
X-Men: Evolution (2000-2003)
Mutant X (2001-2004)
X-Men And The Wolverine (2009)
Wolverine (2011)
X-Men (2011)
Legion (2017-2019)
The Gifted (2017-2019)
If there’s anything in particular that you should take away from reading this feature, it’s that the future is exceptionally bright for Marvel’s mutants on both the big and small screens. As noted earlier, keep checking this feature for all of the latest updates about new X-Men-related film and TV projects, and keep reading CinemaBlend for the latest news regarding anything and everything related to the MCU.
