The X-Men find themselves in the midst of a cultural resurgence. Animated series X-Men ’97 is a unanimous success on Disney+. Insomniac Games are debuting a new Wolverine game on Playstation 5 on September 15th. And now, the MCU is finally dipping their toes into the mutant world, with the newest film slated for a May 5th 2028 release. This set of heroes has never truly left the limelight, with a divisive run of prequel films starring James McAvoy (Split), Michael Fassbender (The Killer) and Jennifer Lawrence (Die My Love) satiating mutant-lovers cravings. Yet, fans deserve more heroics, thrilling stakes, a wider MCU connection, and frankly, more consistency.
After months of rumors swirling across the internet, D23, a massive global fan event celebrating everything Disney, offered audiences the first details of the cast behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first X-Men movie. Whilst many details are still under wraps, here’s everything we know about the MCU’s X-Men.
The Cast of X-Men (2028)
Sadie Sink debuted as the red-haired telepathic mutant Jean Grey in Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) after months of secrecy. Fulfilling the film’s antagonist role, blinded by grief and anger after the loss of her sister, she overcame her darkness with the help of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. Eventually leaving New York to an unknown location, one presumably tied into her next confirmed appearance in X-Men. Sadie Sink is best known for her role as Max in Netflix Stranger Things, and considered the forefront of this new era of mutants.
Kit Connor is a rising British actor best recognized for his role in Heartstopper as Nick Nelson. Theatrically, he has featured in Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s Warfare, and he is set for a key role in A24’s upcoming Elden Ring movie. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Kit Connor will be playing the X-Men’s field leader, and Jean Grey’s eventual partner, Cyclops aka Scott Summers. Cyclops’ powers are unexpectedly layered, far more complicated than their simple ‘laser from the eyes’ appearance. In actuality, he expels pure concussive force from an alternate dimension filled with raw kinetic energy, also known as the punch dimension.
Christopher Abbott has a choice between shaving his head or wearing a bald cap for his role as the X-Men’s founder and mentor Charles Xavier/Professor X. The Spirit Award nominated actor has roles in Wolf Man (2025), The Testament of Ann Lee (2025) and the Oscar winning Yorgos Lanthimos film, Poor Things (2023). Set to engineer a new era of mutant, Abbott’s casting highlights a desire for a younger iteration of X-Men. One expected to offer a formidable presence within the MCU going forward.
Inde Navarrette is a name audiences can’t hide from. The actress’s breakout role in Curry Barker’s Obsession (2026) as Nikki has swirled talks of Academy Award nominations, making her one of the hottest names in Hollywood right now. Marvel have wasted no time in bringing the actress into their cinematic universe, casting her as Rogue, a mutant who absorbs the memories, skills and powers of any living creature through touch. Her powers are one of the closest examples to a mutant Monkey’s Paw, resulting in her emotional withdrawal due to her inability to physically touch those she loves.
Samara Weaving is another actress reaping the rewards of a breakout role in a low budget horror-thriller film. As the star of Ready or Not (2019), and the film’s recent sequel Ready or Not 2: Here I Come (2026), Weaving’s performance as Grace quickly earned her recognition as one of horror’s modern female icons. In Marvel’s X-Men (2028, Samara Weaving will play Emma Frost, a powerful telepath who can famously crystallize her skin into a near-indestructible diamond form. Her position within X-Men comics has ranged from a villain to leader of the X-Men.
Maya Boyd’s casting as the weather manipulating mutant Storm has generated palpable online excitement for the fan-favorite character. The key mutant was relegated to the background in Fox’s prequel films, and even when portrayed by Halle Berry (Crime 101) in Fox’s original X-Men trilogy, she was given little material to work with. Maya Boyd’s career so far has primarily been Broadway based, making her debut in Merrily We Roll Along in 2023. Marvel’s X-Men (2028) could potentially be her feature film debut.
Asa Germann is the most recent member joining the mutant squad. Germann found wider audience attention from his role as the troubled college student Sam Riordan in The Boys spin-off series Gen V, he also briefly featured in The Boys final season. He is set to play the winged-mutant Angel following heavy rumors of involvement in auditions for the role of Cyclops. Angel’s powers involve flight, alongside the usual superpowered enhancements to strength, durability and stamina.
Adam Driver remains the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s worst kept ‘dream casting’ secret. Kevin Feige has reportedly offered the actor multiple roles within the universe, but Driver (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker) turned down each one. Now, they appear to have found a project worth collaborating on. With the actor cast as one of the X-Men’s greatest villains, Mr Sinister. Obsessed with Scott Summers and Jean Grey, Mr Sinister’s transfixion stems from his belief that their genetic make up would make the perfect mutant, suggesting these characters will, rightfully, be a primary focus of the film.
The Director and Writers of X-Men (2028)
Following the critical success of Marvel’s Thunderbolts* (2025), director Jake Schreier (Beef) will return to the director’s chair for the MCU’s first installment of X-Men. Schreier’s work has been praised for balancing profound heart with comedic beats, yet unafraid to explore adrenaline-pumping stakes where required. Thunderbolts* was Schreier’s first superhero example of such, following esteemed directorial contributions to Netflix’s Emmy award winning series, Beef.
Attached to write the feature’s latest draft is Beef creator and director Lee Sung Jin, as well as The Bear co-showrunner Joanna Calo, who also featured on Beef’s writing staff. Entrusted to reunite a familiar team, the experience of these acclaimed writers suggests X-Men (2028) is poised to deliver interpersonal drama and the anguish of real world dilemmas, if their ethos from Beef follows them here. The pair possess screenwriting credits for Thunderbolts*, which was heavily praised for Marvel’s mature approach towards mental health and facing an existential crisis.
The Secret Plot of X-Men (2028)
Outside of casting announcements and those penning the script in the writers room, little has been revealed about X-Men’s storyline. Famously, X-Men narratives have often adapted civilians’ negative responses to mutant-kind. Whilst some use powers for good, others use them for evil, and X-Men has always orientated around this conflict. Often with Charles Xavier and Magneto, who is notably absent from casting announcements thus far, on opposite ends. X-Men began in the comics as a metaphor for prejudice, discrimination and the civil rights movement, and whether this theme continues into the MCU is yet to be discovered.
A focus on youth orientated castings suggests this may be the youngest X-Men audiences have seen so far, with obvious intentions to lock these actors into multiple film contracts in anticipation of success. In Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Sadie Sink’s Jean Grey was 16 years old, and thus it isn’t outlandish to suggest many other key mutants, including those maybe not yet revealed, will be around a similar age. Although, by time X-Men debuts after Avengers: Secret Wars, we may return to Jean Grey being aged up slightly to align with a more young adult audience.
Marvel Studios’ X-Men reboot is set to release on May 5th 2028.
