The excitement surrounding Avengers: Doomsday is immense, largely due to Marvel Studios' confirmed integration of beloved characters from 20th Century Fox’s X-Men universe. The official roster reveal, showcasing veterans ready for the Multiverse Saga’s penultimate chapter, provided significant fan satisfaction. The confirmed return of actors like Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), James Marsden (Cyclops), and Kelsey Grammer (Beast) promises a powerful, nostalgia-driven entry point for mutantkind into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
However, the announced cast holds a telling omission. A closer look reveals the absence of some of the most iconic and immensely powerful mutants. This decision by Marvel Studios could actually be a brilliant move to maximize the impact of the final, multiversal climax: Avengers: Secret Wars. By holding back some fan-favorites, Marvel could give fans an even greater surprise and spectacle for the saga’s definitive conclusion.
Avengers: Doomsday requires a team that can establish the X-Men’s presence without overwhelming the already vast ensemble, which includes the Fantastic Four and various MCU legacy heroes. The confirmed Fox-era X-Men lineup for Doomsday, which also includes Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), and Channing Tatum (Gambit), serves this purpose perfectly.
This group also features key leaders, strategic thinkers, and popular fan-service additions. They are formidable enough to face Doctor Doom, yet their powers are balanced against the dozens of other confirmed heroes. This setup allows Doomsday to focus on the immediate, terrifying threat of Doctor Doom, who possesses two main powers without having to dedicate significant screen time to character introductions or handling the raw, cosmic power of an Omega-level mutant.
Marvel is deliberately keeping a few high-powered X-Men in reserve. The scale of Avengers: Secret Wars, which promises to be an adaptation of the comic's massive multiversal crossover, demands an escalation of power and scope that surpasses Doomsday. The later introduction of these missing heavy-hitters in the final film would guarantee a critical boost in both power and fan reaction. Their appearance would signify the absolute last stand of the Multiverse.
Missing X-Men Marvel Could Be Saving for Secret Wars
Jean Grey
Jean Grey's (Famke Janssen) character arc was one of the most emotional and tragic of the original X-Men trilogy. Her struggle with her immense power, culminating in the Dark Phoenix storyline, established her as the most powerful and dangerous member of the team. She represented the ultimate fear and potential of mutantkind.
For a reality-altering event like Secret Wars, the arrival of Jean Grey, especially if she were to fully embrace the Phoenix Force, would be a game-changer. She is a powerful telepath and telekinetic who wields the Phoenix Force, a cosmic entity capable of manipulating matter and energy on a galactic scale.
Her presence could be the final, necessary catalyst, a literal force of creation and destruction, that balances the scales against a god-like Doctor Doom who is likely to have created Battleworld by that point. A return for Jean Grey could be a crunch point in the final battle against Doctor Doom.
Storm
Storm (Halle Berry) served as the primary elemental powerhouse and a key moral authority within the Fox films. Often acting as the school's co-leader and a mentor, she was an integral part of the team's public face and their combat strategy. Though some fans felt her power was underutilized, she remains one of the most recognizable and significant figures in the franchise.
Storm's control over the weather makes her a universal force. In a battle spanning multiple realities, she could literally control the atmospheric conditions of the battle world, summoning hurricane-force winds, lightning strikes, and massive blizzards. Her sheer scale of power would be an essential asset.
Furthermore, her iconic status and regal demeanor would instantly provide a co-leader presence alongside Professor X and Cyclops, rallying the disparate heroes into a cohesive fighting unit against the overwhelming forces of Battleworld.
Rogue
Rogue (Anna Paquin) was the audience's surrogate in the first X-Men film, embodying the burden and loneliness of the mutant condition. Her power, the inability to touch others without draining their life force and powers, made her a perpetual outsider.
Rogue’s mutant ability is uniquely suited for a final, desperate confrontation. She possesses the potential to be the ultimate weapon: a single touch could neutralize any foe, from Doom's superhuman soldiers to the villain himself.
More dramatically, if she were to absorb the powers of an Avenger, or a powerful new multiversal ally just before the final attack, her participation could represent the combined strength of all heroes in a single, desperate moment. Her involvement would be high-risk, high-reward, and immensely emotional, especially if her beloved Gambit is already fighting in Doomsday.
Iceman
Bobby Drake (Shawn Ashmore) grew from a nervous student into a dependable, albeit often secondary, member of the X-Men team. His relationship with Rogue and his status as one of the original X-Men added important history and continuity to the films.
Iceman is an Omega-level mutant, meaning his powers are theoretically limitless. While the Fox films focused on ice blasts and slides, his true potential involves absolute molecular manipulation of thermal energy. If he gets introduced in Secret Wars, his power could be escalated dramatically.
He could freeze entire armies in seconds, create indestructible ice fortresses, or even manipulate the temperatures of the immediate atmosphere to disable enemy technology or disrupt energy fields.
Introducing him with his full, comic-accurate Omega-level power would instantly give the heroes a major defensive and offensive advantage they otherwise would not have.
Colossus
Colossus (Daniel Cudmore in the original films, later voiced by Stefan Kapičić in the Deadpool films) was the team’s classic powerhouse. His transformation into organic steel made him the reliable tank, always ready to absorb punishment and deliver crushing blows. He stood for strength, loyalty, and an unwavering moral compass.
When the Multiverse is crumbling and entire armies are clashing, the need for sheer physical durability is paramount. Colossus’s presence instantly provides the heroes with a shield and a battering ram capable of withstanding attacks from the most powerful multiversal threats.
His presence, especially alongside MCU heavyweights like the Thing, would complete the ultimate line of defense, ensuring that the heroes have the raw physical fortitude to survive the most punishing phase of the war. Interestingly, Daniel Cudmore has openly expressed a willingness to return for Secret Wars if Marvel approached.
Juggernaut
Juggernaut, famously played by Vinnie Jones and later featured as an imposing motion-capture character in Deadpool 2, served as a pure, destructive physical menace. He is not a mutant but possesses mystical power from the Crimson Gem of Cyttorak, making him an unstoppable force of nature dedicated to chaos. The Deadpool 2 portrayal highlighted his true potential as a character capable of casually matching Colossus and ripping through entire convoys.
When facing a threat like Doctor Doom, the heroes need a powerful brute whose strength is virtually unlimited. Juggernaut's unstoppable momentum is a magical force that would be difficult for even reality-warping attacks to fully neutralize. Deploying him in Secret Wars would provide the ultimate offensive battering ram.
Kitty Pryde
Kitty Pryde, played by Elliot Page in Days of Future Past, was given the central, vital role of anchoring the time-travel mission in the film. Her unique phasing ability was the mechanism for saving the entire X-Men timeline. She demonstrated the immense strategic value of her seemingly defensive gift.
Kitty’s phasing ability is a perfect counter to reality manipulation. In a battle where entire regions of reality are being rewritten by Doctor Doom, her power to literally walk through matter, force fields, and temporal rifts would be invaluable.
Geraldo Amartey is a writer at The Direct. He joined the team in 2025, bringing with him four years of experience covering entertainment news, pop culture, and fan-favorite franchises for sites like YEN, Briefly and Tuko.
