Marvel Studios is already erasing Jean Grey's villain era after just one movie. The iconic telepath made her MCU debut in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, where she was portrayed as an antagonist for much of the film. Jean proved herself a formidable enemy, giving Tom Holland's Spider-Man the challenge of fighting an adversary he couldn't see. Her villain tenure let Spidey fans experience the MCU's web-head putting on his detective hat, as Andrew Garfield's hero did in the Amazing Spider-Man films. Brand New Day became the third highest-grossing movie of all time with $2.5 billion worldwide, and Sink's character was a driving force in that success. However, Marvel has very different plans for Jean now.
X-Men reboot director Jake Schreier has confirmed that Sadie Sink's Jean Grey will be a "founding member of the team," bringing an end to her villain era in the MCU. Schreier made the reveal when he took the stage alongside Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige in Anaheim during the Disney Entertainment Showcase at D23:
"I'm so happy to be here to be working on X-Men. Sadie, of course, plays Jean Grey, founding member of the team, and we will follow her story into an all-new version of the saga coming to theaters May 5th, 2028."
Jean Grey being a founding member of the X-Men means that, after the events of Brand New Day, Professor Charles Xavier takes her in and teaches her to control her mutant powers and use them for good, a far cry from the Jean who seized the minds of half of New York in a misguided revenge plot.
Sink stood on the D23 stage alongside Kit Connor, confirmed as Scott Summers/Cyclops, and Samara Weaving as Emma Frost. Feige then revealed Christopher Abbott as Professor Charles Xavier, Inde Navarrette as Rogue, and newcomer Maya Boyd as Storm. Adam Driver appeared in a video message to confirm his casting as Nathaniel Milbury, better known to comic readers as Mister Sinister.
Marvel is closing the book on Jean Grey's villain era and handing her an even bigger future in the MCU. Feige told Variety even before this D23 reveal that "Sadie's character is one that our fans know has immense significance within the Marvel Universe, and she plays a key role in the future of the MCU." Rumors have also swirled that Sink's telepath could feature in Avengers: Secret Wars even before the X-Men reboot, which would kick off her heroic run ahead of schedule.
Marvel Ending Jean Grey's Villain Era Is the Best Direction for the Character
Jean Grey will be the lead of the MCU's X-Men reboot when it arrives on May 5, 2028, and a position of heroism suits her far better than a villain role. Jean is one of the founding members of the X-Men in the comics. She first appeared in The X-Men #1 in 1963, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, under the codename Marvel Girl. She trained as one of Charles Xavier's five original students alongside Cyclops, Angel, Beast, and Iceman.
From there, Jean grew into one of the most important figures in mutant history. In Chris Claremont and John Byrne's Dark Phoenix Saga, she became the host of a cosmic force, a story widely considered the greatest X-Men arc ever published.
Marvel centering the reboot around Jean is a refreshing shift from the Fox-era X-Men films, which reduced her to a side character and botched the Dark Phoenix storyline twice, although Famke Janssen did brilliant work in the early Fox films. Those films mostly revolved around Wolverine and hardly paid enough attention to Jean and Scott Summers. Their love story, a huge part of the comics, was poorly served, with Jean killing Scott off-screen in X-Men: The Last Stand.
Sophie Turner later portrayed Jean in the Fox prequel films, and the telepath wasn't the lead in those stories either. Instead, the spotlight went to another telepath, James McAvoy's Charles Xavier, with the prequel era's X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and X-Men: Apocalypse all revolving around him. When Jean finally got the chance to headline an X-Men film, it sadly had to be Dark Phoenix, widely ranked among the worst of the Fox era, whose many problems are a topic for another day.
Marvel Studios looks set to finally do the character justice, and although Jean debuting as a villain in the MCU wasn't everyone's cup of tea, Brand New Day director Destin Daniel Cretton made it work brilliantly. She should be even more convincing when placed in her natural X-Men habitat in the 2028 reboot.
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.
