Jean Grey is appearing in another Marvel project in 2026, outside of her rumored debut in the MCU. The red-headed mutant is one of the integral members of the X-Men, and she's expected to play a big part in Marvel Studios' eventual X-Men reboot. The question now is when she'll be officially introduced in the MCU, but aside from that, Jean Grey is confirmed for appearances in two other Marvel projects this year.
The most recent of these was Jean's surprise appearance in the new gameplay footage for Marvel's Wolverine, a PlayStation game from Insomniac Games releasing on September 15. While it was expected that some mutants would cross Logan's path in the game, it wasn't clear who, and Jean's arrival to help Wolverine in combat in the official footage was a welcome surprise.
In the gameplay segment, Wolverine is on a mission to rescue captured mutants from the Reavers, a faction working for Boliver Trask. As the Reavers lock away the mutants and prepare to drive off, Wolverine is aided by Jean Grey flying in.
Jean uses her telekinetic powers to throw around enemies and destroy infrastructure, delaying the Reavers' departure with the mutants. Logan comments on Jean's arrival, "There you are, Red," suggesting the two have history in this universe as they do in the comics.
Jean and Logan then team up to fight the Reavers, with Jean often setting up enemies with her telekinetic powers that Logan can then eliminate with a finishing move.
While Jean doesn't appear to be playable in Marvel's Wolverine, she does seem integral to the story, with the PlayStation blog describing her as "the emergent leader of the captured mutants."
Wolverine and Jean's appearance in Marvel's Wolverine is the start of another X-Men universe for Marvel, with Insomniac's previous games having focused on Spider-Man and his allies and enemies.
The PS5 game will be released in September, but ahead of that, Jean Grey does have a second confirmed appearance in 2026, this time in X-Men '97 Season 2. The animated Marvel series is a revitalization of the classic X-Men: The Animated Series from the 1990s, and Jean Grey (voiced by Jennifer Hale) is a core part of the ensemble.
In X-Men '97, some time has passed since the X-Men banded together, and Jean is now married to fellow mutant Scott Summers/Cyclops. However, Jean and Wolverine still have a complicated relationship in X-Men '97, with Wolverine challenging her relationship with Scott because of his feelings for her.
When Jean returns in X-Men '97 Season 2, she will find herself and fellow mutants, Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, and Morph, stuck far in the future, following the events of the Season 1 finale, which scattered the X-Men across time.
Once there, Jean and the X-Men will have to deal with a future ruled by the mutant villain, Apocalypse.
Marvel's Wolverine's inclusion of Jean Grey means there will be two very different versions of the character on screen in 2026. X-Men '97 will show Jean Grey as a well-established X-Men, whereas in the PS5 game, the X-Men don't even exist yet, and Jean still seems to be in the early stages of becoming a leader.
The second season of X-Men '97 will arrive first on July 1, which itself is only weeks before the rumored live-action appearance of Jean Grey in the MCU.
For months now, fans have wondered who Sadie Sink will be playing in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, with every possibility from Gwen Stacy to a female Punisher being thrown in the mix. Several months ago, entertainment insider Jeff Sneider reported that Sink will be the one to usher in the MCU era of the X-Men as Jean Grey.
This has only been bolstered by the release of Spider-Man: Brand New Day's trailer, which introduced a character with mind-hopping/mind-control powers that could line up with Jean's. Marvel is keeping the identity of Sink's character very under wraps so as not to spoil anything, so fans still have a few more weeks until the new Spider-Man movie releases on July 31 to find out the truth.
Jean Grey is Integral to Marvel's Future Slate
With Jean Grey appearing across animation and video games in 2026, it's evident she is quickly becoming one of Marvel's most important characters (again).
In the live-action space, both Famke Janssen and Sophie Turner have had a turn at playing Jean Grey in various X-Men movies, but now that Fox and the rights to its Marvel characters are back with Marvel Studios, all eyes are on the MCU to see how the Phoenix will be utilized.
Pairing one of the most popular young actors in pop culture right now with a role like Jean Grey seems like a no-brainer, and coming off of Stranger Things, Sink is perfectly primed for that role.
The X-Men in general are also reaching a higher level of saturation thanks to Marvel's investment in projects like X-Men '97, Marvel's Wolverine, Marvel Rivals, Deadpool & Wolverine, and the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday. The MCU is fast approaching a point where a new X-Men team is inevitable, and Jean Grey may be the key to making that happen.
