A celestial showed up in a brand-new look at Marvel Studios and Marvel Animation's X-Men '97 Season 2. Following a lengthy two-year delay (which should no longer be an issue moving forward), X-Men '97 is on its way back to Disney+ with its classic team of animated mutants. This will also feature other characters who have played major roles in the MCU outside the mutant story.
Marvel Studios released a new episode of the Legends series ahead of X-Men '97 Season 2's three-episode premiere on Disney+ on July 1. This episode centers on the ultra-powerful supervillain Apocalypse, who will be the main antagonist in Season 2. In its almost four-minute runtime, the episode recaps Apocalypse's core story seen in the original X-Men: The Animated Series before his return under Marvel Studios in the final episode of X-Men '97 Season 1.
In a shot of Apocalypse from the new season, a Celestial can be seen to the left of his head at the 3:41 mark of the episode. While it is unclear how big a role the Celestial will play in the new season, it marks the fourth time in MCU history that this specific version of a Celestial has shown up on screen.
Outside of Benicio del Toro's Collector and Kurt Russell's Ego the Living Planet, a Celestial similar to the one seen in X-Men '97 also played a supporting role in 2021's Eternals. This was the Prime Celestial Arishem, who created both the Eternals and the Deviants to aid in the birth of a new Celestial, Tiamut, whose birth would have destroyed the Earth had the Eternals not stopped it.
Tiamut also appears in What If...? Season 3, Episode 2, which centers on Kingo and Agatha Harkness' partnership in 1930s Hollywood. Here, Agatha attempts to steal Tiamut's celestial energy to conquer the world, capturing the other Eternals to fuel her spell and absorb Tiamut's power. She then uses this power to trap and absorb Arishem.
X-Men '97 will move into its second season as part of the MCU's Phase 6 slate, coming two years after Season 1 began airing in 2024. This season will start with the X-Men scattered across multiple timelines, each tied to a different point in Apocalypse's reign of terror.
Apocalypse's History With the Celestials
In the comics, En Sabah Nur (who becomes Apocalypse) is intricately connected to the Celestials, as he is chosen to be their caretaker and designed to oversee the evolutionary progression of Earth's mutants. Due to his deformities, he is abandoned in ancient Egypt, and he eventually fuses his body with Celestial cybernetics after discovering their technology.
This armor makes him nearly invincible, part of what makes him one of the most powerful villains in X-Men history. He also has ties to another notable Marvel villain, Kang the Conqueror (when he is disguised as Pharaoh Rama-Tut), who attempts to have him killed because of his knowledge of what En Sabah Nur becomes in the future.
While details about Season 2's plot are still under wraps, this could indicate that Marvel will tell Apocalypse's true origin story as depicted in the comics for this show. From there, he is expected to give the X-Men everything they can handle as the team works to find their way back to the 1990s.
Richard Nebens joined The Direct in March 2020, now serving as the site's Senior Writer. He started his journalism career as a hobby in 2019 and is passionate about sharing news and stories from the entertainment industry, especially comic book movies, comedy, and sci-fi. Richard looks to expand his knowledge about movies and TV every day, and he is eager to stay locked into the latest releases and breaking news at every opportunity.
