Marvel Studios Confirms The MCU’s 6th Telepath

Marvel Studios just added a 6th mind reader to its rank of telepaths, a category of superpowered individuals that are scarce in the MCU. This addition comes as the studio gears up for its Mutant Saga. The saga is set to officially introduce the iconic mutant team, the X-Men, into the franchise after Marvel Studios went years without them because the character rights belonged to another studio. Now that this has been resolved, Marvel can freely feature X-Men characters in its epic crossovers. 

The latest telepath to join the MCU is Jean Grey, portrayed by Stranger Things alum Sadie Sink. The actress did a masterful job of embodying the iconic mutant in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Shortly after the movie arrived in theaters on July 31, Deadline reported that another telepath, Emma Frost, is also joining the MCU, with Samara Weaving cast in the role. Marvel Studios hasn’t officially confirmed the casting, but trade reports are usually spot on with such reveals. The telepath will reportedly appear in director Jake Schreier's X-Men reboot, which is expected to arrive after the Multiverse Saga finale, Avengers: Secret Wars. 

Before Brand New Day arrived, it was a mystery which character Sadie Sink was playing in the movie, although rumors that she would portray Jean had circulated for months. She was missing from most of the marketing, and the film's trailers even refused to show her face. She appeared in the shadows, wearing a yellow and green hoodie, adding to the film's mystery premise. Before her arrival, there were a few telepaths in the MCU; she and Emma Frost now add to that group. 

Every Telepath in the MCU, Confirmed and Reported

Jean Grey

Jean Grey's MCU debut was memorable, as it gave fans a taste of how mutants will operate in this universe. Grey played a villainous role for the majority of the movie, terrorizing New Yorkers with her mind-hopping abilities. The telepath left destruction in her wake as she sought to tear apart the Department of Damage Control and its director, Bill Metzger, played by Severance star Tramell Tillman. Jean's actions weren’t exactly unjustified, though; the DODC kidnapped her older sister, Sara Grey, and experimented on her in a bid to harness her abilities. 

These experiments took a toll on Sara and eventually killed her. Jean gets more powerful and angry as the film progresses, and her thirst for revenge is only quelled when Peter Parker lets her into his mind, where she meets his late Aunt May. Jean is confirmed to return in the X-Men reboot. 

Emma Frost 

Emma Frost is among the most powerful mutants in the Marvel Universe. The telepath hasn’t been lucky enough to get a proper spotlight in live-action, but the X-Men reboot is set to change that. Emma, who debuted in Chris Claremont and John Byrne's Uncanny X-Men #129 in 1980, is one of the most complex mutants on the page. She's sometimes on the side of the X-Men and other times against them. Her telepathic abilities are not the only power that makes her dangerous. 

Emma's skin changes to organic diamond that is almost impossible to penetrate. It's unclear how big Emma's role in the X-Men reboot will be, but if Marvel Studios is introducing her this early, she might be a central figure in the film or follow-up MCU entries.

Professor X 

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness surprised fans by introducing Patrick Stewart's Professor X, although this version was not the one from the Fox movies. This Charles Xavier was from the MCU's Earth-838, a member of the Illuminati, which is a group of powerful heroes who fight multiversal threats. When Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch waltzes into their universe, causing havoc, Professor X joins the fight to stop her. 

He uses his telepathic abilities and ventures into Wanda's tormented mind. This decision proved fatal as Wanda killed him in a matter of seconds, along with other members of the Illuminati. Another version of Xavier will appear in Avengers: Doomsday, this time from Earth-10005.

Wanda Maximoff 

Wanda Maximoff is one of the most powerful characters in the MCU. Her ability to toy with the minds of even the most formidable heroes makes her extremely dangerous. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, she infiltrates the minds of Thor, Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and Natasha Romanoff, showing them their worst nightmares. 

Her abilities grew even stronger in the Disney+ series WandaVision, where she trapped the people of Westview in a sitcom-styled reality she created. She fully embraced villainy in Multiverse of Madness, where she hunted the teenager America Chavez in a quest to get her sons back. She met her tragic end on Mount Wundagore, and Olsen has yet to reprise the role in live-action.

Loki 

Loki was the main villain in 2012's The Avengers and one of the first MCU characters to use mind control. In the film, Tom Hiddleston's God of Mischief uses the Mind Stone to control Clint Barton and Erik Selvig, turning them against the Avengers. Clint even shoots Nick Fury while in that state. Loki doesn’t need the Mind Stone to infiltrate minds, though. 

In Thor: Ragnarok, he clashes with Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie, making her relive the death of her fellow Valkyrior at Hela's hands. Loki's abilities are even more impressive in Season 1 of his titular series. He enchants the cloud entity Alioth with Sylvie's help. In Season 2, Loki develops the ability to control time, reshaping branched timelines into Yggdrasil.

Sentry 

Thunderbolts introduced Bob Reynolds, also known as the Sentry, one of the most overpowered characters in the MCU. Sentry's mind-reading abilities are very powerful, and his debut film depicted this. In one scene, Bob holds hands with Yelena Belova and unintentionally makes her relive her terrible childhood memories. His darker half, the Void, took things up a notch, trapping New Yorkers in their worst nightmares. After the rest of the New Avengers stop Sentry, he's hesitant to use these overpowered abilities again. However, it's likely to return when Lewis Pullman reprises the role in Avengers: Doomsday.