Even though the X-Men seemingly won't come to the MCU for quite some time, there's already a seat reserved at the table for the mutants over the coming years. But for the time being, as is the case with their former Fox roommates, the Fantastic Four, fan-casts for the X-Men are coming at a fast rate.
Over the last few months, more than a handful of Hollywood megastars have addressed the idea of possibly playing major mutant roles when they do make their way into the larger MCU. This includes Top Gun: Maverick's Glen Powell potentially looking at the team's leader, Cyclops, and The Little Mermaid's Halle Bailey recently revealed that she'd love the chance to play Storm when the time comes.
One character that's flown under the radar through these fan-casting theories is Rogue, originally played by Anna Paquin alongside Hugh Jackman's Wolverine and Patrick Stewart's Professor X.
Now, that role has come to the forefront recently thanks to Hollywood fan-favorite Keke Palmer.
Keke Palmer Pushes for X-Men Casting
Lightyear star Keke Palmer took to Twitter to share her thoughts on potentially playing the X-Men's Rogue in the MCU.
A fan posted a TikTok video promoting the idea of her playing Rogue, which he thought would match her personality and the role that she's enjoyed playing in the past. Palmer shared this video along with the caption "Come on agentttttttt."
Back in 2010, via Essence Magazine and The Playlist, Palmer was asked about joining Runaways, which had been imagined as a movie before it turned into a TV show on Hulu. While she didn't take the role, she seemed to indicate that she had an interest in joining the Marvel project:
“[True Jackson, VP] had me tied up so much that I haven’t been able to do much of anything else. But before the show I did a lot of films, so I’m familiar with it. But I’m ready to go back. I’ve had a nice little break with the steady TV show but I’m definitely ready to do some more films again. I was just asked to join a new Marvel comic project called, Runaways.”
Will Keke Palmer Join the MCU?
Of all the mutant roles that need to be cast for the MCU, Rogue could potentially be one of the most vital in terms of story beats and character interactions. After all, this is a character that's taken Captain Marvel's powers and boasts one of the most intense power sets of any X-Man on the table.
Keke Palmer certainly has the resume to take on any role she would want to tackle in the MCU, and she's at the age where she could stay in the role for a long time if she were cast soon. She could also bring the fun Mississippi-based energy to the role, having played parts with similar personalities to Rogue over the past few years.
With the Multiverse Saga still more than three years away from coming to an end, it will likely be a long time until Palmer or any other Hollywood stars get their shot to become the MCU's X-Men. But looking at how this star is already pushing for it to happen, her name will have to be in the conversation when those talks begin.
