A new report has suggested that the MCU's X-Men movie will replace Wolverine as its mutant main character. Since the X-Men's live-action debut in 2000, Hugh Jackman's claw-bearing Canadian has been viewed as the main protagonist of the X-Men franchise. That has continued through the rest of the X-Men films, with Wolvie getting the honor as the first mutant character to lead his own MCU movie in 2023's Deadpool & Wolverine.
That will all seemingly change with Marvel Studios' forthcoming X-Men film, however. According to known movie scooper Kristian Harloff, the Summers family (led by Scott Summers/Cyclops) will be the focus of the MCU's first wave of mutant stories.
Speaking on a recent episode of his podcast, Harloff posited that, "One of the things they could be doing with the X-Men...[is] a heavy push with [Cyclops] and the Summers family:"
"One of the things they could be doing with the X-Men, because everyone know they are leading with the X-Men, is with Cyclops. They are going to be doing a heavy push with him and the Summers family. So, Wolverine would not be a big focus."
Some had taken this to mean that Scott Summers and the rest of the Summers family would be a big focus of the characters' upcoming appearance in Avengers: Doomsday, but that is not the case. Harloff clarified in a follow-up post on X, adding that "Cyclops will be the focus of the new mutant saga, not Doomsday."
This would presumably see a wholly new version of Cyclops/Scott Summers take on the main character role of the MCU X-Men project. Classic X-Men actor James Marsden will appear in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, but his role is not expected to extend beyond the MCU's ongoing Multiverse Saga.
Marvel Studios has not officially detailed the MCU X-Men movie, but a few details have made their way out. The upcoming mutant-based blockbuster is supposedly set to arrive sometime after December 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars, directed by Thunderbolts* filmmaker Jake Schreier.
Why Is Cyclops Taking the X-Men Spotlight?
For plenty of X-Men fans, hearing that Marvel Studios' first push of storytelling featuring the character will not focus on Wolverine will be confusing. An entire generation has grown up with Wolverine at the forefront of all things mutant-based.
However, that has not always been the case. The X-Men traditionally have been led by Scott Summers/Cyclops, and it was not until the Fox X-Men movies that Logan took over that spotlight.
Given that Cyclops' portrayal in those original X-Men films is not seen all that favorably, this could be an opportunity for the MCU to shine a light on a character who has not necessarily gotten his due on the big screen as of yet. It also opens up the door for Marvel Studios to play around with its Wolverine a bit before settling on what it ultimately wants to do.
There have been rumors that the MCU brass is eyeing having Hugh Jackman continue to play Wolverine for a bit longer after the events of Avengers: Secret Wars, while also introducing its own separate team of X-Men characters.
By focusing the first chapter of the MCU X-Men story on Scott Summers, Marvel can have Jackman do his own solo Wolverine thing for a bit longer, before the mainline MCU universe introduces its own Wolverine sometime after Jackman's take has officially been retired.
