MCU: Jon Hamm Reacts to X-Men Villain Prospects

By Jennifer McDonough Posted:
Jon Hamm Marvel X-Men MCU

Jon Hamm is undeniably a huge name in Hollywood. Having done seven seasons in the role of ad executive Don Draper on the hit AMC series Mad Men, Hamm has spent much of his time appearing in feature films such as Top Gun: Maverick.

When 20th Century Fox held the film rights to the X-Men and the rest of Marvel’s Merry Mutants (before the acquisition by Disney), the studio perpetually possessed a whole slate of Marvel films that were entirely disconnected from the MCU (and sometimes each other).

One such film was the critically panned The New Mutants, which starred a group of younger actors as characters who had yet to be seen in live-action. Jon Hamm was, at one point, attached to star in The New Mutants as the villainous Mister Sinister, but that element of the film was dropped before it went into production.

But would Hamm ever consider another Marvel role or another crack at Mister Sinister?

Would Jon Hamm Ever Join the MCU?

Mister Sinister
Marvel Comics

Speaking to ComicBookMovie, actor Jon Hamm reflected on almost being cast as Marvel’s Mister Sinister for The New Mutants, noting that he thinks the character “would be a fun person to play:”

“Yeah, I dont know–… Sometimes I find out more about my career from the Internet than I actually find out from my agents. So I didn’t really know that was in the works until somebody told me that I didn’t get it or it didn’t happen. So I really don’t know. I’m, like anybody else, would be thrilled to be a part of that storytelling, having been a big comicbook fan throughout my early teens and early twenties. So, we’ll see. I don’t know. It would be a fun person to play, that’s for sure. I look good in purple, I’ll put it that way.”

Previously, Hamm spoke to Yahoo about the fact that he officially filmed anything for The New Mutants but saw playing Sinister as a prospect for which he was “excited to be considered:”

“I never shot anything. I remember having a conversation with people: I’m a huge comic book fan, especially of the X-Men and The New Mutants, so I was excited to be considered. But these conversations happen and then life intervenes.”

A Place for Hamm at Marvel Studios?

Surely an actor like Jon Hamm, well-liked and respected and dedicated to his craft, would have no trouble finding work on an MCU film or show.

Maybe he wouldn’t necessarily play Mister Sinister, but there’s definitely a place for Hamm in the Marvel Universe, should the studio ever choose to cast him in something.

After all, he’s a self-proclaimed comic book fan, and that never hurts when starring in a superhero movie. And what’s more, by all accounts, he seems like a genuine, nice guy.

The New Mutants was meant to launch a franchise for Fox, but the Disney buyout and the pandemic seriously hampered those plans. The movie had a paltry showing at the box office and was eventually dumped onto streaming with little fanfare in mid-2020. And even if it did manage to find an audience, the fact that the Mutant film rights are now owned by Marvel precludes any sort of follow-up to the film, as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and co. have grand designs on rebooting Mutants into the MCU proper.

- About The Author: Jennifer McDonough
Jennifer McDonough has been a writer at The Direct since its 2020 launch. She is responsible for the creation of news articles and features. She also has a particular affinity for action figures and merchandise, which she revels in discussing in the articles she writes, when the situation calls for it.