MCU X-Men: Our Picks for the New Movies

Welcome to the MCU X-Men, Hope You Survive the Experience!

The X-Men are returning to the Silver Screen. Fox had the ball for almost two decades and kept the merry Mutants on everyone’s mind, but they’ve come home to roost. Now it’s time for the MCU to start their Mutant Saga.

We’ve got a safe roster starting out: Cyclops, Phoenix, Storm, Rogue, Angel, Professor X, and Emma Frost. Rumors suggest that Beast and Ice Man will also be part of the team. The MCU can do more than coast on the big names by casting lesser-known Mutants as major characters, perhaps even the audience POV. Which MCU X-Men should make their debut? Let’s find out.

#5 Elixir

Superhero movies love flashy powers. Super strength, flight, lasers, anything that makes the heroes look badass. This MCU X-Men hopeful has a subtle power that is far more useful.

The Hero: Joshua Foley was an unpopular teenager who joined an anti-Mutant terrorist organization called The Reavers to become popular. His mutation awoke when another Reaver was wounded, allowing Josh to heal them. He hid his mutation until an attack of conscience made him heal one of the Reaver’s victims. Joshua was reluctantly allowed into the X-Men and became Elixir.

Elixir’s school life was tumultuous. He was part of a love triangle with his teacher Wolfsbane and classmate Wallflower. Several of his classmates, including her, were assassinated by different terrorists. Elixir avenged his friends by murdering their leader, Reverend Stryker, discovering that hatred caused him to decay people instead of healing them.

Why Them?: The X-Men are often accused of training child soldiers, but Elixir demonstrates their real mission of teaching Mutants to control their powers. He can only use his healing while in a good headspace and decays people while angry, making his mental state more important than other Mutants’.

Healing and decaying are the most basic parts of Elixir’s biology control mutation. He has regenerated people’s hearts from nothing and his powers make him almost immortal. Working with a group of Mutants called The Five, he can resurrect the dead. No faded memories, no soul degradation, just an infinite number of extra lives for any Mutant.

The Catch: Elixir’s healing is a get-out-of-death-free card. Writers would be jumping through hoops to keep him away so that death and injuries matter. Bring in the rest of The Five and even Death won’t be able to stop him.

#4 MCU X-Men: Chamber

Most of our MCU X-Men picks aren’t obviously changed by their mutation. They have powers, but can pass for Joe Schmoe. This Brit is the best choice for a Mutant whose body openly reflects their powers.

The Hero: Jonothan “Jono” Starsmore was an average teenager until his mutation activated. Psionic fire destroyed his jaw and most of his chest. The X-Men took him in and taught Jono to speak telepathically. His torso had become a chamber for the fire, so he decided to call himself Chamber.

Chamber was an outcast because of his obvious mutation and bitter outlook. He found a home with the team just in time for Scarlet Witch to depower most of Mutantkind. Jono was put on life support without his powers to sustain him. A cult called Clan Akkaba kidnapped him and restored his powers. The X-Men discovered that Chamber is a direct descendant of their arch-foe, Apocalypse, but one who refused any connection to his siblings in the cult.

Why Them?: Chamber is the brooding bad boy that the upcoming roster lacks. He is bitter about his damaged body and keeps others at arm’s length, but can let them in over time. Psychic energy blasts from his torso would look spectacular and allow him to stand-in for Cyclops as needed. The two of them teaming up to vaporize a Big Bad could be a great climax.

The Apocalypse connection is important because he’s rumored to be the next Big Bad after Doctor Doom. Chamber’s familial ties to Clan Akkaba put him in a unique position that no X-Men adaptation has explored. Would he be tempted to join his fellow descendants or lead a final charge against his ancestor?

The Catch: Chamber is a schlep to portray in live-action. The actor would have to spend most of the movie bundled up like The Shadow so the studio doesn’t spend a fortune on CGI every moment he’s onscreen. They would probably kill Chamber quickly to get rid of the money sink.

#3 Surge

The rumored cast has a lot of strong personalities, but they’re missing a troublemaker. Wolverine usually takes the job of causing drama, but we’ve got a substitute ready for the MCU X-Men.

The Hero: Noriko Ashida was a Japanese Mutant who ran away from home after her powers activated. She made her way to America and used drugs to control her electric powers. The X-Men brought Noriko to their school, created gauntlets to control her powers, and helped her get clean.

Noriko became Surge and was assigned to the New Mutants. She butted heads with everyone despite always having her team’s back. They learned to accept her barbs and helped Surge grow into a capable leader.

Why Them?: Surge represents the Mutants who aren’t buddy-buddy with a world that hates and fears them. She gets in bigots’ faces to shout down their racism despite the risk of giving them more ammo. What keeps her from being part of The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is that she doesn’t attack humans.

That abrasiveness would apply to the X-Men as well. Noriko could give them a swift kick in the ass when they need it, but also have them around to help when her repressed fears trigger a meltdown. Learning to temper her emotions would give Surge an ongoing character arc that could last several movies.

The Catch: Storm is part of the MCU’s X-Men and much more popular than this electric chick. Both use lightning attacks, but Storm’s weather manipulation would trap Surge in her shadow. Screenwriters must also be careful with how abrasive Surge is or run the risk of making her unlikeable.

#2 MCU X-Men: Jitter

Most MCU X-Men hopefuls have been around the block and carved their own niche. If we’re letting new blood in, how about one of the newest members?

The Hero: Sofia Yong was a teenager bullied because she stuttered. Her mutation activated, allowing her to gain any skill she focuses on, but just for one minute. Sofia accidentally paralyzed a gang of bullies and ran away. 

She traveled to America and joined a group of runaway Mutants called The Outliers, who were hunted by a monster and joined the X-Men for protection. Sofia became Jitter and fought many supernatural threats with her team, unaware that the X-Men had been warned that one of the Outliers would doom Mutantkind.

Why Them?: Jitter is the ultimate plug-and-play member of the X-Men. By focusing, she can contact dead souls associated with a single skill and draw on their experiences. Her power only lasts for one minute and needs an hour to recharge, but Jitter becomes a master of that skill for all 60 seconds.

Those limits are the most interesting part of her power. What if Jitter focuses on judo and realizes too late that she really needed airplane pilot? She might activate a medical skill and not have enough time to finish a procedure. By that same token, Jitter can fit into any role and keep her intervention limited to that scene before the rest of the team return to the spotlight.

The Catch: Jitter debuted in 2024 and hasn’t had time to build a repertoire of stories yet. It’s easy to paper over her identity because I doubt there are many young female Singaporean actors with epilepsy and a stutter. Jitter’s powers would probably fit a TV show better than a movie.

#1 Magik

We’re cheating a little bit with our number one MCU X-Man. She was part of New Mutants, but that movie was dead on arrival and replaced her story with a child sex slave subplot, so I’m gonna say she counts as new.

The Hero: Illyana Rasputina was Colossus’ little sister. She attended the X-Men’s school with her brother, often getting into danger so that he could rescue her. Illyana was kidnapped by the demon Belasco, who trained her as a sorceress and living weapon over seven years. She eventually killed him and returned moments after she was taken as Magik: Queen of Limbo.

Belasco was the least of her problems. Our Magik Backstory has all the details.

Why Them?: Illyana is the perfect viewpoint character for the X-Men. No powers at first, young enough to need an introduction, explanations, and maybe even open to hearing the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants out. Then the post credit scene can be her kidnapping.

Magik could then build on her trauma once she returns. She could be abrasive to her one-time guardians as she struggles with her literal inner demon. Combine that with her Soulsword for melee combat and you have an excellent stand-in for Wolverine in the MCU.

The Catch: Magik’s story needs time to marinate. Rushing would leave her a generic tough goth with a tragic past. Magik’s at her best when fans can see her journey from the innocent child to the Queen who forged her soul into a weapon. It would also be strange to have Illyana with the X-Men when Colossus isn’t part of the team yet.

What MCU X-Men do you hope are introduced? Did we miss one of your favorites? Tell us in the comments.

Jared Bounacos

Jared Bounacos has written for Movie Rewind since 2016.