Entertainment
Marvel Is Sidelining The Most Popular X-Men Hero
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
From the very beginning, the X-Men movies have focused on Wolverine, with Hugh Jackman’s character headlining the original film trilogy, his own trilogy, and two films in entirely different timelines. With Deadpool & Wolverine introducing Jackman into the MCU, most fans assumed that Wolverine would be the main character in the upcoming X-Men film.
However, a recent report claims that the movie will focus on Cyclops and Jean Grey instead, a decision that will ultimately make the upcoming mutant movie that much stronger.
Stand Back, Bub
This information comes to us from scooper Alex Perez, who recently answered questions from readers of his blog, The Cosmic Circus. When someone asked which mutant characters would be the focus of Marvel’s next saga, Perez responded that Cyclops and Jean Grey would be “co-leaders of the team.” This implies that not only will these two lovebirds be the central characters in the MCU’s first X-Men movie, but that they will have an outsized role in other Marvel movies via the absolutely inevitable crossovers and team-ups.
Considering they were among his first students, it makes plenty of storytelling sense to center the next X-Men movie around Scott Summers and Jean Grey. Plus, the two have a wonderfully complicated relationship in the comics, which should provide plenty of fodder for future movie writers. Finally, the Jean of the comics eventually becomes the Dark Phoenix, and should we (crossing all my fingers and toes here!) ever get a Dark Phoenix Saga movie, making her a central character from the beginning would make her cosmic heel turn that much more shocking.
An Uncanny Decision
However, launching a new X-Men movie without Wolverine is nearly unprecedented: he made an explosive entrance with the first X-Men film, launched his own spinoff trilogy with the underwhelming X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and made a hilariously vulgar cameo in X-Men: First Class. After bringing us all to tears in Logan, Hugh Jackman returned to this character (or at least, a version of this character) in Deadpool & Wolverine, a move seemingly setting him up for appearing in the X-Men movie after the upcoming Secret Wars reset. But this Scott Summers/Jean Grey report would indicate the ol’ canucklehead won’t be the biggest mutant player in the MCU.
For as great as Jackman is in the role of Wolverine, it’s very wise that Marvel is sidelining his character in favor of focusing on younger heroes. The actor will be pushing 60 by the time the X-Men movie comes out, and it would be increasingly absurd to make him the focus of these action-packed movies. If you remember how sad it was to see an out-of-breath Roger Moore huffing his way through his later James Bond movies, then you understand why I don’t want Marvel to make a literal senior citizen the lead of an X-Men movie meant to appeal to younger viewers.
The Future Is Now, Old Man Logan
Another blunt truth is that every scene and storyline focusing on Wolverine is one that does not focus on anyone else in this menagerie of mutants. In the original X-Men films, for example, characters like Scott Summers and Storm were barely developed because there was so much of a focus on Hugh Jackman’s fan-favorite character. Furthermore, when Wolverine became the main star of Days of Future Past, he effectively sidelined almost the entirety of the First Class cast so the film could focus on someone who had already headlined two separate sets of mutant movies.
Now, it seems Wolverine himself is getting sidelined, and that may be the only way for the latest crop of X-Man actors to establish themselves with fans. Plus, Disney could have their cake and eat it too by giving Jackman multiple solo Wolverine movies before he even joins Xavier’s team, giving him his own spotlight without taking anything away from the younger actors he will later work with. Once he appears alongside his younger castmates, though, only time will tell if Jackman can handle taking a back seat to the next generation of mutant heroes.
Or, for that matter, if fans can handle Wolverine taking a backseat so that other characters can shine!
