During a livestream announcement for the first wave of additions to to the Avengers: Doomsday cast, several X-Men franchise actors were revealed to star in the highly-anticipated Marvel Cinematic Universe movie-event.
Just in case you missed the cast update, the confirmed X-Men actors were James Marsden (Cyclops), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler), Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), and Deadpool & Wolverine actor Channing Tatum (Gambit). While story details for Avengers: Doomsday are still being kept under wraps, the hope among many fans is that we will get a loose adaptation of the Avengers vs. X-Men storyline from the Marvel comics, but it remains to be seen how the mutants factor into Doomsday's narrative.
Anthony Mackie, MCU's Captain America, has opened up about his dream Avengers/X-Men team-up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. During a recent interview with Screen Rant, while promoting his latest film Sneaks, Mackie was asked about which X-Men character he's most excited for his Captain America to team-up with in Avengers: Doomsday, and he talked about his love for the X-Men, mentioning multiple mutants by name. In particular, he talked about how he's a big fan of Cyclops. He also brought up the idea for a Sam Wilson/Nightcrawler moment.
“Look, I am a big Cyclops fan. That’s my favorite X-Men. I have a Cyclops action figure on my keychain that I’ve had since high school,” Mackie revealed. “When I was in high school, the X-Men cartoon was really big, and this was before the movies. I’ve always been a huge Cyclops fan, and I’m really, really excited – hopefully, knock on wood – for them to be a part of it and come into it. [I’m excited] to hang out with Xavier and Beast and all those guys. But my favorite is Nightcrawler. If I can hang out with one character? Me and Nightcrawler in the French Quarter during Mardi Gras for two weeks, that’s what I do."
Mackie was one of the names confirmed to return for Avengers: Doomsday. After headlining Captain America: Brave New World earlier this year, he will reprise his role as Sam Wilson/Captain America in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. His character will take on a leadership role, guiding the Avengers as they prepare for the arrival of Doctor Doom (Robert Downey Jr.). Sam's loyal friend Joaquin Torres, played by Danny Ramirez, will also return in the next Avengers film.
Avengers: Doomsday is currently in production, and it's set to release in theaters on May 1, 2026; while Avengers: Secret Wars is scheduled for a May 7, 2027 release. Both Avengers movies will be directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, the same filmmaking duo behind Avengers: Endgame and Avengers: Infinity War. The screenplay was written by Michael Waldron and Stephen McFreely, and the MCU film is being produced by the Russo brothers for their AGBO banner alongside Kevin Feige, the President of Marvel Studios.
