It has been over a week since Disney+ released the shocking X-Men ‘97 Episode 5, Remember It, but fans are still reeling from the unexpected deaths of Gambit, Magneto, and several other mutants. Mister Sinister’s former secret agent died a hero after sacrificing himself to destroy the Sentinel and save his fellow mutants. However, the animated series director Jake Castorena revealed that his demise wasn’t originally part of the plan and another character was supposed to die.
In an interview with ComicBook’s Phase Zero podcast, Castorena discussed the death of the two major characters, Gambit and Magneto, in X-Men '97 Episode 5. Sure, they originally eyed to end Magento’s story in the revival, but it didn’t initially include Gambit. Another character was supposed to die, though he didn’t reveal who.
“Yeah, Magneto. Yes, but Gambit wasn't the… You know, it was one of those… Was it always Magneto? Yes. Was it always Gambit? Half,” he explained. “Magneto was always kind of like the staple. The other character, it wasn't initially Gambit. I dare not say who it was because it changed a few times.”
Castorena elaborated that Gambit's death resulted from the script and story’s change. With that alteration, they had to push things based on what the story needed and who needed to kick the bucket that would benefit the narrative. However, he stressed that it wasn’t for the sake of making a noise but to go beyond what they could do.
That's one of the things that really, genuinely, intrigued me about coming to this project. It was like, 'Oh, we're gonna take some swings, but it's all gonna be narratively driven.' It's all gonna be pushing the narrative in a way that's gonna benefit story and validating why we're making these changes. Not doing this stuff for the sake of shock value, but to genuinely challenge and push narrative forward.
The Ramifications of Magneto’s Death in X-Men ‘97
Castorena then talked about the death of Magneto. He said the master of magnetism carried the torch of the things Xavier Charles died and sacrificed for and led the X-Men. He even managed to rise to the occasion but only to be crushed down in his prime during the attack. Now that the X-Men are left with no leader, the director was asked who would lead the group again.
Unfortunately, Castorena just played coy about it and talked about the ramifications of Magneto’s death instead. According to him, the X-Men are about to face those consequences but are not the only ones affected. The massacre of Genosha would also hit the mutant and human co-existence hard.
X-Men ‘97 to Deal with “Consequences” X-Men: The Animated Series Couldn’t
Castorena teased that part of X-Men '97’s script and mission statement was to have the X-Men face “real consequences” that even the original X-Man: The Animated Series didn’t dare to do. He thanked the show’s showrunner, Beau DeMayo, for his “genuine approach” to making this bold move. The visual adaptation of this “script,” which he didn’t reveal, was often part of their discussions.
“Any generation that grew up with the original show… That genuinely grew up watching the show. Now, there's a level of crap that we've gone through as a people, right? And I'm talking from 911 to COVID,” he added. “So in that the generation that grew up with X-Men also grew up with understanding, 'Oh, man, the world's real.' Learning about that, seeing that through everyone's individual lenses. But ultimately, we all can relate to that. I was really stoked.”
X-Men '97 Episodes 1 to 6 are now available to stream on Disney+. New episodes are set to be released every Wednesday. The recent episode saw the return of a major character. As this teased his return to the fold, he might lead the X-Men again.
