Who Will Be the Next X-Men? A Guide to the MCU X-Men Casting Rumors

Well, there we have it. The first of our future X-Men has been confirmed in the form of Sadie Sink’s Jean Grey, the all-powerful telepath who serves as the grief-stricken villain—with a redemption arc fit for a future anti-hero—of Spider-Man: Brand New Day. And as we gear up for Marvel’s post-Secret Wars mutant era, with Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier helming an X-Men reboot that is rumored to release in 2028, further cast news is expected to arrive imminently. Some in-the-know Twitter scoopers are pointing at D23, Disney’s annual fan event landing in the middle of August, for the official announcement.That would make sense, given that the coming Avengers movies Doomsday and Secret Wars—which boast a bunch of the classic Fox X-Men actors among their ensembles, from Patrick Stewart’s Professor X to Hugh Jackman’s bazillionth post-retirement appearance as Wolverine, via James Marsden’s Cyclops and Ian McKellen as Magneto—are expected to serve as a final swansong for the the OG mutant heroes. It’s mostly speculation right now, but fans online suspect that those movies will be used to pass the baton to the new generation of X-Men, ushering in a new MCU dynasty that looks to rival the might, and immense popularity, of the Avengers. (Iron Man who?)With that in mind, here’s our rundown of the latest casting news, plus all the rumors for the new X-Men.Jean GreySadie Sink, who’s playing Jean Grey. Axelle/Bauer-GriffinAs above, Sadie Sink is the first officially cast member of the new X-Men, playing Jean Grey, the fiery mentalist portrayed by Famke Janssen in the original Bryan Singer trilogy (and later by Game of Thrones alum Sophie Turner). Her introduction in Spider-Man: Brand New Day follows years of rumors pegging Sink to the part—and if the leakers and scoopers got it right with her, they might well be getting it right with the other guys.At the end of the latest Spidey, we see Sink’s Grey on a bus headed out of New York, her destination presumably Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, aka the home of the X-Men. But who will join her?Emma FrostAustralian actress Samara Weaving attends a launch event and special screening of 20th Century Studios' "Eenie Meanie" at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica, California, on August 19, 2025. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP) (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images)VALERIE MACON/Getty ImagesWhile yet to be confirmed by official sources, Deadline reports that Ready or Not’s Samara Weaving has been lined up to play Emma Frost, a fellow telepath who has, across the long history of the Marvel comics, served as both a mega-villain and a crucial member of the mutant supergroup. (She was last played by January Jones in X-Men: First Class.) Per the outlet, the process to cast Frost has been among the most thorough of all of the new characters, suggesting that she’ll play a pivotal role in the MCU reboot.Professor X & MagnetoTom Pelphrey at the HBO Original drama series "TASK" New York Premiere held at Perelman Performing Arts Center on September 04, 2025 in New York, New York. (Photo by Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty Images)Kristina Bumphrey/Getty ImagesWell, you can’t have the X-Men without their namesake leader—nor their biggest nemesis. Both Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen are unenviable acts to follow, and will reprise their iconic roles in Avengers: Doomsday, and perhaps its 2027 follow-up Secret Wars, though we’ll have to see how the former plays out before anything is confirmed.One of the more surprising names thrown into the mix for Professor X is Tom Pelphrey, who turned out a killer bad-guy performance in the HBO series Task last year. This comes from the reliable Twitter scooper “Apocalyptic Horseman,” who also says that Bill Skarsgard has also been in the mix—but describes Pelphrey as the “frontrunner.”As for Magneto, Adam Driver has been linked to the role over the past month, though there are also claims online that he’s actually being lined up to play fellow X-Men villain Mister Sinister.CyclopsDrew Starkey at the 15th Governors Awards held at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood on November 17, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)Gilbert Flores/Getty ImagesMost famously played by James Marsden in the original X-Men trilogy, where he was depicted as the de facto leader of the X-Men—although he was killed in the third film, in part because the character had been overshadowed by the popularity of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. (A younger version of Cyclops appeared in prequels X-Men: Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix, played by Tye Sheridan.)For Cyclops, you basically want a hot jock type who you could buy as the most popular kid in school and, crucially, wouldn’t look stupid wearing sunglasses all the time. One of the big rumors flying around has concerned Cooper Hoffman, son of Philip Seymour, who has built up a ton of buzz following his roles in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza and last year’s Stephen King adaptation The Long Walk. He’d be an unexpected choice—but an exciting one, having already proven his acting chops in those early roles.Nonetheless, he denied the Scott Summers talk in a recent carpet interview: “Oh, not going to be me… I don’t know where this came from. Shit spreads.”Another name doing the rounds on Twitter is Drew Starkey, another young actor primed for a breakout—last seen, on the big screen, tearing it up opposite Daniel Craig in Luca Guadagnino’s surreal William S. Burroughs adaptation Queer.Beast & RogueCharles Melton at IndieWire TV Honors 2026 held at Nya Studios West on June 04, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/IndieWire via Getty Images)Gilbert Flores/Getty ImagesTwo more buzzy young actors, who recently shared the screen in season two of Beef, have been subject to intense speculation and rumors in recent weeks: Charles Melton and Cailee Spaeny, who have apparently been lined up for Beast and Rogue, respectively. The two mutants have played major roles in the X-Men movies of the past, serving as cornerstones of the group—the former being a bright-blue, ape-like genius with superhuman strength, while Rogue is capable of stealing others’ superpowers through touch alone. Melton and Spaeny certainly fit the bill, but the same caution applies as for most of the names on this list: it ain’t confirmed until Marvel says so.WolverineLONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 11: Hugh Jackman attends the "Deadpool & Wolverine" UK Sneak Peek at the Eventim Apollo on July 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)Tristan Fewings/Getty ImagesDoes anyone expect Marvel to move on from Hugh Jackman so soon after his return in Deadpool & Wolverine? As Ryan Reynolds’s anti-hero taunted Jackman with one of his signature fourth-wall-breaking quips: “Until you’re 90.” After all, why go through the rigmarole of recasting the X-Men’s most popular member when fans will probably be disappointed regardless? It’s nothing against anyone else, but Jackman and Wolverine are fused at the adamantium hip in the eyes of comic-book movie fans —and, well, pop culture writ large.Perhaps it is inevitable, nevertheless, that someone will eventually be given the Sisyphean task of slipping on Jackman’s tank-top, and best of luck to them. If and when that happens, we wouldn’t be surprised if it’s one of the popular fan-castings that often makes the rounds online: Daniel Radcliffe, Taron Egerton, et al. But maybe they’ll be too old by the time Jackman is in his 90s.This article originally appeared in British GQ.