Marvel fans will have to settle for cameo appearances in Deadpool 3 to see X-Men in the MCU, as an X-Men movie may take more time to develop

Marvel Studios has already experienced overwhelmingly positive responses for its recent projects featuring X-Men characters. The latest animated project, X-Men ’97, seems to have taken off with the audience, and fans largely look forward to Deadpool & Wolverine releasing in July this year. After the end of the strikes last year, it was reported that Marvel was meeting with writers for pitches on an X-Men live-action movie. An industry insider now has an update regarding the same.

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X-Men ’97 is one of the first X-Men projects in the MCU, but it is not canon to Earth-616
According to earlier speculations, the film was supposed to begin production in the latter half of 2025. However, the insider reports that the filming for the Avengers movies in the Multiverse Saga finale will precede any planned X-Men movie project.

Industry Insider Says Marvel’s X-Men Will Happen Only After Secret Wars

Deadpool & Wolverine will feature some X-Men characters before Marvel comes up with an X-Men movie
According to Deadline, Marvel was eyeing writers to develop a script for an X-Men film in the MCU. The studio added the mutants to its library when Disney acquired 20th Century Fox in 2019. However, Marvel boss Kevin Feige was in no rush to introduce all the X-Men characters in a movie. X-Men characters began making appearances in different films, like Professor X in Doctor Strange 2.

In its most recent attempt at executing the X-Men IP, Marvel has found success with the animated show, X-Men ’97, which debuted with a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. The next big task for the studio is to recreate this success with live-action X-Men movies. Speculations arose that the planned film would begin production in 2025.

However, industry insider Daniel Richtman shared that the project would go into production only after Avengers: Secret Wars. Richtman shared that by Q4 in 2025, the studio would be working on the Multiverse Saga finale and would move on to an X-Men project only after those two movies.

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However, fans may not have to wait forever to meet their favorite X-Men characters. It is expected that the highly anticipated Deadpool & Wolverine will feature several characters from Fox’s universe, besides Ryan Reynolds‘ Deadpool and Hugh Jackman‘s Wolverine. These characters will most probably be one-off appearances in the film, as the MCU is likely to establish an X-Men team of its own from scratch.

Marvel’s X-Men May Not Be Formed Within Earth-616

Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel is confirmed to be a mutant in the MCU
Most of the X-Men appearances so far in the MCU have occurred in other universes, indicating that Earth-616 currently has no mutant team of its own, except some confirmed mutants like Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel. Considering the MCU will have to explain the absence of such a crucial team for so long in Earth-616, Marvel’s X-Men film will most probably take place in an alternative universe.

Interestingly, the following projects in the MCU have introduced mutants in the MCU, ahead of an X-Men project.

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Ms. Marvel – Kamala Khan
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Namor
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Professor X
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law – Mr. Immortal, El Aguila
The Marvels – Beast
Deadpool & Wolverine – Deadpool, Wolverine, Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Shatterstar, Colossus, Pyro, and others.

Fox’s X-Men films are now available for streaming on Disney+. Deadpool & Wolverine will hit theaters on July 26, 2024.