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Marvel Studios wants to remind us that the X-Men existed for eleven years before Wolverine

Wolverine is nowhere to be seen in the new Avengers: Doomsday teaser

A still from the Avengers: Doomsday teaser — Image credit: Marvel Studios

News by Jules Chin Greene, Staff Writer

Published on Wed Jan 07 2026

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It may surprise some of you that the X-Men were around for over a decade before Wolverine was created in the pages of Marvel Comics. That's right, Wolverine debuted in The Incredible Hulk #181 from 1974, while Marvel's Merry Mutants first burst onto the scene in 1963's X-Men #1. And it's this ethos that appears to be coloring the X-Men-centric (X-Centric? Marvel, please call me) teaser for Avengers: Doomsday, where there is no Wolverine in sight.

What we do see are shots of the dilapidated X-Mansion (seriously, Charles, might I remind you that you are also a telekinetic. Clean up your home!), Magneto and Professor X smiling at each other, and one very ominous sequence of James Marsden's Cyclops taking off his visor and serving pure Ed McGuinness on some foes while in his Jim Lee threads. Take a look below.

Now, there are only three characters who appear in the teaser, and we don't get a glimpse of the other four original members of the X-Men beyond Charles Xavier and Cyclops. The original class of X-Men in Marvel Comics is rounded out by the simian-like Beast (Kelsey Grammer is confirmed to be reprising his role in Doomsday), Jean Grey, Iceman, and Angel. Now, we've all seen these mutants in the Fox X-Men movies, and some of them have been played by multiple actors. While it is refreshing to see Marvel Studios give Cyclops a moment to shine as a core part of the X-Men since their very first issue, it's also concerning how he's letting loose with his optic beams all on his lonesome (or so it appears). What happened to his fellow members of the X-Men's original five?

Also, it's worth noting that seeing Scott Summers screaming on the ground while going full hog with his powers is never a good sign, especially when it appears that he's being attacked by the Sentinels, the robot arch-enemies of mutants everywhere. And look, I love me some Scott Summers like any other rational man, but out of all the Summers brothers, he's the least powerful. If you're gonna have some Sentinels attacking the X-Mansion, at least send Scott's bratty younger brother, Vulcan, on it, because he's an Omega-level mutant with out-of-this-world powers. Scott's beams aren't going to cut it.

And who has defeated Vulcan singlehandedly in X-Men comics before? Storm. And Ororo is yet another mutant we don't see in the Doomsday teaser. Given that Storm herself is also an Omega-level mutant (alongside Jean Grey and Iceman!), and that Halle Berry has not been confirmed to appear in Doomsday, things aren't looking good for Scott's final stand in Avengers: Doomsday. While he may finally have escaped from being overshadowed by Wolverine onscreen, it looks like James Marsden's Cyclops will meet his maker in Avengers: Doomsday. Poor guy.

Avengers: Doomsday will be released December 18, 2026.

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Jules Chin Greene: Jules Chin Greene is a journalist and Jack Kirby enthusiast. He has written about comics, video games, movies, and television for sites such as Nerdist, AIPT, and Multiverse of Color.