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The MCU's X-Men are coming to screens in Avengers: Doomsday. But also, they're kind of not, right? As we learned from the livestreamed Doomsday cast list reveal, the X-characters that are coming to Marvel Studios' next tentpole film are played by the actors that popularized them in Fox's X-Men films, and though we truly do love those faces, they're not exactly "the MCU's X-Men" in the most original way. But whether or not those characters in particular will somehow be retconned into the MCU, the X-Men themselves are a huge part of Marvel's Cinematic Universe.

So huge, we recently learned, that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has the next 10 years of their involvement planed out.

The story comes out of a blockbuster article published by The Wall Street Journal May 2. In it, WSJ dives deep into the current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its relationship to its parent, The Walt Disney Company, exploring Kevin Feige's recent overhaul of the company to focus on quantity over quality. To make a long story short, that means fitting Marvel characters into stories that come together gradually, rather than rushing to get them onto screen as soon as possible. Perhaps the biggest example of this comes from the plans for Marvel's Mighty Mutants - according to the WSJ, Feige has "told colleagues he has a 10-year plan for the [X-Men]."

Yes, 10 years does seem like a long time, but remember that even this isn't much more than a slow-down from the MCU planning before Feige course-corrected. In 2021, Feige confirmed to Collider that MCU movies are planned "5 to 6 years" past what's been announced. Going farther back, Feige told Business Insider in 2014 that Marvel Studios had planned out their films until 2028. That plan that has obviously changed, but it shows that Feige has been willing to build long-term goals before in the MCU's history.

All that to say, a 10-year plan for the X-Men doesn't necessarily mean that we won't get to see them on screen until that 10 years is over. As of now, many speculate that one of the still unannounced 2027 Marvel Studios projects (July 23 and November 5, respectively) is the first MCU X-Men film, though confirmation on that is still very much pending. But in the meantime, here's a quick rundown of all the X-Men confirmed to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, to keep that X-appetite satiated in the meantime.

• Kelsey Grammer - Hank McCoy/Beast
• Patrick Stewart - Professor X
• Ian McKellen - Magneto
• Alan Cumming - Nightcrawler
• Rebecca Romijn - Mystique
• James Marsden - Cyclops
• Channing Tatum - Gambit 

That's not counting certain characters that have been rumored to be in Doomsday via unnamed sources (cough Chris Claremont cough), such as Wolverine, Psylocke, and Scarlet Witch (yes I included her as an X-teammate, please don't send me hatemail), who are almost certain to factor somewhere in the MCU's X-Men future. Then again, perhaps the above characters' involvement in Doomsday means that Feige & Co. are taking a different tack in bringing X-Men characters to the big screen, opting to introduce the lesser-known crew before returning to the likes of Wolverine and Magneto.

I suppose we have a decade and more to find out. 

Avengers: Doomsday comes to theaters May 1, 2026. 

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters