Latest X-Men Reboot Casting Rumor Suggests Marvel Is Going Back to Basics

Marvel Studios is pulling out all the stops for its upcoming X-Men reboot, including tapping Jake Schreier — who handed the MCU one of its best movies in Thunderbolts* — as director and wrangling an all-star cast that includes Inde Navarrette as Rogue, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, and Adam Driver as a character that’s definitely Mister Sinister. However, recent casting news suggests Marvel is doing something that could set the X-Men reboot apart from the previous Fox-era movies.

Deadline recently reported that Ben Wang (American Born Chinese, Karate Kid Legends) is in the running to play Bobby Drake a.k.a. Iceman. This is a great choice for many reasons. Wang has proven himself to be a genuinely talented actor in the handful of roles he’s had, which provides some faith he can capture Bobby Drake’s sense of humor and youthful energy. But the fact that Iceman is going to be part of the X-Men reboot also confirms that the story will likely center on the original five X-Men: Cyclops, Jean Grey, Angel, Iceman and the Beast.

While most fans are used to the “All-New, All-Different” era of X-Men which brought the comic world Storm, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine (and jumpstarted X-Men legend Chris Claremont’s run with the mighty mutants), it’s rare that an X-Men adaptation has featured the original five members. The closest we’ve come is the X-Men: Evolution episode “Under Lock and Key”, and 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand, though fans would prefer to forget the latter. 

By starting off with the original 5, the X-Men reboot isn’t just avoiding comparisons to the Fox-era X-Men movies, it’s also leaning into the idea that Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters is actually a school. Most of the characters who’ve been cast – including Sadie Sink’s Jean Grey, Kit Connor’s Cyclops, and Asa Germann’s Angel – are teenagers, and in a world that fears and hates mutants, they need a safe haven to flock to. Young adult stories are still all the rage, as Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and The Hunger Games all have adaptations dropping later this year. Why not get in on the action with a superhero story that’s built for this genre?

While Schreier has said he’s drawing inspiration from Chris Claremont and Jonathan Hickman for the X-Men reboot, the presence of the original five X-Men also hints that he may be using Louise Simonson’s X-Factor run as inspiration. Simonson reunited the original five, but it wasn’t exactly a smooth process: Cyclops ended up leaving his wife Madelyne Pryor when he found out Jean was alive, Iceman and Beast find themselves butting heads, and Angel gets it the worst as he has his wings cut off and is transformed into Archangel by Apocalypse. The presence of Mister Sinister strengthens those ties, and spells trouble for Cyclops as the gothic geneticist is obsessed with him.

Marvel Studios had to make sure its X-Men reboot stood out from previous X-Men movies. By going back to basics with the First Class, it might have done just that.