X-Men TV Pilot Legion Has Cast Its First Actor

Fargo's Rachel Keller lands role which sounds like it might be Rogue.

By Dan Woburn /

Deadline are reporting that Fargo's Rachel Keller (who played Simone Gerhardt in the recent second season of that show) has landed the female lead in FX's upcoming X-Men-affiliated pilot, Legion. The show, being spearheaded by Fargo's Noah Hawley - with an assist from Bryan Singer - revolves around David Haller, a mutant with split personality disorder and a different mutant power for each one. Fans will be familiar with Haller as the son of Professor X, who operates with the codename Legion (which gives the show its name). There's not a lot of information as to Keller's character, other than she will be playing a "scrappy, optimistic woman in her 20s", with additional "chatter" claiming her mutant powers will be related to the sense of touch. That last element bears similarities to the fan favourite character Rogue, as played by Anna Paquin in the X-movies, but Rogue has never really been described as optimistic. The role is either flat-out not Rogue or simply a different kind of version to what fans are accustomed to. Keller definitely impressed with her time on Fargo, and obviously was a favourite of showrunner Noah Hawley's, as he has drafted her again for this next project. Owing to the swift nature in which this pilot is coming together, and depending on whether or not it gets taken to series, we could be seeing Legion as early as next year.