Marvel Have Already Shown How X-Men Could Enter The MCU

by Ewan Paterson

1. How This Solves Marvel's X-Men Problem

Marvel Comics

When the MCU kicked off in 2008, it was likely that no one at Marvel envisaged that both the X-Men and Fantastic Four would ever be introduced. It was about doing the best with what they had, and though the Avengers were always a revered outfit in the comics, to general audiences, they couldn't dare match the appeal of the X-Men.

Now, in 2018, that role has completely reversed. But to say that the X-Men are redundant would be disingenuous. Their arrival would only enhance the MCU's already formidable roster, but it's a question of how, not when, that needs addressing first. Mutants are such an essential component of the Marvel Universe that to retroactively insert them would cause a few headaches for all concerned, but in providing an explanation that accounts for their absence and then their presumed resurgence, the Terrigen Mists are the perfect solution.

Coincide the reopening of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters with a sudden reemergence of the mutant gene, and you have the perfect way of retaining the older generation of X-Men while introducing enough fresh faces to demarcate the MCU's mutants from Fox's own. Looking to the franchise's golden age during the nineties should, then, be a priority, and while the absence of Captain Marvel from the MCU's history books would seemingly be easier to explain, audiences will be willing to forgive a lot to see the likes of Wolverine, Cyclops and Jean hanging around with the Avengers and Fantastic Four.

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How do you want to see the X-Men introduced to the MCU? Do the Terrigen Mists really hold the answer? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!

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Content Producer/Presenter

WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.