In an excruciatingly, mind-numbingly long announcement, Marvel has revealed that it’s getting the old gang back together. Directed by the Russo Brothers, Avengers: Doomsday is finally revealing some of its secrets in an over-three-hour-long livestream cast announcement for the 2026 MCU film. Giving fans about 15 minutes in between each camera movement to gain suspense or take a bathroom break, the stream was set to reveal most of the actors that will be fleshing out the first major team-up film since the ending of the first Avengers saga. The list is sure to please fans of previous beloved Marvel projects, especially the now-classic X-Men films.

After making a return to the newly renovated MCU in The Marvels, Kelsey Grammer was the first X-Men actor to get his chair in the announcement, which, as exciting as it is to see the blue Beast back in action, was expected. However, what was up in the air was whether other previous X-Men actors would be part of the eclectic cast, and the slow-burn announcement has yet to disappoint on that front. Two massive names that brought the beloved leaders of mutant-kind to the big screen, Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, will be reprising their roles as Professor Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr aka Magneto, respectively.

Even more of Stewart and McKellen’s fellow mutants have joined the list, which, in order, are:

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

But Wait, How Does This Make Sense?

Well, the short answer is: everything’s a little wonky in the MCU right now, and it’s about to get even wonkier. Avengers: Doomsday is set to utilize Robert Downey Jr.’s hopefully intimidating presence as supervillian Doctor Doom to set up the wild, worlds-colliding comic event “Secret Wars.” While the cast list now also includes names of Thunderbolts’ and Black Panther actors, which could have easily been guessed by fans keeping up with the films, only fans of the original X-Men were holding out hope of seeing their return.

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The livestream confirmed that the original X-Men films from the 2000s would be heavily represented in the upcoming MCU crossover event. One of the most exciting and unexpected additions on the list includes Alan Cumming, the Scottish-American actor known for playing Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, although some might better remember him as Fegan Floop from Spy Kids. Other unexpected inclusions are group leader Cyclops, played by Sonic the Hedgehogs’s James Marsden, and Rebecca Romijn as the shapeshifter Mystique.

While fans saw the card-throwing mutant Gambit was played by Taylor Kitsch in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the most recent appearance of the character was seen in Deadpool & Wolverine, which brought a casting rumor to life with Channing Tatum assuming the role, Cajun accent and all. With the announcement ending with an appearance by Downey Jr. himself, the list is capped. Now leave it to the fans to speculate how the X-Men actors will fit into the Avengers: Doomsday melting pot.

Source: Marvel Studios