Marvel Plans to Recast X-Men, Tony Stark after "Secret Wars"

A new X-Men and an all-new Tony Stark are coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In a wide-ranging conversation with press on Saturday, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige confirmed that the company will introduce a new cast for the mutants in its upcoming “X-Men” movie, directed by Jake Schreier (“Thunderbolts*”), following the events of 2027’s “Avengers: Secret Wars,”.

Many actors who starred in the “X-Men” movies of the 2000s and 2010s are reprising those roles in 2026’s “Avengers: Doomsday,” including Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, and Kelsey Grammer.

In future films, the X-Men characters who appeared in previous movies will be played by new actors, along with mutants making their big screen debut. 

The decision echoes changes in the composition of the Marvel comics following the 2015 “Secret Wars” storyline, which involved multiple timelines collapsing and re-converging, mixing up the characters of the main Marvel timeline in the process.

“We’re utilizing that [story] not just to round out the stories we’ve been telling post-‘Endgame,’ just as importantly — and you can look at the at the ‘Secret Wars’ comics for where that takes you — it very, very much sets us up for the future,” Feige said. “‘Endgame,’ literally, was about endings. ‘Secret Wars’ is about is about beginnings.”

Feige, however, was also careful not to label the changes as a “reboot,” instead, the executive said “Secret Wars” will serve as a “reset” for the MCU. “Reboot is a scary word,” he said. “Reboot can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. Reset, singular timeline — we’re thinking along those lines.” Later, he added, “‘X-Men’ is where that will happen next.”

Feige noted that the X-Men comics, with their focus on Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, naturally centered on stories about adolescent characters. “They have been a place to tell stories about young people who feel different and who feel Other and who feel like they don’t belong,” he said. “That’s the universal story of mutants, and that is where we’re going.”

Even more intriguingly, the executive also indicated that other Marvel characters will eventually be recast, including its most iconic roles, like Tony Stark and Steve Rogers. He pointed to many other major film franchises that have done the same thing, multiple times over.

“Amy Pascal and David Heyman are now searching for a new James Bond,” Feige noted, referring to the producers of Amazon MGM’s upcoming Bond film. “David [Corenswet], the new Superman — he was awesome. That will always be the case.”

Feige acknowledged that stars who’ve retired their original MCU roles like Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans have made it difficult to imagine anyone else in their characters’ shoes. But it isn’t an impossible task.

“I think it’s hard for anybody to do that when an actor has done such a great role,” he said. “How are they going to ever replace Sean Connery [as James Bond], right?”.

At least two legacy actors may still appear in the MCU, as well. Asked about his plans for a follow-up to Marvel’s 2024 blockbuster “Deadpool & Wolverine” with Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, Feige, in typical fashion, made no definitive statements, but also did not close off any possibilities.

“I think there is more fun to be had with both of those characters,” he said. “But we’ll see where.”