The reveal that two surprising actors will be returning in Avengers: Doomsday has made us think that Marvel Studios will finally be exploring an iconic X-Men story that 20th Century Fox routinely neglected. Marvel Studios announced 27 actors confirmed to be starring in Avengers: Doomsday in a five-and-a-half-hour-long chair-laying ceremony at the end of March, including several members of the Avengers, the Thunderbolts, the Fantastic Four and even the X-Men. This will bring some unexpected heroes and villains together on-screen, which creates some exciting opportunities for the MCU.

Avengers: Doomsday has very quickly become one of the MCU’s most exciting upcoming projects, and the inclusion of many classic X-Men actors from 20th Century Fox’s two-decade-long Marvel movie franchise has contributed to this. While there have been some key omissions, it will be great to see the likes of Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James Marsden and more reprise their roles. There are two returning X-Men stars that have us excited about a very different reason, however, as the MCU can explore a story Fox never even touched.

Mystique & Nightcrawler Are Two Of Avengers: Doomsday’s Most Surprising Cast Confirmations

Rebecca Romijn & Alan Cumming Have Been Confirmed To Be Returning

Marvel Studios confirming that Rebecca Romijn and Alan Cumming would be reprising their respective roles of Mystique and Nightcrawler came as quite a shock. Aside from a very brief cameo in X-Men: First Class, Romijn hasn’t appeared as Mystique since 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand, which ended with her receiving the temporary “mutant cure.” Cumming’s return is even more surprising, as he only made one appearance as Kurt Wagner’s Nightcrawler back in 2003’s X2: X-Men United. Both were subsequently replaced in Fox’s revised X-Men timeline.

Rebecca Romijn was replaced by Jennifer Lawrence from 2011’s X-Men: First Class onwards, while Kodi Smit-McPhee appeared as a younger iteration of Nightcrawler in 2016’s X-Men: Apocalypse and 2019’s Dark Phoenix, with a brief cameo in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool 2. These iterations saw more development and more action, but Avengers: Doomsday promises to put the spotlight back on Romijn and Cumming’s classic characters. This will bring them together for the first time in over 20 years, and is the best chance to finally explore a fantastic Marvel Comics story.

I Need The MCU To Explore Mystique & Nightcrawler’s Familial Connection Properly

Mystique Is Nightcrawler’s Father In Marvel Comics

While X-Men: Apocalypse might have teased a connection between Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique and Kodi Smit-McPhee’s Nightcrawler, the pair’s familial relationship was never explicitly explored in Fox’s X-Men franchise. In Marvel Comics, Nightcrawler is the son of Mystique and her wife, precognitive mutant Destiny, with Mystique having shape-shifted into a male form to become Kurt Wagner’s father. In Fox’s franchise, it was teased that Nightcrawler may have been the son of Mystique and Jason Flemyng’s Azazel, but this was never confirmed.

With Mystique and Nightcrawler both returning in Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel Studios can finally address the elephant in the room with these two iconic X-Men characters. 2024’s X-Men ’97 explored this connection, despite not featuring Mystique, so it would be great to see this repeated in the live-action MCU. Alternatively, it’s possible Marvel might wait to investigate this connection until a new Mystique and Nightcrawler appear in the MCU, but Avengers: Doomsday could still begin to tease this relationship, which would add a new layer to their dynamic.

Upcoming MCU Movies

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  Thunderbolts*

  Release Date

  
  May 2, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  The Fantastic Four: First Steps

  Release Date

  
  July 25, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Doomsday (2026)

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Spider-Man: Brand New Day

  Release Date

  
  July 31, 2026
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Secret Wars

  Release Date

  
  May 7, 2027
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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