Former X-Men star Nicholas Hoult reacts to Kelsey Grammer’s Beast return in Avengers: Doomsday and comments on whether he will reprise his version of the Marvel hero. While The Multiverse Saga is entering Phase 6 this summer, one of the final installments on the slate is currently being filmed, which is Avengers: Doomsday.

One of the most exciting aspects of the Avengers: Doomsday cast is the return of Fox’s X-Men characters, as they will finally be getting to join Earth’s Mightiest Heroes on screen. One of the returning original cast members is Grammer as Beast, who was last seen in 2023’s The Marvels, during the post-credits scene – and it’s not just fans who are excited to see him back.

In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hoult opened up about Grammer reprising the role of Beast in Avengers: Doomsday and whether he woud appear in the movie. While Hoult said “No,” when asked if he would play his version of Beast in the Phase 6 film, the British star said the following about Grammer’s return:

Kelsey was a great Beast. He was the Beast I saw when I was a kid, along with the other actors that they’re bringing back, Patrick and Ian and James and all them. Those were the characters that I got to watch in X-Men movies. I’m excited to see what they do with it. It’ll be fun to see how they incorporate those characters into that world.

What Nicholas Hoult’s Avengers: Doomsday Comments Mean

While it may be disappointing that he isn’t coming back, it’s not too surprising Hoult’s Beast isn’t showing up in Avengers: Doomsday for several reasons. To begin with, none of the actors from the X-Men prequels have been added to the Avengers: Doomsday cast. The MCU timeline is focusing more on the original X-Men actors, given their larger legacy.

That legacy is highlighted by Hoult’s comments about his excitement for Grammer’s Beast to return in Avengers: Doomsday. That era of X-Men is what Marvel Studios has been leaning on heavily throughout The Multiverse Saga, using various cameos in The Marvels and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

The X-Men prequels also ended on a very poor note with the 2019 installment, Dark Phoenix, which was the final film released by Fox before the rights returned to Marvel. That could also justify why Marvel Studios wouldn’t want to return to those movies in something as major as Avengers: Doomsday.

That said, although Hoult hasn’t had talks with Marvel yet, that doesn’t mean the door is fully closed on him reprising the role of Beast, since Avengers: Secret Wars is expected to be an even bigger spectacle than Doomsday. Perhaps Marvel is saving a return to the X-Men prequels for the final Phase 6 installment.

Our Take On Nicholas Hoult’s Avengers: Doomsday Comments

Despite Hoult’s comments about not coming back, it would have been great to see Grammer and Hoult’s versions of Beast take on Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday together. There is, of course, the possibility that Hoult is keeping his return for Avengers: Doomsday a secret, to make it a surprise for fans when the film hits theaters.

But outside the MCU, Hoult is about to become the newest Lex Luthor in live-action, as he has joined James Gunn’s DC Universe in the new Superman movie, arriving this month. Given the mᴀssive role Lex has in the DC canon, Hoult is going to have his biggest comic book gig of his career – even bigger than his time as Beast.

For the time being, details are still being kept under wraps about how the X-Men will factor into Avengers: Doomsday. However, as Avengers: Doomsday continues filming, there will hopefully be more clues about how big of a role Grammer’s Beast will have in the story.

Source: Entertainment Weekly