Avengers: Doomsday will feature many returning X-Men characters with incredible powers, and while the heroes will come face-to-face with the franchise’s New Avengers team, the question of whether the X-Men could have taken on the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s original Avengers remains. Avengers: Doomsday‘s cast is as star-studded as one can be, with Marvel Studios pulling from the MCU and more.
While there were a few surprises in terms of MCU characters coming back when Marvel announced the cast of the next Avengers movie, the fact that Fox’s X-Men would be represented in the film with seven returning stars stole headlines. ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine grossed $1.3 billion, showing the strength the mutant brand can have when connected to the MCU.
The Marvels‘ post-credits scene seemingly debuted the universe the X-Men come from in Avengers: Doomsday‘s story. Since the MCU’s next two Avengers movies should be heavy on incursions, which are collisions between universes, it is possible that the X-Men and the Avengers will fight, at least at first. However, when they do, the X-Men would be fighting different heroes.
That is due to how half of the MCU’s original Avengers are either ᴅᴇᴀᴅ or retired. Doomsday will feature two Avengers teams: Sam Wilson’s Avengers and the Thunderbolts, aka the New Avengers. Still, the question of whether Fox’s X-Men could have defeated the original Avengers remains, and I believe a few characters could have had some form of success.
Beast
Beast might come as a surprise to some at the bottom of the list. However, I believe that while he is a formidable character, what he does can essentially be done better by a few original MCU Avengers. Beast is a dual threat in a fight, as the character has super strength and durability, and is also one of Marvel’s smartest characters.
In a direct fight, Beast could defeat Hawkeye and Black Widow rather easily. After that, it would become harder for him. While he might be faster than Captain America, Chris Evans’ hero has shown time and again that he is the MCU’s best leader and a masterful hand-to-hand fighter. Steve Rogers was also able to hold Thanos back for a time.
In terms of intelligence, Beast would meet his match or his superiors in the form of Iron Man and Bruce Banner. Looking at what he could bring to the table, Beast would be a nice support character in a fight against the Avengers, but the hero would not be a game-changer if the Fox X-Men fought the MCU’s original Avengers.
Mystique
Mystique ranking higher than Beast has nothing to do with her fighting skills. In that area, I would take Hank McCoy in a heartbeat in a fight against the Avengers. However, she possesses a unique skill that makes her a bigger card for the X-Men’s deck than Beast. Mystique is the best shape-shifter in Marvel Comics.
As far as the Fox version of the character goes, Mystique has been shown to possess the same expert espionage skills, being able to modify her appearance, voice, and more to truly embody whoever she chooses to impersonate. The MCU’s Avengers have shown that they are susceptible to being manipulated, which happened with villains like Ultron, Zemo, and the Scarlet Witch.
As such, I believe that Mystique could sow confusion and distrust within the Avengers, being employed by the X-Men to either serve as a spy or a saboteur. It would be interesting to watch Mystique and Black Widow go at it, given how both characters operate in similar areas. That said, Mystique is not defeating the more powerful Avengers members.
Nightcrawler
Nightcrawler was evidently underused in the Fox X-Men franchise. That is why I’m excited about his MCU return, as actor Alan Cumming has been one of the most talkative Marvel stars when it comes to what might be in play for Avengers: Doomsday. Perhaps a bigger role might show fans just how important Nightcrawler could be for the X-Men.
Still, with the limited time he had in X2, Nightcrawler was shown to be a genuine menace. The fight sequence that sees Nightcrawler infiltrate the White House is still one of the most iconic opening scenes in superhero movies. With his teleportation skills, Nightcrawler develops a unique fighting style that keeps his opponents guessing what he will do next.
Against the MCU’s original Avengers, I feel that Nightcrawler might perform similarly to Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Quicksilver in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Using his super speed, Quicksilver was able to get some hits in against the heroes and disrupt the team. Nightcrawler could do the same, but I don’t believe that he would do serious damage to the original Avengers.
Gambit
Channing Tatum’s Gambit being the only confirmed hero from ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine for Avengers: Doomsday at the moment is surely surprising. However, it would make sense if the MCU movie revealed that his Gambit comes from the same universe as the Fox X-Men. Based on that, the hero would have years of experience with two superhero teams.
ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine showed that Tatum’s Gambit fights to kill his enemies if need be. Not only that, but he has the necessary power to take most of them out, as Gambit can either fight hand-to-hand, use his staff, or his power, which is to imbue any object with kinetic energy, making it explode. The latter is employed on his deck of cards.
Hawkeye, Black Widow, and perhaps Iron Man could be downed by Gambit. Captain America appears as a strong opponent for Tatum’s X-Men character due to how his shield is made of Vibranium, which absorbs kinetic energy, thus making a fight with Gambit quite interesting. Unless he sacrifices himself — and even then, it might be difficult — Gambit does not defeat Thor and the Hulk.
Cyclops
Like Gambit, I see Cyclops as a powerful X-Men character who could take out half of the original Avengers. However, James Marsden’s Scott Summers has something that Tatum’s Gambit lacks, and that is leadership skills. That was depicted in Fox’s first X-Men movie, though sequels would shift the focus to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine due to his popularity.
If Avengers: Doomsday‘s version of the X-Men had Cyclops as its field leader, the character would be cemented as one of the biggest threats to the original Avengers if a fight were possible. Cyclops’ optic blasts are quite powerful, and the Fox X-Men movies showed how he has complete control over them, focusing the blasts well. Fully unleashed, he is quite powerful.
Magneto
Magneto is one of the two characters on the list that I believe would be able to take down the original Avengers, given the right circumstances. Captain America, Hawkeye, and Black Widow would not be able to take him down. Iron Man, if he had a specific armor to counter him, could give Magneto a harder time.
That said, based on what the MCU has shown, Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man would likely be crushed inside his suit, a fate likely different from the one that awaits Downey’s Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday should he meet Magneto. Thor and the Hulk are the real threats to him. With electromagnetic fields, it could be a toss-up against Thor, but Hulk is harder.
Charles Xavier
Like Nightcrawler could mimic the impact Quicksilver had against the MCU’s original Avengers in Age of Ultron, I feel that Patrick Stewart’s Charles Xavier would serve as a good analogue of Scarlet Witch’s role in that Marvel movie. Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff used her magic to get into the heroes’ heads and manipulate them, causing the Hulk to go on a rampage.
While Professor X would likely try to calm the Avengers down at first, if a full battle ensues, he could likely take out most, if not all, of them. He is the most skilled telepath in live-action Marvel movies, after all. As such, Charles could prey on the many traumatic events in the Avengers’ lives, turning their minds against them.
All in all, the X-Men characters who will appear in Avengers: Doomsday are quite powerful and show a nice variety as a team. Fighting alongside one another against the MCU’s original Avengers, the X-Men would have a real chance of winning. Whether that could actually happen will hopefully be answered by the multiversal nature of Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars.
