Marvel Studios

Marvel Studios Considering Making Professor X & Magneto POC In ‘X-Men’ Reboot (Exclusive)

Jackson Hayes

The X-Men could have a unique twist to them when Marvel Studios rolls out their inevitable reboot. Kevin Feige and co. are considering having people of color portray both Magneto and Professor X in the MCU, Full Circle Cinema has learned.

While this change wouldn’t alter much for Charles Xavier as he was born in New York to a wealthy family, it may lead to Marvel Studios taking some liberties with Erik Lehnsherr’s origin. In the pages of Marvel Comics, Magneto was born in the 1920s to a Jewish family. During World War 2, Erik was sent to Auschwitz, a Nazi concentration camp. With the current MCU taking place in 2023, it’s difficult to imagine a near 100-year-old Magneto taking on the X-Men.

Marvel Studios will have to take some steps to differentiate its incarnation of the X-Men from what Fox has done over the better part of the last two decades. Making two of the potential leads of the franchise people of color could be a huge step in doing that as well as helping to push the diversity of the MCU forward.

READ: Sony Has Cut Ties With Marvel Studios & Kevin Feige For Future Spider-Man Films

Earlier this year, Feige spoke about representation in the MCU and how he believes it’s the future of the franchise. “So, the notion of representation on screen, in front of and behind the camera, somebody asked me once, so is Black Panther a one-off? I said, no, it’s not a one-off,” Feige told The Wrap. “This is the future. This is the way the world is, and the way, certainly, our studio’s going to be run going forward, because it brings about better stories. The more diverse the group of people making the movie is, the better the stories.”

When the X-Men were to make their live-action debut for the 2000 film, Fox enlisted veteran actors Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen to tackle the roles of Professor X and Magneto. They would portray the characters until the studio decided to do a soft reboot of the franchise with X-Men: First Class and James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender took over the roles. Although McKellen and Stewart would appear again in Days of Future Past alongside their younger counterparts.

Would you be excited to see Profesor X and Magneto be people of color in the MCU? Who should portray the duo in Marvel Studios’ X-Men reboot? Let us know in the comments below.

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61 responses to “Marvel Studios Considering Making Professor X & Magneto POC In ‘X-Men’ Reboot (Exclusive)”

  1. James Nunziato Avatar
    James Nunziato

    No fickin way. Leave iconic characters alone. I don’t know who they think they’re appeasing by changing 60+ year old characters.

    Reply
    1. Jake Speed Avatar
      Jake Speed

      You mean like Xavier was already changed from an American New Yorker to a Brit?
      Guess changes only bother you when they get more brown.

      Reply
      1. Bo Avatar
        Bo

        Changing birth locations and changing race are not even remotely similar. Only an idiot would think they are similar.

        As with Magneto, it would be about more than just changing his race. It would be race, birth location, religion, one of the driving factors of his personality, basically every single aspect of the character. It would not be Magneto. It would be a 100% new character.

    2. panthern Avatar
      panthern

      You do know that Professor X and Magneto are just the white washed version of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. right? So I don’t see the problem since they will be finally like the people they were based off of

      Reply
      1. Dblake Avatar
        Dblake

        You might want to learn to differentiate between “whitewashed” and “inspired by”, because there’s a huge difference. Nothing about Xavier or Eric is whitewashed. They were meant to be white while their methods and actions were inspired by King and X. That’s a strawman if I’ve ever seen one. Eric is a Jewish holocaust survivor for crying out loud. You would have to change his origin story completely to make that sort of change. You drastically change their origin, a key part in who the character is and what makes them, it’s a completely new character at that point.

      2. Onanymous Avatar
        Onanymous

        I wasn’t aware that Malcolm Little and MLK had mutant superpowers

    3. Dee Avatar
      Dee

      There have been exactly zero (0) explicitly Jewish characters (nevermind superheroes) in the 25 or so MCU films, which is pretty remarkable.

      This despite the fact that the vast majority of the superheroes were created or co-created by Jews and that some of the actors are Jewish (Paul Rudd, Scarlett, Downey, Jr.).

      Where do they keep finding all these New York lawyers, businessmen, doctors, and scientists who turn into superheroes and who are not Jewish?

      Reply
      1. Onanymous Avatar
        Onanymous

        Hello, Magneto?

      2. TimDunn Avatar
        TimDunn

        Hello, Kitty Pride?

  2. John Avatar
    John

    Keep characters the same they are in the comics professor x and magneto are white if you want to diversify bring poc characters in marvel does a wonderful job at bringing in lesser known characters to the forefront and making them popular don’t change who a character is just to make ppl happy there are plenty superheros who are poc that i would love to see in X-Men spike Bishop synch nightshade bring someone new for ppl to love

    Reply
    1. J P Avatar
      J P

      I am black and I agree with you. Just bring the black characters already established into the main roster and also create new ones for the cinematic world for ppl to love. Honesty, Magneto and Professor isn’t one of those characters who race and history I care about. I wouldn’t really care if they did make them black but it would make me side eye bc it would be another case of tokenizing probably, but on the upside with them being inspired by Malcolm and Martin, it would be actually interesting to do a different take on the characters and their history. I think it all depends on popularity in the fantasy world. Would i ever accept Storm being white and her heritage and history change..HN! So, it just depends, but to be more effective, I would just bring in new characters and bring the already established black character to the front. We all have to admit it’s too many white ones as it is. In the X-men movies of course we only have Storm really, but even the students at Xavier’s school are mainly all white. It’s pathetic and these creator need to stop doing that simply because they want their race shown more. Any time there’s a movie about magic or some type of gift of power, they love to make it 90% white and have their dots you can point out. It’s stupid and ppl are sick of it. A lot white ppl don’t get it and love to deflect or downplay it of course bc its their race and they never had a problem being unfairly treated when it comes to movies or even in real life like black ppl have. This is the reason why we do our own stuff. We want to be inclusive but it’s those in place with the white agenda who try to keep that from happening like it should(on another note). I think MCU is getting serious about bringing all their characters who aren’t white up to the front. I do want them to stop tokenizing and create more originals.

      Reply
  3. Ziff Avatar
    Ziff

    Might as well get mike tyson and 50 cent to play them if we are gonna just toss the back ground stories out.

    Reply
    1. lowlifenebula Avatar
      lowlifenebula

      X-Men has a pretty decent amount of ” POC ” in their comics and all Marvel would have to do (as others have stated ) is just center a story around them.

      Reply
  4. Eric July: Expect Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige to Tokenize X-Men's Magneto and Professor X – Bounding Into Comics

    […] took to YouTube to react to a report from Full Circle Cinema that stated, “Kevin Feige and co. are considering having people of color portray both Magneto […]

    Reply
  5. Professor X and Magneto to be Mutants of Color in the MCU?

    […] But the current reports about the MCU considering making Prof X and Magneto into mutants of color is what irritates me. I don’t see any reason why such a change needs to be made, because the X-Men already have a wide range of fan-favorite mutants of color to choose from. […]

    Reply
    1. John Avatar
      John

      I jus want them to stay true to the character if you wanna diversify bring in minority characters and i i feel like that starts to make it a political statement by changing the character ND this is not a place for a political statement i watch to get a away from this world i hate politics please don’t bring them in to something i love

      Reply
      1. Jake Speed Avatar
        Jake Speed

        Name one time in the Xmens history that they weren’t political. They are literally an allegory for racism.

  6. Akindeji Hill Avatar
    Akindeji Hill

    As a POC I would love to see Magneto and Professor X as POCs. The X-Men are my all time favorite franchise and I even named my son after Professor X.

    However such a drastic change isn’t necessary. Agent Carter is very much dead in 2023 but that doesn’t stop her story from playing a role in the MCU. Captain Marvel has a whole movie that takes place in the past and it works flawlessly. Why not introduce younger X-Men currently living in the year 2023 while showing the flashback origins of Xavier and Magneto? I know that Marvel studios is good enough to pull that off in a masterful way, and I think it would make everyone happy.

    However if they want to make Mags and Prof POC then I would be X-static as long as they don’t make the storyline suck.

    Reply
    1. Sean Miles Avatar
      Sean Miles

      I have to admit I was getting ready to rip into everyone who says leave Magneto and Professor X white. I change my mind. Diversity is important, but it should be done with introduction of new characters.
      I am black. Honestly, I have to be fair. I would be disappointed if Marvel decided to take iconic black characters and turned them white. So how can I throw stones at any white person for feeling the same? I would be down if they changed Luke Cage, or Blade, or they decided to use a Caucasian to play Storm, like Brittany Spears for example.
      Not saying there is anything wrong with Brittany personally, just saying she would be the total opposite look of Storm. As I said earlier just introduce new black characters. Marvel can come up with a black telepathy, not named Charles, who can walk, but he moved from LA to NY, perhaps this mutant can be good hand to hand combatant as well for example.
      These are all random ideas I just gave, that Marvel can tweak for their new character.

      Reply
      1. Jake Speed Avatar
        Jake Speed

        “I would be disappointed if Marvel decided to take iconic black characters and turned them white.”

        So you don’t see the difference? It’s hard for you to recognize that for the majority of the history of Marvel it was greatly skewed towards the creation of white characters?

        I can tell you aren’t black. Stop lying. Stop dogwhistling.

      2. panthern Avatar
        panthern

        I agree with you on changing a character that was one color to another is a bit wrong however in this case I think it’s the right thing to do. Professor X and Magneto are based on two well known black men in the 60’s Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X. They had to be white washed due to the times they were created but the inspiration for them was black people so why not bring them back to their roots?

  7. Magneto And Professor X May Be POC For Marvel's X-Men Reboot – Movie Review

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  8. 創新還是政治正確？MCU的X教授、萬磁王可能設定為非白人角色？ – 美漫好有梗 ComicMemesTW

    […] 根據稍早Full Circle Cinema的獨家消息指出，漫威影業正考慮重新設定X教授、萬磁王的人種形象，改為由非白人演員 (原文為有色族群 POC , Person of color) 演員擔綱演出。儘管傳聞有待進一步的證實，且福斯回歸的角色要現身大銀幕仍言之過早，但畢竟「政治正確」本來就是迪士尼近年一貫的作風，此外在意義上來講， 非白人的X戰警似乎比小美人魚更有說服力點 …… […]

    Reply
    1. CalvoHobbo Avatar
      CalvoHobbo

      Wow Jake Speed is the internet race detection police huh? He can tell your race just by the comments you make. Immpressive.

      Xavier- probably makes more sense to keep white because he is supposed to be a man of priviledge who can easily hide that he is a mutant. As a persob who is white, male and rich, he has nothing to lose by pretending to be a non-mutant. Therefore, the fact that he comes from a birth into such a priveledged life adds much more to his ability to inspire since he is choosing to expose himself and possibly give up his protected status.

      Magneto on the other hand- i dont see the controversy here. Since when does being Jewish mean you are also mandatorily white? Why couldn’t he be of Eastern European, Persian or even arabic descent and still have gone through the ww2 persecution? Oscar Isaac would be perfect -oh wait he was wasted on the abomination that was the Apocalypse movie. But hey if Human Torch can also be Cap, why not?

      Reply
  9. Donald R.Jack Avatar
    Donald R.Jack

    Up and coming actor Donald R.Jack Should play Magneto.

    Reply
  10. Charles Xavier y Magneto podrían ser negros en el MCU – LAS CRÓNICAS DE AXA 2.0

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  11. Robert Szemeti Avatar
    Robert Szemeti

    I can see a Charles Xavier, thats Indian or of Asian background, or a person resembling Yul Brenner, which he had that dark russian background, and Magneto be of Arab or Israeli backround, someone like F.Murray Abraham, im sure marvel wont go too extreme to change the characters to Mexican or African, to really mess with their origins. Just tweak it enough to be plausible, like charles not needing to be specifically be Caucasian, just be born in NY, and studied abroad, and bald that could be anyone.

    Im ok with casting changes away from the UK, professor X was never from England anyways, he just studied there at oxford,

    As long as their stories are the same. Thats the important part

    But mess with Magnetos origin as a holocaust survivor and you ruin his character, might aswell call him stryker.

    I Actually would like to see Marvel introduce the Xmen, with the AoA storyline.

    Pretty ballzy to start them with the whole cast in your face in a flipped allegiances, whilst in an alternate universe/timeline.

    Magneto leads xmen, cyclops and beast are bad guys, and are all in a literal “post-apocalypse” earth, no avengers, not many humans, and Bishop is the POV into the world where he knows its not right,

    Not sure if it should be a series or a dual movie, but it would end with bishop setting it right, into the uncanny xmen in the 1980s, as the original team starting up, then you can have a current 40 year later story vs avengers or whoever

    Im hoping Keanu Reeves is cast as Cyclops as he would pull some weight to what should be the lead character.

    Reply
    1. Christopher Kasak Avatar
      Christopher Kasak

      Look, they are going to keep him a genocide survivor (probably use Sokovia for an analog to Serbia or Kosovo. I was highly sceptical they could remove the Vietnam war from the Punisher and keep true to the heroic soul of the character in a post draft War, but I think they did great keeping Castle Castle), but to keep them WW2 german holocaust they are going to be pretty damn old for an action franchise. Moreover the thing is Magneto family already was PoC/IBB; specifically Romany, a people of INDO-European decent.

      Reply
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  13. Miller Avatar
    Miller

    Not ok with it….in every Marvel Comic they have gone to great lengths to bring in a separate but equal character to carry the mantle. Steve Rogers wasnt change to suddenly be black, the Falcon took over the mantle. Same with Riri and Tony Stark, Jane and Thor….shall I keep going

    that being said, bring in someone separate but equal…or better….honestly Xavier has gone from belowed character to an assbag in every retcon, so get a Mexican telepath with a full head of hair to take his place and do it better

    Reply
  14. Miller Avatar
    Miller

    FYI, for everyone that said Prof X was British in the movies, neither Stewart nor McAvoy used their accent, they used a privileged rich tone to their voice but were never show to be British. Xaviers home was in Westchester in the US however he did attend Oxford….honestly pay better attention to the movies and comics

    Reply
  15. [RUMOR] ¿Quiere Marvel cambiar la raza de Xavier y Magneto en su reboot de 'X-Men'? | Cinemanía

    […] caso a rumores que circulan por internet. Según dichas habladurías (especialmente un post en Full Circle Cinema), el estudio estaría buscando actores ‘de color’ para interpretar al telépata más […]

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  16. Deek Rivers Avatar
    Deek Rivers

    Could we please stop with the political correctness! If you want POC characters, create them, draw them, wright them. Stop with the revisionist history. Leave the original characters who and what they are! The End.

    Reply
    1. Christopher Kasak Avatar
      Christopher Kasak

      Thanks for asking politely, but just going to have to likewise politely refuse. Doing things the PCorrect way is all about manners and doing things the right way; usually specifically in reference to element of respect. See Gaiman on PC. Name one character in entire MCU that was left who they were, or even one that hasn’t improved by contemporization in adaptation.

      Reply
  17. Jason Todd Avatar
    Jason Todd

    Magneto is already a minority. It would be a stupid, and very offensive, over correction to decide to change his origins. It’s not even politically correct. If Feige actually cares about diversity, Marvel will cast a Jewish actor to play the character for once.

    Reply
    1. Christopher Kasak Avatar
      Christopher Kasak

      Technically Romany are IBB/PoC too!

      Reply
  18. Magneto Might Be a Person of Color in the MCU Reboot of 'X-Men' – Daily Health And Wealth Advisors

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  19. Marvel pourrait apporter un changement monumental en amenant les X-Men au MCU – BGR – TELES RELAY

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  20. Rumor Mill: Magneto and Professor X to Be POC in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?2e5d7d3c337909dc27078202c9c2c668 – Fun Sweet Life

    […] people of color portray both Magneto and Professor X in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, according to Full Circle Cinema. Time to make those Malcolm X/Martin Luther King Jr. comparisons really […]

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  21. Robert Szemeti Avatar
    Robert Szemeti

    Seriously malcom x and martin luther king were just ideas of the writers, not the backbone of the characters, its one thing to say “change them to resemble Malcolm X, MLK” it wont work, magneto is of jewish heritage, but polish, just hire the best actor that can portray that.
    And prof x can be anyone, as long as they are bald

    Reply
  22. Denzel Washington podría ser Magneto en el Universo Cinematográfico de Marvel

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  23. Denzel Washington podría ser Magneto en el Universo Cinematográfico de Marvel | Enterado Noticias

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  24. Magneto and Prof. X may become colored people with "X-Men" reboot – tested

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  25. Magneto and Professor X Might Be a People of Color in ‘X-Men’ Reboot | Nairobi Report

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  26. TimDunn Avatar
    TimDunn

    Magneto can’t be a prison of color because of origin?

    One word:Nanking

    Reply
  27. Black Magneto Role Cast For Marvel X-Men MCU Phase Movie

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  28. Frank Zelenka Avatar
    Frank Zelenka

    Ummmm. How about keeping him exactly a he is in the comics. WTF do you need to change it. I don’t understand people anymore. It’s not about discrimination or representation. If you want to see more of a (race/character/ideology/whatever) CREATE A NEW ONE FFS. No one will care! Quit trying to change what was and create something new.

    Reply
  29. Are you serious Avatar
    Are you serious

    This is the stupidest thing i have ever heard!!!!! Then make wolverine a chinese girl, cyclops a dwarf and storm a fat white girl. I mean come on im all for diversity but leave X, Magneto, and wolverine alone. Ill boycott marvel if this is true. I think if they do it its because they cant compete with the original cast so its a copout.

    Reply
  30. Marvel estaria de olho em Denzel Washington como Magneto em reboot de X-Men – NETWAY

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  31. LeaveXmenAlone Avatar
    LeaveXmenAlone

    Just no

    I mean this alone: Magneto was born Max Eisenhardt sometime in the late 1920s to a middle-class German Jewish family. Max’s father, Jakob Eisenhardt, was a decorated World War I veteran.[1] Surviving discrimination and hardship during the Nazi rise to power, the passing of the Nuremberg Laws in 1935, and Kristallnacht, Max and his family fled to Poland where they were captured during the German invasion of Poland and sent to the Warsaw Ghetto.. (wikipedia backstory for context) is an integral part of his history, you can’t just erase that by colorizing him… some characters are who they are for a reason! Not everyone is white washed!

    His whole point is that he was a Jew, a persecuted person of another culture, hes not just a boring ordinary white person. Magneto has a significant cultural story that informs all of who he is and his beliefs and values!
    I love Magneto, he’s one of the most compelling characters with a complex compassionate multi dimensional back story He’s not a one dimensional white character. Like some. They wouldn’t suddenly make Storm white…. so why do it to him.
    professor x however, his story isn’t so much tied up in any one culture…its a universal ish backstory, anyone can be wealthy, super smart and become paralyzed/marginalised and start a school.

    Reply
  32. Rumor Mill: Magneto and Professor X to Be POC in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? – entertainmenttcorner.com

    […] people of color portray both Magneto and Professor X in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, according to Full Circle Cinema. Time to make those Malcolm X/Martin Luther King Jr. comparisons really […]

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  33. fm Avatar
    fm

    OK.
    So Professor X is Headmaster/Dean of a school that has a history of being formed as a HBC.
    And as some of you know anyone can go to HBC’s you don’t just have to be black.
    He also can still be wealthy since black American millionaires can be traced back to 1919. He can be either self made or an heir of a wealthy black family in New York.

    Magneto is a sephardic jew. And that means he can still keep his back story.

    Xavier (and is that a black name, or what?) and Eric can still be friends from school or life. Unfortunately with the MCU being more set in modern times?
    We’re probably going to lose the Magneto WW2 plotline. Or well…. you could keep it and make him MUCH older. If that was to be the case?
    James Earl Jones as Magneto?
    Yes, please. 🤚🏾

    There bases covered, problems solved.

    Dear Marvel I am available for a 1st draft treatment on this script.

    Reply
  34. A Mudança de etnia do Professor X e do Magneto faz todo sentido – Okay, precisamos falar sobre..

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  35. Denzel Washington será el próximo Magneto y el Internet se puso en plan "no es mi Sirenita" – La Opinión de Poza Rica

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    Reply
  39. James Avatar
    James

    This is just as retarded as if you rebooted to make Magneto a Christian who never suffered during the Holocaust and Xavier a white guy who can walk just fine with a head full of blonde locks.

    They are an ALLEGORY for racism. It’s not ENOUGH for you that Professor X is disabled and Magneto is a Polish Jew, no, that’s not diverse enough anymore. Total rubbish.

    Reply
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