With “Paradise,” James Marsden received an Emmy nomination for playing the leader of the United States — but it’s not the first time we’ve seen him sitting in the driver’s seat. Soon, Marvel fans will see the actor once again portraying the leader of the X-Men as well.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Marsden opened up a bit about “Avengers: Doomsday” and his anticipated return to his earliest iconic role: Scott Summers (a.k.a. Cyclops) in 20th Century Fox’s “X-Men” film series.
“I’m getting a little long in the tooth to put on the superhero costume,” Marsden laughed. “I was excited because you’re a part of something gigantic, and I’ve spent 20 years listening to people say, ‘When are you coming back? When are you coming back? Are you coming back?’ I’m dead. Well, maybe not.”
Marsden is one of several 2000s “X-Men” cast members who will appear in the gargantuan lineup for 2026’s “Avengers: Doomsday.” As the actor alluded to, his character has walked a long and twisty road in the Fox series, one that involved him dying in “X-Men: The Last Stand” before being resurrected by a time-traveling Wolverine in “X-Men: Days of Future Past.”
Now, Marsden’s Cyclops will have to add the multiverse to his list of worries. The actor will appear alongside fellow “X-Men” stars Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler) and Rebecca Romijn (Mystique) in “Avengers: Doomsday” — all of whom were announced via on-set chairs in a Marvel livestream. The film will see members of the original “X-Men” films (a franchise distinct from the MCU) somehow contribute in the Avengers’ conflict with Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr.
This won’t be the first time the “X-Men” characters have interacted with the MCU since the Disney/Fox merger. Stewart previously appeared as Professor X in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” while Grammer’s Beast cameoed in the post-credits scene of “The Marvels.” 2024’s “Deadpool & Wolverine” saw Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine interact with each other for the first time, folding a few other Fox Marvel characters into the MCU adventure. Channing Tatum’s Gambit — who never actually appeared in a Fox film — made his debut in “Deadpool & Wolverine” and is also set to return for “Avengers: Doomsday.” Reynolds, Jackman and other “X-Men” stars like Halle Berry (Storm) and Famke Janssen (Jean Grey) are not confirmed to appear.
Marsden’s last appearance as Cyclops dates more than a decade before “Doomsday,” with the character making a brief cameo in 2014’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past.” The “Paradise” actor said his return to the visor is better late than never.
“I’m going to have a tough time struggling to get into costume if they waited a couple more years,” Marsden said. “So it’s been a blast. It really has. It’s been a nice little homecoming to a role that really put me on the map. It was the first real event project that I was ever a part of, and a very beloved character, this icon from the comics. And so to step back into that role was pretty special.”
