MCU X-Men director has been reading two major comic runs to prepare for reboot

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Jake Schreier, the director of Thunderbolts, will be leading the reboot of the X-Men for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He’s been studying key X-Men comic book storylines to prepare for the team’s first major film since 2019.

Now that Disney owns Fox, characters with mutant abilities have been appearing in Marvel movies and TV shows. The biggest example is the upcoming 2024 film, “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which brings back Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman as their famous mutant heroes.

The story mixed different worlds together in a chaotic way, similar to a child playing with toys, but it didn’t involve the X-Men team directly. After the Marvel Cinematic Universe finishes its current storylines with Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars, it plans to introduce the X-Men to the big screen.

Marvel hasn’t revealed its plans for bringing the X-Men into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but writer Jason Schreier has shared the comic books he’s been studying for the project. This could offer fans some clues about what to anticipate when the mutants finally appear on screen.

MCU X-Men director Jake Schreier has tried to find comics “where it feels like we’re doing something new”

Before the release of Beef Season 2 (where he’s a producer), Schreier told MovieWeb that he’s been studying classic X-Men comics by Chris Claremont and Grant Morrison to get ready for the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movie.

We’re trying to revitalize things and create something new. Kevin really encouraged us to explore the possibilities within the existing universe – it’s so expansive! I’ve spent the last year revisiting a lot of the source material, including all of Chris Claremont’s work and the excellent contributions from Grant Morrison, to get a feel for what we can do.

So, the director made it clear – mentioning Chris Claremont and Grant Morrison wasn’t some kind of hint about the story of the new X-Men movie! Instead, they were just trying to show how huge and complex the world of mutants is, and how it fits into everything else happening in the Marvel Universe. It’s cool to know they’re thinking about the rich history of the X-Men when building this all out.

Schreier explained that the world has many fascinating details, which are simply there to enrich the experience and show its depth, not to hint at anything specific.

We were brainstorming about what aspects of filmmaking haven’t been fully explored in popular movies – areas where we could innovate and try something fresh.

Chris Claremont’s 16-year work on the X-Men comics is considered a golden age for the series. Beginning in 1975, he deliberately emphasized the development of the main characters – both heroes and villains – and explored how their lives were impacted by being superheroes.

The story delved into the prejudice mutants experienced, expanding on the real-world issues Stan Lee and Jack Kirby initially wove into the team’s origins. Grant Morrison’s run on New X-Men from 2001 to 2004 modernized these themes for a new century, examining how the mutant community affected—and was affected by—the broader world. The narrative showed mutants being exploited as weapons and becoming central to international conflicts.

This suggests that the upcoming X-Men movie by Kevin Feige will make the team a major, worldwide phenomenon with significant consequences for the broader Marvel Cinematic Universe. While we shouldn’t anticipate specific, intense storylines like the Genosha Genocide immediately, Marvel Studios is planning a large-scale, impactful introduction for the X-Men.

While we’re eagerly awaiting Jake Schreier’s upcoming X-Men movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, check out our thoughts on why the X-Men might meet their end in Avengers: Doomsday, our complete ranking of every MCU film so far, and a look at the movies we’re most excited about in 2026.

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2026-04-10 14:21