Ever since Disney acquired the right for the X-Men, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been gradually introducing mutants into the fold. After briefly teasing Kamala Khan’s mutant gene in Ms. Marvel, Marvel Studios has now openly revealed that Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is also a mutant.
Not only this but Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness saw a variant of Professor X from the Fox-Verse as well. Now with Both Deadpool and Wolverine returning to the franchise, the course of mutants being a part of the MCU has been firmly set. Rumors have already started to float around about the characters that could be appearing in future projects, stating that the MCU could be making certain changes here and there.
Marvel Could Be Switching Race and Gender Of The Mutants In X-Men
There have been certain rumors pertaining that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is more focused on race-swapping certain mutants in order to show more diversity in characters. They are reportedly concentrating on switching major mutants rather than minor mutants so as to create a bigger impact on the audience. While in standard fashion, the franchise makes merchandise according to the projects that would be coming out, certain toys that were made and are being made have been seen to have different races.
It could be said that Marvel might use already existing mutants to attract the audience only to then switch them to these newer versions. This bait would be convenient for the studios to then bring X-Men fans to the MCU, only to have more diverse and inclusive characters be portrayed later on.
Marvel’s Plans In Order To Attract The Audience
The source added that the purpose of the character/actor stunt baiting is to market the characters, which is what Disney is interested in. It’s referred to as “jobbing” in professional wrestling when an established large figure who gains popularity is utilized to promote, market, or at the very least make a new character that the wrestling promotion wants to push more digestible. In the future, expect this to become even more obvious.
Fans may therefore need to get ready for more bait and switches in the MCU’s ongoing story. They also seem to aim to increase the portrayal of LGBTQ people in the X-Men franchise. It appears that the “X-Men” title, which has drawn criticism for using the word “Men,” has not changed as of yet.
There has also been hinting at gender swaps as well in order to create a form of balance between what could be commercially successful and accepted by the fans. Disney and Marvel have lately been stepping into major roles in diversity and equality which they had been lacking previously, and perhaps this rumor regarding the X-Men could also be a result of that.
Source: Screen Geek
