10 Forgotten X-Men Characters Who Need Their Own MCU Film

Having African-American roots, Ororo Monroe has one of the richest backstories in X-Men. From enduring the trauma of watching her parents’ deaths to becoming a thief, she had quite a life before becoming one of the first students of Professor X. She actually met T’Challa and fell in love with him at a young age, later becoming the queen of Wakanda, albeit for a short while. She is by far one of the most powerful mutants in X-Men, and it is baffling that she hasn’t had her own MCU film yet despite longstanding fan interest.

The character has already appeared in live-action projects before, portrayed by Halle Berry and Alexandra Shipp in the X-Men films, but has since faded into obscurity. In the books, she has the power to control and manipulate any weather, including breaking water molecules and manipulating energy fields even in intergalactic spaces. Storm also has magical powers, and excellent leadership abilities. A well-executed film, bringing Storm’s immense powers to life, would fit perfectly into the MCU, especially because of her connection to Black Panther. A Storm film will undoubtedly rival the likes of Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman for the best female-led superhero film ever created.

Rumors of Taylor Swift potentially joining the MCU as Dazzler in Deadpool & Wolverine had fans excited back in 2023, although it never came to be. Besides being namesakes, Taylor Swift’s life story has a lot in common with Dazzler, minus the superpowers, of course. Dazzler discovers her superpowers at a fairly early age, but she resists the pressure to join the X-Men until unavoidable events force her hand. When she finally joins the team, she becomes one of the most important X-men, even helping take down Thanos in the second mutant Civil War.

Halston Sage played the character in her short cameo in Dark Phoenix, but it wasn’t nearly close to the character’s full potential in the books. While she is primarily portrayed as a superhero that can convert sound into light and energy beams, she can do a lot more tricks with sound, including blinding people. Dazzler is often underestimated by villains, allowing her to get close and deliver the most devastating blows even when odds are heavily stacked against her. She also still thrives as a musician, with her celebrity status often clashing with her superhero ambitions, which would make an interesting storyline for a superhero film.

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Cecilia Reyes deserved a film long before any member of The Defenders. She is one of the most unique superheroes in X-Men because she doesn’t really care about fame or even the costumes, she just wants to help people. Born in Puerto Rico, Reyes endured the trauma of watching her father being gunned down and not being able to help, leading to her decision to become a doctor. She is always in and out of X-Men because she never wanted to be a superhero and actually prefers being a street doctor for underprivileged New Yorkers, which is how she met and became friends with Daredevil.

She has a lot more in common with The Defenders than X-Men, which is why her independent film, with a few crossovers, would be a great watch. Her powers allow her to create a defensive shield for herself and those around her. She is often underrated because she prefers to defend and avoid conflict, but when forced, she could easily display the actual extent of her powers in combat. Moreover, all superheroes always look for her when injured, making her standalone film the perfect mirror into the activities of the rest of the MCU.

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There are multiple MCU superheroes with the ability to duplicate, but none could create sentient duplicates with as much ease as Jamie Madrox. His journey starts at birth, unlike other mutants who gained their powers during puberty. A film about him would therefore have to include the interesting scene of Madrox’s birth when he creates a duplicate when doctors smack his bottom.

Multiple Man’s journey into the X-Men also starts with the Fantastic Four, who have a pretty tough time stopping his endless clones when he accidentally attacks them after his suit malfunctions. In the books, Multiple Man’s duplicates can live almost independently and gain individual lifetime experiences which are then transferred to him when they are reabsorbed, making him one of the most versatile superheroes ever created.

In the recently released version of X-Force #1 written by Geoffrey Thorne, Forge gets his long-deserved upgrade to an Omega Level mutant. The upgrade retains both his mystic and technopathic powers, making him a living crossbreed of Tony Stark and Doctor Strange. He can also create any weapon he imagines, making him a lot smarter than Mr. Fantastic. He actually becomes the government’s new weapons contractor when Tony Stark ends his contract.

With the combination of his powers and his connection to other superheroes, Forge has the ability to become the MCU’s new Tony Stark. He also has a deep backstory, from his Native-American roots and Shaman training to his complicated romance with Storm and his leadership of the now fan-favorite X-Force. A film about Forge is long overdue in the MCU considering how long fans have followed the character’s development in the comics.

Karma could easily become the MCU’s more lethal version of the head popper like Victoria Neuman in The Boys. She is a powerful mutant with telepathy that can possess and control multiple people. She can also release a psionic energy surge to knock people unconscious, but, of course, she could easily kill them if she wanted. She is one of the coolest-headed members of the New Mutants, which makes her a great leader and friend to Professor X, Spider-Man, and Mr. Fantastic. These connections make her the perfect candidate to be the center of an MCU film exploring telekinesis’s full power.

Karma also has one of the darkest backstories of any mutant in X-Men, having endured unimaginable horrors as a child. She was born in Vietnam and forced to escape to the US on a crammed boat at the peak of the Vietnam War. Having to balance her superhero lifestyle with the parenting of her younger siblings creates interesting conflicts that would make her story more interesting.

Sebastian Shaw is largely considered a villain in X-Men, but if Kang the Conqueror could get an MCU film, then a Sebastian Shaw one would be even better. In the comics, he encounters the X-Men while he is the Black King, leading the Hellfire Club. The X-Men team up with him on multiple occasions to be able to take down the worst of the worst, including Nimrod. There are many facets of the character as he proves himself to be capable of portraying love and compassion, but can also be selfish and reckless, making him the perfect candidate for a multilayered antihero.

On the surface, Shaw is a mutant who absorbs the energy from any blows directed at his body, turns it into his own energy reserves, and then portrays it through superhuman strength, speed, and stamina. While he is not invincible to attacks, he is a complicated character to face because any blow that doesn’t kill him literally makes him stronger, a feature that makes battle scenes involving him more interesting. Having seen upgrades to his powers over the years, Shaw could easily show up as an Omega Level mutant and a film about him would be a real thriller.

Despite being a founding member and one of the most educated and eloquent members of the X-Men, Beast is one character whose abilities have never been fully explored on the screen. The character featured prominently in the X-Men films, and also got a well-received cameo in The Marvels (2023), so considering his own MCU film isn’t far-fetched. He has been portrayed as a villain in most comics in recent years, but his best time with the X-Men when he battles Magneto, as well as in X-Factor when he helps defeat Apocalypse.

His skills as a scientist often make him the most resourceful of the X-Men, although it also creates lots of conflicts for him and his friends, making his backstory a gem for any MCU film. Beast is also by far one of the most versatile superheroes ever created. His ape-like abilities allow him to run, climb, jump, and fight at super speeds. He is also an excellent teacher and a leader, with connections across the Sacred Universe including with the Defenders. A film about Beast, especially with Kelsey Grammar reprising the role, would fit perfectly into the timeline and seamlessly blend in crossovers.

Sunspot may not be the most powerful of the X-Men, but his ambitious nature makes him one of the franchise’s most interesting characters. He has the power to absorb solar energy and turn it into a blast of energy, use it to fly, or defend himself to become invincible to blows. A film about him would have to include the scene when his powers first manifest on the soccer pitch, where he scares everyone with his sudden burst of power and transformation into a scary black figure. He later abandons his wealthy boy lifestyle in Brazil to join the X-Men, only for his past to catch up with him, forcing him to create his own Avengers team, which eventually becomes the new Avengers.

He is also one of the X-Men that struggles the most with controlling his powers, which can prove very destructive at their peak and could also kill him if uncontrolled. An MCU film about Sunspot, exploring his strengths as well as vulnerabilities, would be a great way to introduce the New Mutants as well as X Force into the Sacred Universe. Roberto’s rich background story also makes him the perfect center for the film.

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Dust recently made a comeback in X-Men ’97, but she has been part of X-Men since the 2000s, falling into obscurity after her appearance in Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate Of Two Worlds in 2011. She is a superhero from Afghanistan who came to the US to escape the violence of war and found a place with the X-Men. She is also called the living dust because of her ability to turn into a cloud of dust, allowing her to travel through the air and engulf her enemies. Unlike other superheroes, she doesn’t wear any costumes except her hijab, as she is a devout Muslim.

Dust could make one of the most interesting female superheroes if her abilities are introduced through her own coming-of-age MCU film. The best part of her character is her strategic use of her powers that allows her to take on enemies way more powerful than her, like she does with Predator X and Exodus in the books. She also displays excellent leadership abilities, proving to be way more mature than her age which makes her the best character to lead the new generation of X-Men.