Characters from Fox’s X-Men franchise have been confirmed to be coming to the MCU, and Avengers: Secret Wars can finally end their stories in Phase 6.
Marvel Studios has the opportunity to redeem the failures with Fox’s superhero franchises with Phase 6’s Avengers: Secret Wars. Disney acquired Fox’s Marvel characters in 2019, effectively canceling any plans for a continuation of the X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises. This has allowed mutants to slowly start to make themselves known in the MCU, starting with Kamala Khan in Ms. Marvel and Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and has led to the confirmation of Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four releasing as part of the MCU’s Phase 6. The ending of the Multiverse Saga, however, creates the opportunity for some of Fox’s stories to finally be resolved.
At 2022’s SDCC, Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige announced two epic Avengers films to conclude the MCU’s Multiverse Saga: The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars. While the former will pit a new team of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes against Kang the Conqueror and the Council of Kangs, the latter, adapted from the 1984 and 2015 Secret Wars series in Marvel Comics, is speculated to be on a larger scale, akin to that of Avengers: Endgame. Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars brought characters from a variety of universes together for one massive storyline, and it’s thought that Marvel Studios will do the same, which means that Fox’s X-Men and Fantastic Four teams could return.
Marvel Studios Has A Clearer Plan For The X-Men & Fantastic Four
After Disney’s 2019 acquisition of Fox, many were left wondering how Marvel Studios would integrate mutants into the established MCU, especially since mutants’ Marvel Comics history is so reliant on real-world historic events. There was speculation that mutants would be introduced to the franchise by using the multiverse, but this was debunked in Ms. Marvel, which revealed Kamala Khan as the MCU’s first mutant. The MCU’s mutant introduction has been slow, but during a 2019 Ask Me Anything on Reddit, Feige revealed that Marvel Studios tends to plan five years into the future, which implies mutants will be heading to the MCU en masse in the next couple of years.
It’s been all but confirmed that the X-Men won’t be involved in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, but their potential appearance in Avengers: Secret Wars is still very exciting. The fact that Marvel Studios seems to have a clear plan for their integration of mutants means the failures of Fox’s X-Men franchise can be avoided, perhaps negating the all-too-regular timeline and continuity issues. This also applies to the Fantastic Four, as Marvel’s First Family will be debuting in the MCU’s Phase 6, and Marvel Studios has been taking their time to make sure the right actors are cast, and the most impactful story gets told.
Miles Teller Could Return As Reed Richards In Avengers: Secret Wars
The magic of adapting the Secret Wars storyline from Marvel Comics means that Marvel Studios can reuse several characters from Fox’s previous franchises, bringing them back to conclude, and in some cases simply make sense of, their prior stories. Perhaps the most dire case that needs to be recovered is the reviled 2015 film Fantastic Four, which featured Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell as the eponymous team. During a 2022 interview with The Digital Fix, Teller confirmed that he would be open to reprising the role under the right conditions, and Avengers: Secret Wars might present the perfect role for the former Reed Richards actor.
The Maker In Avengers 6 Can Redeem Fox’s Fantastic Four
In Marvel Comics, the Maker is an alternate version of Reed Richards from Marvel’s Ultimate universe, and is interestingly the version of Richards that Miles Teller’s iteration was based on. This younger and more modernized version of Reed Richards suffers several tragedies and mental traumas that lead to him becoming the villainous Maker, created to show what Richards would have become had he used his powers for malice instead of for the benefit of others. The Maker’s storyline comes to a head in Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars event, as his home reality collides with the 616-universe, allowing Reed Richards and the Maker to finally meet.
A multitude of villains are set to be featured in Avengers: Secret Wars, but the Maker is one of the more prominent presences on Marvel Comics’ Battleworld – a place created from the fragments of the colliding realities – working with his 616 counterpart to face the malevolent Doctor Doom, but soon ending up butting heads thanks to their conflicting morals. Should Miles Teller return in Avengers: Secret Wars, he could portray a more evolved version of his Fantastic Four character, embodying the Maker and facing the MCU’s Reed Richards, helping to clear up the division surrounding Fox’s 2015 film, and actually give meaning to the film’s poorly received plot.
Deadpool 3 Will Bring Fox’s Mutants Into The MCU
As well as the potential return of Teller’s Reed Richards and the 2015 Fantastic Four team (as well as the more goofy 2005 Fantastic Four team), Marvel Studios could bring back Fox’s X-Men team in Avengers: Secret Wars, all thanks to another Phase 6 project. Deadpool 3 is currently slated to kick off Phase 6 in 2024, marking the return of several characters from Fox’s X-Men franchise, including Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, Stefan Kapičić’s Colossus, and potentially even Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen as Professor X and Magneto. This makes these characters’ involvement in Secret Wars even more likely, allowing Marvel Studios to redeem yet another Fox franchise.
Although Fox’s X-Men franchise started strong with 2000’s X-Men, and saw some major hits with projects such as X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Logan, the franchise saw its fair share of failures and missteps. Several characters were lost in the crowd and forgotten, while others had too much focus, and the studio attempted to properly adapt major storylines time-and-again instead of moving on to other adventures. These problems can be fixed if the X-Men from Fox’s franchise show up during Avengers: Secret Wars, as some lesser-known characters can get some much-needed attention, and the divisive final projects in the franchise can be resolved properly.
MCU’s Multiverse Saga Needs To End Fox’s Superhero Franchise
There’s speculation about when Marvel Studios might introduce the MCU’s X-Men team, and who may be cast in the major roles, but to get the full impact, audiences need to move on from Fox’s franchise first. Avengers: Secret Wars needs to mark the end of Fox’s superhero franchise, allowing new actors to assume the iconic roles, being met with an open-minded and welcoming audience. Fantastic Four will be rebooted ahead of Secret Wars, but there’s far less pressure to adapt them than the X-Men, so Avengers: Secret Wars could mark the final farewell to Fox’s mutant team, allowing a fresh start when the X-Men finally come together in the MCU.
