When it comes to upcoming Marvel movies on the way, the franchise’s impending future feels more blurry than ever. Of course, we know we have Avengers: Doomsday to look forward to this holiday season and Avengers: Secret Wars the year after that, but we have so many questions about what new blood will be part of the next phase of the MCU, including through the X-Men movie. But, I like one rumor going around.
We know that Thunderbolts* filmmaker Jake Schreier is behind the untitled X-Men reboot and recently he told us that he’s been discussing how to do “something that feels new” with the beloved comic book title. And, certainly casting the right talent who can bring new layers and audiences to characters we’ve seen before is one way you could do that. That’s why I’m so high on the new rumor going around that Euphoria’s Hunter Schafer is in the running for the role of Mystique.
The rumor comes from a scooper on X, who says the 27-year-old is “still being considered” for the reboot. If this casting tidbit comes true, Schafer would be following Rebecca Romijn from the original films and Jennifer Lawrence’s version from the prequels. The role would once again go to a blonde-haired beauty, but it feels like there’s to be more room with her to explore the inherent androgyny of the comic book character should the role be played by the transgender actor, model and activist.
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I also think there’s a certain softness to Schafer that doesn’t quite feel like the other Mystique actors that could be interesting to see from the shapeshifter, too. Rather than being the enigmatic bombshell that the character is often portrayed as, I think she could offer a new shade to the character for a new generation.
Hunter Schafer has been constantly incredible on Euphoria as Rue since the HBO series premiered back in 2019, and yet, it feels like she hasn’t had a lot of chances to take up space in another high profile role aside from Euphoria since. She did have a small part in the YA action franchise Hunger Games: The Ballad Songbirds and Snakes, but it feels like she’s often fan casted more than she’s cast in the big roles we want to see her in. People were also hoping to see her in the Zelda movie along with Gwen Stacy in the Spider-Man movies with Tom Holland (per Reddit).
Hunter Schafer’s name isn’t the only name we’ve heard in association with the mysterious X-Men reboot, other names that have come up have been Marty Supreme’s Odessa A’zion for Rogue, The Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Peter Claffey as Beast, Sadie Sink for Jean Grey and Sydney Sweeney for Emma Frost. I can’t wait for the day when Marvel Studios confirms the casting for this movie, because a new iteration of the mutants could really bring new excitement to the MCU.