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Marvel Reveals Full X-Men Cast at D23; Adam Driver Crashes Panel as Mister Sinister
The Big Reveal
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige closed out Disney’s D23 expo in Anaheim, California on Friday night with the announcement fans have been waiting years for — the full cast of the MCU’s X-Men reboot. The film arrives in theaters on May 5, 2028, and will be directed by Jake Schreier, who previously helmed Thunderbolts* in 2025.
The Cast
Feige brought the core cast onto the Honda Center stage one by one. Sadie Sink leads the film as Jean Grey, a role she quietly debuted last month in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Kit Connor, best known for Heartstopper, plays Scott Summers, better known as Cyclops. Christopher Abbott takes on Professor Charles Xavier. Samara Weaving, who had already been reported in the role, plays Emma Frost. Inde Navarrette, who broke through in the indie horror film Obsessed, plays Rogue. And Maya Boyd, a relative newcomer, plays Storm.
The final reveal came via video. Adam Driver appeared on the giant screen, telling the crowd of more than 12,000 fans that he and Feige had been talking for years about finding the right MCU role. He teased the audience by pretending to announce he was playing Magneto, then paused and corrected himself — he is actually playing Nathaniel Milbury, otherwise known as Mister Sinister. The crowd erupted. Driver joked that he would be waiting for everyone to show up on opening day, then the camera pulled back to reveal him sitting alone in an empty room.
Driver and Abbott previously worked together in the 2013 Coen Brothers film Inside Llewyn Davis, making their on-screen dynamic one of the more intriguing subplots heading into production.
Who Is Mister Sinister?
In Marvel comics, Mister Sinister — real name Nathaniel Essex — is a Victorian-era geneticist who became obsessed with mutants and used himself as a test subject to develop a range of powers including telepathy, cellular regeneration, shape-shifting, and the ability to clone and alter other mutants. He is particularly fixated on Cyclops and Jean Grey, believing their combined genetics could produce the most powerful mutant ever born. That obsession with the film’s two central characters suggests the story will revolve around Scott and Jean from the start.
The character was briefly teased at the end of X-Men: Apocalypse in 2016, but was never developed further under the old Fox regime.
The Creative Team
The screenplay was written by Lee Sung Jin, creator of the Netflix series Beef, and Joanna Calo, a co-showrunner on The Bear. Both are among the most respected writers currently working in prestige television, and their involvement signals Marvel is aiming for a more character-driven, tonally distinct X-Men film than what came before.
The Rest of D23
The X-Men reveal was the night’s biggest moment, but D23 delivered several other major announcements. Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., and Hayley Atwell appeared onstage to present a new trailer for Avengers: Doomsday, set for release on December 18. The footage showed Downey’s Doctor Doom going head to head with Thor, while Evans returned as Captain America. Hugh Jackman sent a video message that strongly implied he will return as Wolverine, though no formal announcement was made.
Ryan Gosling appeared alongside director Shawn Levy to reveal Star Wars: Starfighter, arriving in May 2027. Gosling also confirmed he will play Ghost Rider in a 2028 MCU release. Disney+ announced Visionquest, a new series reuniting Paul Bettany as Vision and James Spader returning as Ultron. And Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel took the stage to preview Frozen 3, though a technical failure with the stage door drew some unintentional laughs before the moment got back on track.
