Recently, James McAvoy opened up about one of his most iconic roles and why he never followed up on it with a sequel. No, I’m not talking aboutThe Chronicles of Narnia, and I’m definitely not talking about hisX-Menfilms. Rather, McAvoy discussedWanted, a 2008 film starring him alongside Angelina Jolie and General Zod himself, Terence Stamp. Based on the comic of the same name,Wantedfollows an office clerk named Wesleyas he uncovers his father’s secret double life as an assassin.
The film was a financial success, and the studio greenlit a sequel, but it never came to fruition. Per McAvoy, none of the follow-up scripts were as strong as the first, and then he slowly aged out of the role before the production could be locked in. What he had to say aboutWantedthrows any hope of McAvoy joining theMCU’s version of the X-Men into question.
James McAvoy’s Comments About Being “Too Old” For A Wanted Sequel Make Me Worried We’ll Never Get An MCU Return
The X-Men Star Feels He Aged Out Of One Of His Biggest Roles
McAvoy starred inWantedthree years before he took on the role of Charles Xavier inX-Men: First Class, when he was 29 years old. According to McAvoy, not revisitingWantedwasn’t a conscious decision; a sequel just never came together. McAvoyexplained his perspectiveon the canceled follow-up:
“There were a couple of scripts that came my way for sequels, but they weren’t strong enough, so that’s why they never happened. If there was a script there that was absolutely banging, then, yeah, I’d be disappointed. But we made something that I’m really proud of. Timur [Bekmambetov] was really proud of it. The studio was really proud of it. Everybody was really excited by it, and it’s stood the test of time a little bit. It’s always on streamers, and people are always watching it. I still get so much love for it from young people who weren’t alive back then. So I’m proud of what we did, and I wouldn’t want to tarnish it by doing something that was not quite as strong.”
Beyond his creative qualms about aWantedsequel. McAvoy felt he no longer suited the role. The actor said: “Look, I’m too old to play Wesley now anyway. It’s a young person’s role now.” While I understand that Wesley and Professor X are fundamentally different characters, McAvoy’s comments about age make me concerned he may feel similarly towards appearing in anX-Menfilm.
Charles Xavier Isn’t A Role Tied To Youth
That being said,McAvoy is plenty young enough to play Charles Xavier.In fact, he may be more appropriately aged to play the leader of the X-Men at 45 than he was at 32. Professor X is most often portrayed as being on the older side of middle-aged, with the original films opting to find actors in their 60s for both him and Magneto to keep the latter’s origin consistent. This decision then led to theX-Menfranchise casting McAvoy and Michael Fassbender as their younger counterparts.
Because McAvoy was intentionally cast as a younger Xavier, he’s nowhere near being at risk of aging out of theX-MenandMCUfranchises. For perspective, he’s 14 years younger than Robert Downey Jr., the same age as Chris Pratt, and two years older than Chris Evans. Moreover, Professor X does not have the same strenuous physical demands as superhero roles like Wolverine or Superman.
MCU X-Men Movie, New & Returning Characters & X-Men ‘97 Success Get Response From Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige
Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige comments on the MCU’s X-Men movie, talking about which characters could appear and how X-Men ‘97 could connect to it.
Aging aside, McAvoy always portrayed Xavier as nuanced and intelligent. I thinkpublic perception of him as Professor X was unfairly tainted by a combination of love for Patrick Stewart and the poor reception of the laterX-Menfilms.An actor of his caliber would be an asset for the MCU, even if he only plays a small role. With the multiversal angle Marvel is taking, the actor could easily be among fellow former actors making cameos inAvengers: Secret Wars, and he probably should be.
James McAvoy’s Sequel Comments Could Make His MCU Return More Likely
The MCU Has Big Plans For The X-Men
As for whether he’d return to theX-Menfilms, McAvoy only has one caveat: he needs a good story. Speaking withScreen Rant, the actor stated:
“Listen, for me as an actor, if I’m going to go back and play a character I’ve already played? I would want to be a new, different reinterpretation or newly explored version or something like that. The only thing that makes me take any job is whether the script’s good, and whether the character’s interesting, and that would have to be the case. It would also have to be the case that I got offered that, so that’s completely hypothetical.
“But I feel like they’re moving on, they’re doing new things, and they’re going to do great things. They always do. But I would never say no to something if I’ve not seen a script, and I would never say yes to something if the script was really bad.”
McAvoy’sperspective on reprising Professor Xis “never say never;” however, he also said that he “got to explore a ton of Professor X"and he feels"quite satisfied with what [he] got out of him as a performer.“This could be a point in the MCU’s favor because if he’s invited back, it would most likely be for the next twoAvengersfilms. I’d imagine any actor would be tempted to be part of the iconic franchise, much less an actor like McAvoy who played an equally iconic Marvel hero for four movies.
Another possibility that could lure McAvoy to the MCU is a promise of reuniting with Fassbender.He once revealed thathis biggest critique of theX-Menfilmswas that they “didn’t take advantage of the relationship between [Xavier and Magneto], which really formed the backbone of [X-Men: First Class.]“A final team-up (or battle) could be epic enough to inspire the actor to come back, and I find the idea a fitting way to send off that era ofX-Menfilms.
Patrick Stewart may have already beaten him to the punch of being the first Professor X in the MCU, but that doesn’t mean McAvoy wouldn’t be a welcome presence.After all, we did get a movie with three Spider-Man variants. McAvoy rejoining theX-Menin theMCUis a long shot, but if the script is good, us fans might just win out.
X-Men
The X-Men franchise, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, centers on mutants with extraordinary abilities. Led by the powerful telepath Professor Charles Xavier, they battle discrimination and villainous mutants threatening humanity. The series explores themes of diversity and acceptance through a blend of action, drama, and complex characters, spanning comics, animated series, and blockbuster films.
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a multimedia superhero franchise that began in 2008 with Paramount’s Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. The franchise quickly grew in popularity, with Disney eventually buying out Marvel Entertainment in 2009. The MCU consists of dozens of movies and TV shows, most notably Avengers: Endgame, WandaVision, and Loki.
