After 23 years, Hugh Jackman will finally wear his comics-accurate costume in Deadpool & Wolverine. Although the first X-Men movie made a snarky remark about yellow spandex costumes, fans have waited forever to see Logan in the outfit on-screen. With the confirmation of the TVA in the trailers, as well as the inclusion of the Multiversal junkyard called the Void, it feels like several of the Fox-era X-Men might appear in this film alongside Logan. In fact, we already know of several minor mutants who will show up, and they deserve comic-book-style costume upgrades too, properly paying homage to their Marvel Comics origins. But which X-Men comics costumes should appear in the MCU’s world? Here are the X-Men we’d love to see in the MCU, and the costumes we’d love to see them wear.
If Gambit Appears, We Want the Ragin’ Cajun in His Classic Purple
Gambit is an iconic member of the X-Men, mainly due to his inclusion in the X-Men: The Animated Series roster. He’s had a recent bump in popularity too, thanks to his bigger role in X-Men ’97 on Disney+. However, he barely appeared in the Fox X-Men films, showing up only in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, played by Taylor Kitsch. But in that movie, he was barely a supporting player, and looked more like a lost member of Blues Traveler. If rumors are true and Channing Tatum will finally appear as Remy LeBeau in Deadpool & Wolverine, we want to see him in his purple colors and weird cowl, charging up playing cards.
X23’s Wolverine Costume Needs to Appear On Screen
Dafne Keen stole the show as Laura, the child of Wolverine created by science, in 2017’s Logan. She was only a little kid when she made that film, which featured her father Wolverine sacrificing himself and his young child carrying on in his name. But Dafne Keen isn’t a little kid anymore, and if she appears in Deadpool & Wolverine, as is heavily rumored, we’d like to see the now grown-up X23 officially take up the mantle of Wolverine. And with the codename comes the costume. It could be an older version of Laura from the Logan universe, or a Multiversal variant. But we want to see her in the iconic yellow and blue just like dear old dad.
Cyclops’ Blue and Yellow Costume Should Join Wolverine’s Suit in Deadpool & Wolverine
Scott Summers, the X-Men member whom you may know as Cyclops, has had literally dozens of costumes in the comics. While we love Cyclops’ ‘70s/’80s blue costume, with the skullcap and the pirate boots, we believe it would be a hard one to pull off on-screen in the MCU. For many, his most iconic costume is his ‘90s Jim Lee-designed one, used in X-Men: The Animated Series. We almost got a version of this costume in a Marvel movie, as it was teased for a moment at the end of X-Men: Apocalypse. Of course, by the time of the next film, Dark Phoenix, Cyclops was wearing yet another suit. If James Marsden shows as up as Cyclops in Deadpool & Wolverine or Secret Wars, we think a proper version of his ‘90s X-Men costume is in order for the MCU. Although we’d like one with a more accurate color scheme than the X-Men: Apocalypse one that Tye Sheridan wore. That’s a good place to start.
We’d Love for Storm’s Epic Cape to Take Flight in the MCU
For all of the major diversions costume-wise in the first X-Men movie, the costume worn by Halle Berry as Storm is pretty close to what the Marvel Comics presented. (That first wig, though? That’s another story). While we are partial to Ororo Munroe’s original costume designed by Dave Cockrum, we do think it would be hard to justify the headpiece, leather swimwear, and thigh-high boots in live-action. But Storm’s ‘90s look, designed by Jim Lee, is perfect to wear on screen. This costume is very similar to the first X-Men movie costume, only this time, we would want the MCU’s version to have yellow accents and the red X symbol on the shoulders. Sometimes in the comics, this costume looks like black leather, sometimes it’s all white. We’d happily take either one.
Magneto‘s Purple and Red Costume Needs to Make an On-Screen Appearance
Magneto has one of the best costumes in comics. When Jack Kirby nailed a design, he really nailed it. That’s why Mags had so few costume changes over the decades. But the movies always shied away from going for the full comics look when it came to the Master of Magnetism’s costume. The closest we ever got in terms of Marvel Comics’ accuracy was the costume at the very end of X-Men: First Class, where Michael Fassbender’s Magneto sported the classic comics helmet and his purple and maroon color scheme. But that was all done away with in the next film, X-Men: Days of Future Past. If Ian McKellen or Michael Fassbender do return in Deadpool & Wolverine, then let’s go full Kirby. Okay, maybe without the trunks. But the rest of it? Let’s go. It’s time to give Magneto the costume he deserves in the MCU.
Rogue’s Classic Marvel Comics Yellow and Green Suit Would Make a Splash
Anna Paquin’s Rogue was quite different from her comic book counterpart. She was very shy and unsure of her powers, a far cry from the version of Rogue most fans knew from the ‘90s X-Men cartoon series. We’ve heard that version described as “Dolly Parton, with the powers of Superman.” And that’s accurate. Rogue has had many costumes in Marvel Comics, most of them green and white. But If Paquin returns, now all grown up, we’d love to see her in the Jim Lee-designed costume from X-Men #1, later made famous by the animated show. It’s really Rogue’s best costume, the bomber jacket just works so well with the suit. This comics-accurate costume is easily translatable to the screen with very few tweaks, and we’d love to see it add a splash of color to the MCU’s X-Men lineup. We’re ready to see this Rogue costume in live-action, sugah.
Colossus’s Bodysuit Is the X-Men Costume the MCU Deserves
Piotr Rasputin, the X-Men’s Russian metal man Colossus, has been a key figure in the Deadpool movies, and is confirmed to return for the third film. As much as we love Stefan Kapičić in the role, that black and red costume is just not very Colossus to us. In Marvel’s X-Men comics and others, Colossus wore a red and yellow costume for much of the ‘70s and ‘80s, with big shoulder flares and thigh-high boots. Jim Lee later streamlined the design in the ‘90s. Maybe the best version of the Colossus costume was from the Astonishing X-Men series of the 2000s. Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine costume seems inspired by Astonishing, so why not Colossus’ suit? We just know it’s time for Piotr to wear the red and yellow. We’d probably give the big lug some pants, though.
Phoenix‘s Firebird Emblem Should Rise On-Screen
Jean Grey has been a part of the X-Men since the very first issue in 1963, and has had dozens of costumes since then. Some are iconic, others are fashion nightmares. But while we’ve lobbied hard for the Jim Lee ‘90s costume designs for any possible X-Men returning in the MCU, Jean Grey’s outfit from this era is not a favorite. The shoulder pad armor, the headpiece, the padding on the legs? It’s all too busy. Maybe the MCU could pull off a version of this X-Men costume that works. But we’d prefer something that evokes Jean as Phoenix.
Of course, that means the classic firebird emblem, in yellow and green. We realize the classic Phoenix costume might be hard to pull off in live-action. It would be hard to justify those opera gloves, thigh-high boots, and gold sash. But in the mid-2000s, Jean wore a more practical version of the Phoenix red and green, which could work on screen. With two movies dedicated to Jean Grey not being able to control the Phoenix Force, it would be fun to see Famke Janssen totally in control of her powers in the MCU, and wearing something resembling her New X-Men-era costume.
Mystique’s Comics-Accurate White Dress Is Long Overdue for Its Debut
Mystique has been an iconic part of the X-Men film franchise since the very first film in 2000. She’s been played by Rebecca Romijn, and later, Jennifer Lawrence. But we think if Magneto returns, then Mystique should be right by his side. And if it’s Ian McKellen’s Magneto, then the original Mystique, Rebecca Romijn, should join him. Rebecca Romijn is currently killing it as Number One on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. And while we think at this point in her career, she probably doesn’t want to spend hours in the makeup chair being painted head-to-toe blue, she doesn’t need to. Because Marvel Comics’ Mystique wore clothes. We’d love to see Mystique’s iconic white costume from the comics appear in the MCU, complete with the tiny gold skulls. We got a tease of this comics-accurate costume in X-Men: Apocalypse, but the later movies never delivered. This one’s long overdue.
Originally published on July 10, 2023.