X-Men star hints at a ‘gigantic’ comeback in Marvel’s Avengers: Doomsday, teasing fans about what’s next for their iconic mutant role in the MCU.
James Marsden recently talked candidly about playing Cyclops again in Doomsday and what it’s like to come back after twenty years. He also talked about the thrill of returning to a Marvel set.
Variety questioned James Marsden at the Emmys last night about his return as Scott Summers, aka Cyclops, in Avengers: Doomsday. The actor was nominated for two Primetime Emmy awards for Paradise and Jury Duty. “It’s exciting,” Marsden remarked when considering the experience of returning to the Marvel universe after twenty years. “You can feel that it’s something special. You can feel the world is ready for this movie and these worlds to kind of collide,” he added. Fans have been waiting for the Avengers and X-Men crossover to develop, and he acknowledged their excitement.
James Marsden says “it’s exciting” to return as Cyclops for #AvengersDoomsday: “You can feel that it’s something specia. The world is ready for this movie and these worlds are ready to collide.” pic.twitter.com/7yWd3bMS9u
— Variety (@Variety) September 14, 2025
“I thought there was a chance, but I think once 10 years pass and then 20 years pass, it was like, well, that was a nice idea,” Marsden said when asked what it was like to walk on the set of an Avengers film 20 years later.
“But now, you know,” he added, “I suppose they’re just waiting for us to all grow old and grey in order to bring us back.” The Variety journalist then added, laughing, “MCU is the Grey C.U.”
Former X-Men co-stars Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler), Kelsey Grammer (Beast), and Rebecca Romijn (Mystique) will join him in Doomsday, which will be the first appearance of these mutants in the MCU.
Marsden considered the significance of his return in a different interview with Vanity Fair. “I was excited because you’re a part of something gigantic, and I’ve spent 20 years listening to people say, ‘When are you coming back? Are you coming back? I’m dead. Well, maybe not.’”
“It’s been a pleasant little homecoming to a role that really put me on the map,” he clarified. “It was the first real event project that I was ever a part of, and a very beloved character, this icon from the comics.” He’s the latest X-Men actor to talk about his return after fellow star Alan Cumming.
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) was Marsden’s last performance as Cyclops. In Bryan Singer’s X-Men (2000), Marsden played Scott Summers/Cyclops for the first time. He then reprised the role in X2: X-Men United (2003) and X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). Although Famke Janssen’s Jean Grey alter ego Dark Phoenix kills off his character early on in the latter film, Marsden had a brief cameo appearance in the time-warping Days of Future Past, which erases both his and other X-Men characters’ deaths. His appearance in the upcoming Marvel movie completes the X-Men’s integration into the MCU’s chronology.\
Not much is known about the upcoming Avengers film. As part of Marvel’s Phase Six, Avengers: Doomsday will focus on Dr. Doom, the Fantastic Four’s arch-enemy and supervillain (Robert Downey Jr.).
Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to arrive in theaters on December 18, 2026.
