For Millennials. By Millennials.
We live in a time when gender sensitivity is at an all-time peak. Multi-billion dollar franchises are going out of their way to make sure that all genders feel inclusive. And with X-Men most likely looking to join the MCU very soon, they’ll go through a similar process. According to a high-profile Marvel executive, Marvel may remove the “Men” from the X-Men title.
X-Person? Marvel may abandon the “Men” in X-Men, says President of VFX and Animation
Before the MCU rocked the superhero world, X-Men was arguably the most famous mutant superhero franchise on Earth. Wolverine, Magneto, Storm, and Charles Xavier dominated the minds of children in the 2000s. And now, the franchise is ready to have the MCU’s version of these iconic superheroes. However, when that happens, chances are they won’t be called X-Men anymore.
In a recent interview with Nuke the Fridge, Victoria Alonso, the new Marvel Studios’ President of Physical, Post Production, VFX, and Animation, revealed that she had an objection to the current name “X-Men,” saying:
I don’t know where the future is going. It’s funny that people call it the X-Men, there’s a lot of female superheroes in that X-Men group, so I think it’s outdated.
Alonso then further emphasized on how important the Women in the X-Men universe have been in past comics and movies, continuing:
By the way, the women are always saving the men around here. You might want to think about changing the name to X-Women.
Can Marvel abandon such a popular name?
Alonso does have a point, however, Marvel might be reluctant to alter the very name X-Men, which is an easily recognizable brand name all across the globe. But, it might not be as massive a challenge either. This is because the name X-Men actually has rarely ever been at the forefront of X-Men movies. However, we’re not sure if that has had a tangible impact on the brand’s popularity.
However, there are some clever ways with which Marvel can deal with this issue. Keeping up with the tradition of not using X-Men in a movie’s title, they can rename the ensemble of mutants as just “Mutants” – a lot like The Avengers. And Alonso is someone who has a lot of influence in Marvel right now, as her Animations department has delivered quite well with Disney+’s What if..?. Therefore, it is possible that Marvel actually gives this a serious thought.