X-Men fans are in for a treat in 2026 - here's why

A still from X-Men
A still from X-Men '97 Season 1 | Image Via: www.marvel.com

Fans are hyped for X-Men '97 because season 2 is releasing in 2026. The acclaimed first season streamed in 2024, and the next season is releasing two years later. But other than the revival of the original 90s animated series returning, 2026 is the year when Marvel is putting out not one, but three mutant projects across three different mediums.

"Marvel Animation’s 'X-Men ’97' revisits the iconic era of the 1990s as The X-Men, a band of mutants who use their uncanny gifts to protect a world that hates and fears them, are challenged like never before, forced to face a dangerous and unexpected new future."

What are the three different mediums these X-Men projects are releasing?

The three Marvel projects heavily linked to the mutants are X-Men '97 Season 2, the game Marvel’s Wolverine, and Avengers: Doomsday. Thus, mutants are set to be everywhere in 2026 as they appear in a streaming animated series, a game, and a big holiday blockbuster.

  • X-Men'97 Season 2
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The acclaimed animated series returns early next year. While season 2 doesn't have a release date, Marvel confirmed that it will stream on Disney+ sometime in the Summer of 2026 at the 2025 New York Comic Con in October. Actor Ross Marquand teased that fans will learn more about Apocalypse/En Sabah Nur in X-Men '97 Season 2:

"I can't say much obviously, because Disney will shoot me to death. But I can say that I play Apocalypse in the next season, as well. There's a really wonderful back and forth between Xavier and Apocalypse in several scenes. I think people are really going to look at the character of Apocalypse in a way that they never have before. And certainly, as a viewer of the original series from when I was a kid, I'm very excited to dive into the psychosis and the basic trauma of what made En Sabah Nur turn into Apocalypse. It's a really interesting journey, I think people are gonna love it."
  • Marvel’s Wolverine
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Developed by Insomniac Games, the same company as the beloved PlayStation Spider-Man games, Marvel’s Wolverine is confirmed to release in the latter half of 2026. Based on the official synopsis, the game will take players through Logan's past.

"From Insomniac Games, the developers of the critically acclaimed Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise, comes Marvel’s Wolverine. As he searches for answers about his past, Wolverine will do whatever it takes – unleashing brutal claw combat, violent rage and relentless determination – to cut through the mystery of the man he used to be. Developed in collaboration with Marvel Games and Sony Interactive Entertainment, Marvel’s Wolverine arrives on PlayStation®5 consoles in Fall 2026."
  • Avengers: Doomsday

Avengers: Doomsday is the most important 2026 Marvel project that the mutants are a part of. Moreover, the versions of mutants we meet in this movie will be played by the same actors we saw in the franchise produced by the now-defunct 20th Century Fox (20th Century Studios today).

Sir Patrick Stewart, James Marsden, Sir Ian McKellen, Rebecca Romijn, Alan Cumming, Kelsey Grammer, and Channing Tatum are all reprising their roles. While Tatum only debuted as Gambit/Remy LeBeau only in 2024's Deadpool & Wolverine, he was cast as the character back in the late 2010s for a cancelled project featuring the fan-favorite mutant.

Releasing in December 2026, Avengers: Doomsday doesn't have a trailer or a synopsis. However, the Russo Brothers had a message from the set for the D-23 attendees this August:

"Hi D23 members, this is Joe and Anthony Russo, right now we are in London shooting Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Doomsday. This movie is to say the least, a big one for us. It is bigger than anything we have ever done. We are bringing together so many of your favorite heroes to face one of the greatest threats to the MCU."

All fourteen films (including Deadpool & Wolverine) are streaming on Disney+, and so is X-Men '97 Season 1 and the original five seasons of the original animated series.

Edited by Ravikumar N