Of the many animated projects Marvel has in the works, perhaps there's none more exciting than X-Men '97. The highly anticipated revival, which serves as a continuation of the popular '90s X-Men: The Animated Series, will finally debut in Fall 2023 on Disney+.
But that wasn't the only exciting news announced during the panel. It has also been confirmed there will be a Season 2.
X-Men '97 picks up where the original series left off. If you recall, the ending of "Graduation Day" saw Professor Xavier taken off-planet by Lilandra following his psychic injuries. With him gone, the team will turn to Magneto.
A clip shown during that panel featured Magneto, decked out in a costume inspired by the first New Mutants run, saying, "You're looking at the new leader of the X-Men."
The original characters Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm, Wolverine, Beast, Rogue, Gambit, and Jubilee will return along with the original actors who voiced them. The characters look true to the original series but are updated to feel a bit more sleek and sharper. Other fan favorites like Sunspot, Cable, Nightcrawler, Forge, Bishop, and Morph will also appear.
While many details are being kept under wraps, we did learn that Sinister will be one of the primary villains. White Queen and Sebastian Shaw of the Hellfire Club were also confirmed to appear.
"Sinister is back in a big way," teased executive producer Beau DeMayo. "He is going to be holding the X-Men's fate in the fire and telling humanity...to face the future."
We also learned that one of the major themes of the show will be, "Why do we still need the X-Men?"
We'll find out just why we still need the X-Men when the series returns next Fall on Disney+. If you plan on rewatching the original animated series in anticipation of X-Men '97, you'll be happy to know that Disney+ has finally re-arranged the episodes and the order should now be correct. With a release window now confirmed, hopefully, we get to see some official artwork and perhaps a teaser soon.
X-Men '97 was only part of the Marvel Studios Animation panel at San Diego Comic-Con. We also got the first trailer for I Am Groot, details for WHAT IF...? Season 2, a release window for Spider-Man: Freshman Year and more!