A hotly debated X-Men scene has been confirmed: that was a romantic LGBT moment between Wolverine and another mutant.
Credit: 20th Century Fox
The ‘X-Men’ Revival Blasts Forward
After years of hedging its bets, Marvel Studios is finally moving forward with bringing the X-Men and the rest of mutantkind into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Credit: Marvel Studios
There have already been a few glimpses of mutants in the MCU, like Professor Xavier (Patrick Stewart) in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) or Hank McCoy, AKA Beast, showing up in a mid-credits scene of The Marvels (2023). Thus far, the only mutant to show up in the Earth-616 timeline proper is Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), who closed out the acclaimed Ms. Marvel series with the revelation that she carries the X gene.
All of that is expected to change with Deadpool and Wolverine, which will star Ryan Reynolds and a returning Hugh Jackman as the title character in a Multiversal adventure that will bring the X-Men to the MCU one way or the other. After retiring from the role with Logan (2017) and against the wishes of Kevin Feige himself, Jackman will be back to usher his brethren into a new franchise, but a new critically adored series is reminding people why they love the X-Men in the first place.
Credit: Marvel Studios
Related: Marvel Officially Bans Deadpool, Now-Removed Star Speaks Out
X-Men ’97 is a new animated show on Disney+ that is both a sequel and a revival of the 1990s Fox Kids program X-Men: The Animated Series. While Marvel Animation might have been nervous about the nostalgia factor necessary to draw viewers into X-Men ’97, it turned out to be popular enough to be one of the most-watched 2024 Disney+ series and achieving a superlative 98% Rotten Tomatoes score.
It also turns out that the new animated series is doing something else in addition to attracting viewers and critics: it is giving Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd) a touching LGBT-positive scene.
Credit: Disney+
Spoilers for X-Men’97 season 1 to follow.
‘Tolerance Is Extinction’
The three-part X-Men ’97 season 1, “Tolerance Is Extinction,” adapts several famous X-Men storylines from Marvel Comics, including one particularly brutal sequence in the 1993 crossover event “Fatal Attractions,” when Magneto (voiced in the animated series by Matthew Waterson) uses his powers to remove Wolverine’s adamantium skeleton.
The second part of the X-Men ’97 finale sees Wolverine near death after the experience, with his fellow mutant Morph (J. P. Karliak) by his side. While clinging to life, Wolverine calls out for Jean Grey (Jennifer Hale); after a meaningful beat, Morph tells him, “She can’t say it, but I can,” and transforms into Grey.
Credit: Marvel Studios
Morph then tells Wolverine, “I love you, Logan, stay with me.”
Almost immediately, X-Men ’97 fans began debating the meaning of the scene online, with some asserting that the non-binary Morph has a romantic attraction to Wolverine and is expressing it the only way they can, through Jean Grey. Others chose to see it as the normal reaction of one hetero bro to another in a serious situation.
End of the day, Morph has always loved Wolverine, that’s his fucking bro right there! pic.twitter.com/ep8u34sXeN
— Zero (@zerowontmiss) May 15, 2024
Related: Upcoming MCU ‘X-Men’ Movie: Every Character Confirmed
It has now been definitively confirmed as a moment of Marvel LGBT romance, as series creator Beau DeMayo weighed in on Twitter and confirmed that it was intended as such. He posted, “Yes, Morph was confessing romantic feelings for Logan #xmen97”
Yes, Morph was confessing romantic feelings for Logan #xmen97pic.twitter.com/FhgShK5CX9
— Beau DeMayo (@BeauDemayo) May 16, 2024
Beau DeMayo was fired for still-unclear reasons on the eve of the premiere of X-Men ’97 but has remained as a social media commentator and supporter of the animated series. At the time, The Hollywood Reporter stated, “…Marvel and DeMayo suddenly parted ways. His company email was deactivated, and cast and crew were informed he was no longer on the project. DeMayo’s Instagram account, once a source for X-Men updates, was deleted. No reason for the firing was given.”
But, at the very least, it is fair to say that when he definitively confirms the meaning of a scene, that’s what it is about. It will remain to be seen how the relationship (romantic or otherwise) between Wolverine and Morph evolves in seasons 2 and 3 of the animated series, which have already been greenlit by Marvel Animation. But for now, we’re left with at least this complex and touching scene.
What do you think of LGBT scenes in Marvel movies and series? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
