MCU 'X-Men' Kit Connor casting gets Dafne Keen’s nod

Right, the MCU's mutant moment is fast approaching. Marvel Studios, clearly not content with just giving us a parade of throwback X-actors, is finally pressing ahead with its first proper X-Men film anchored in the main timeline. And yes, things are already getting maddeningly interesting on the casting front.

The New X-Men Assemble

So, here’s where we’re at. Jake Schreier, who just finished herding the Thunderbolts into cinematic shape, will direct this X-Men outing. But what’s perhaps even more intriguing is who’s working on the script. Joanna Calo, co-showrunner of The Bear, and Lee Sung Jin, who created Beef, are taking a fresh pass at Michael Lesslie’s earlier draft. Lesslie, by the way, did the last Hunger Games, so you could politely call this a "busy room."

The plan, for now, is for this X-Men movie to be one of the first big tentpoles in Phase 7. And Marvel's not faffing about: casting news has been dropping fast enough to make you dizzy. First up: Samara Weaving nabbed the part of Emma Frost – a role last attempted by January Jones. Brand New Day, the recent Spider-Man instalment, also slid Sadie Sink from Stranger Things into position as Earth-616’s own Jean Grey. That alone triggered the usual round of online speculation, not to mention a healthy dose of fake leaks.

• Samara Weaving set as Emma Frost, picking up from January Jones
• Sadie Sink revealed as MCU's Jean Grey via Spider-Man: Brand New Day
• Kit Connor, from Heartstopper, tapped to play Scott Summers/Cyclops

Cyclops Gets a Fresh Set of Eyes

The latest bombshell is that Kit Connor, whose main claim to fame until now is Heartstopper, is stepping up as Cyclops. That’s the iconic laser-eyed field leader whose sunglasses budget genuinely deserves a line item. Connor’s following in the X-footsteps of James Marsden and later Tye Sheridan. If that weren’t cosmic convergence enough, one of his old co-stars just waded in to voice her support.

Dafne Keen, who MCU fans will recall as Laura/X-23 and genre heads will love from His Dark Materials, shared her thoughts on the casting news during Fan EXPO Boston. She and Connor worked together on the first two series of that BBC-One/HBO fantasy, though – here’s the mad bit – their characters never actually met face to face on screen. (Connor was the voice of her soul, literally. TV, eh?)

Here’s how Dafne Keen described her fellow mutant-in-waiting at the con with MovieWeb's Joe Deckelmeier:

I think he's perfect. Kit is such a brilliant, funny, talented, charismatic young man, and he's just perfect. Yeah, I have nothing but wonderful things to say about him. He's such a sweet boy, and he's so incredibly talented. We worked together for years without knowing each other. He was just playing the voice of my soul, which is kind of crazy. We've never met him playing my soul...I think he's gonna kill it. It's gonna break.

She didn’t stop at generic compliments, either. Prodded to say what Connor could actually bring to old Slim Summers that’s new, Keen highlighted something you honestly probably wouldn’t find in the comics. In her view, Connor combines 'really amazing masculine strength and fragility at the same time' – which isn’t exactly Cyclops’ reputation in the animated series, but could make for a more layered leader if Marvel let him off the CGI leash for a moment.

What's really wonderful about Kit is he brings me this kind of really amazing masculine strength and fragility at the same time.

The X-Men movie itself is still a ways off– don’t expect it to suddenly pop up next summer. But Keen’s full-throated backing for Connor makes it sound like Marvel’s picked the right lad for the role. The next obvious question is whether she’ll get the invitation to join him: Keen debuted as Laura/X-23 back in 2017’s Logan, then showed up again in 2024's Deadpool & Wolverine. She told the Fan EXPO crowd she's keen (no pun intended) for another run in the MCU proper. With mutant hype building, and more announcements apparently due at D23, don’t rule it out.