Marvel’s X-Men movie has officially found its Cyclops. Kit Connor is set to play the role of the leader of the iconic mutant team in the MCU’s upcoming movie.
The upcoming movie, which is set to be directed by Jake Schreier, is reported to have locked in on Connor as the pick for Cyclops. Connor will now join a cast that’s slowly rounded into form, with Samara Weaving having been reported as joining the cast as Emma Frost. Several other stars also rumored for roles in the movie.
While little is known about the upcoming movie, Connor is the perfect fit for Cyclops, and gives Marvel Studios the chance to fix mistakes that previous X-Men movies have always made in the past.
Why Kit Connor is the ideal long-term Cyclops for Marvel’s X-Men reboot
On the topic of Connor, his fit as Cyclops is a great one for a lot of reasons. For starters, he’s a young and upcoming star in Hollywood. Connor, 22, began acting in 2013, but didn’t break out until his roles in HBO‘s His Dark Materials and Netflix‘s Heartstopper, which catapulted him to superstardom. Now, he’s a household name amongst the younger generation, a key thing Marvel is no doubt looking at when it comes to setting up the future of the MCU.
Physically, Connor also fits the bill for Cyclops. He’s a bit shorter (6’1″) than what Marvel’s official height for Cyclops is listed at (6’3″). However, he more than looks the part given his clean-cut look. Due to Connor’s experience in Hollywood, the star also can likely sign on and commit to multiple MCU projects, and wouldn’t be as busy or in demand as potential older and more veteran actors might be. With Connor now set for the role, it hopefully also means that Marvel won’t be repeating a big mistake other live-action iterations of the group have made.
Cyclops has appeared in a number of other X-Men live-action movies, and usually is at the forefront of things for the most part. However, the Fox era of X-Men movies have usually positioned Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine as the de facto “star” of the movies, and also focused more on the relationships between Charles Xavier and Magneto for most of its narrative heavy lifting. The issue with this is that, it often leaves Cyclops on the backburner, something he definitely isn’t meant to be.
In the world of Marvel Comics, Cyclops is often portrayed as the leader of the X-Men. He is their metaphorical group compass, and usually the one making some of the bigger decisions of the group. When the X-Men eventually debut in the world of the MCU, it would be nice to see Cyclops retain some of his leadership roles that have been lost in past adaptations. At the very least, it would be nice to see Connor’s Cyclops share some of the responsibilites with other members, and not be relegated to just being a normal team member.
