X-Men ’97 creator Beau DeMayo, who was fired by Marvel Studios in March 2024, has openly criticized Kevin Feige’s handling of mutants in the MCU. Speaking on social media, DeMayo accused Marvel of disregarding the X-Men canon and relying too heavily on nostalgia rather than careful, long-term planning.
DeMayo on How X-Men Should Be Treated
X-Men ’97 creator Beau DeMayo, who was fired by Marvel Studios in March 2024, went on social media to publicly blast Kevin Feige’s handling of mutants in the MCU. Specifically, he accused Marvel of disrespecting the X-Men canon and, instead of careful planning, relying heavily on nostalgia.
Furthermore, DeMayo emphasized the importance of respecting the source material, adding that:
“X-Men requires planning, deep planning to pull them off and make them resonate. You also have to be very mindful of how you’re laying out their story, and the way in which audiences will experience the story. You also need to suppress your ego to ‘make it your own’ and focus on meeting the mutants on THEIR terms, which means deeply respecting their canon and the emotional investment that fans have in that canon.”
Criticism of the MCU’s Mutant Introductions
Moreover, DeMayo criticized several MCU attempts at introducing mutants, further highlighting the disconnect with the original canon.
Ms. Marvel and Patrick Stewart Cameo
Initially, the first X-Men introduction in the MCU occurred as a retcon in Ms. Marvel. According to DeMayo
“Literally, our first intro to the X-Men in the MCU is not one of the decades’ worth of mutants but a YA retcon that Kevin forced onto the franchise to ‘make it his own’ and out the ‘MCU spin.’ And it is a tease and retcon that they still have not paid off.”
He also called Patrick Stewart’s cameo in Doctor Strange 2 a “weird nostalgia cameo” where Xavier was “brutally murdered… AGAIN.”
Kelsey Grammer’s Beast
Kelsey Grammer’s Beast in The Marvels was another point of frustration:
“…from THE WORST X-MEN movie ever made,” meeting Monica Rambeau, someone he has “ZERO history” with.
On that scene, DeMayo added:
“What the hell do Beast and Monica tease? Nothing. It’s just a desperate play to make us care. Want a better tag? What if the film ended with Monica or Carol waking up to meet….Anna Paquin’s Rogue?”
Deadpool, Wolverine, and X-Men Reboot Concerns
DeMayo called Deadpool & Wolverine “a lazy farewell to Fox’s X-Men Universe,” criticizing Marvel for making Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine the face of the X-Men once again.
Regarding Captain America: Brave New World, he added:
“…a contrived MacGuffin plot … that has amounted to nothing, and begs timeline questions where I guess Ms Marvel is a mutant before Wolverine entered Weapon X.”
Marvel’s decision to bring back Fox’s original actors for Avengers: Doomsday was, in DeMayo’s words, simply to:
“manufacture artificial interest and distract from Kevin and [Marvel Studios’] decade-long flailing of frequent failures.”
He also questioned Marvel’s strategy:
“Kevin is introducing new concepts like adamantium and mutant Ms Marvel while simultaneously recycling old Fox characters, all before telling us they’re going to reboot everything anyways? Like, what the fuck?”
Defending His Vision and Legacy
In addition, DeMayo defended his work, emphasizing that his approach resonated strongly with fans:
“And before you think I’m being egotistical, I highlight this to say, under my leadership and vision, my team and I created a project that resonated with the MCU’s core audience in a way that Kevin and his Parliament have so far failed to do in over a decade. Instead of looking at what my team and I did and learning to replicate our focus on canon and deep character work, they smeared me, tactically threatened the crew not to speak out while continuing to still abuse them, and have done everything to act like [X-Men 97] wasn’t a hit.”
Overall, DeMayo’s comments reveal the growing tension between Marvel’s long-term MCU plans and the expectations of dedicated X-Men fans. Moreover, as the MCU continues to integrate mutants, these debates are likely to significantly influence how future projects handle the legacy of the X-Men.
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