The X-Men are well-known for tackling morally complex issues with no clear right or wrong answer. In the name of fighting against mutant oppression, the line between hero and villain has always been blurry at best. Both heroes and villains have fought to protect mutantkind from human supremacists. Professor X’s main philosophy is one of peaceful coexistence. This mindset has, in the past, successfully convinced various villains to join the X-Men’s ranks. Despite this, in a world where mutants are constantly persecuted and threatened with extinction, some X-Men have decided to abandon Professor X’s peaceful teachings. Numerous X-Men have been corrupted over the years, whether through brainwashing or natural moral decay.
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This list will cover X-Men members who have undergone the darkest transformations and committed truly horrific acts. The ranking will not include characters who started out as villains, such as Magneto.
10) Hellion
The telekinetic mutant Julian Keller, aka Hellion, never had an easy life. His family shunned him for his mutant abilities, he lost his hands to a Sentinel attack, and the other X-Men generally ostracized him for his bad temper. When the mutant nation of Krakoa was founded, Julian felt as though he had finally found a place where he belonged. However, when the human-supremacist group Orchis destroyed Krakoa, Julian decided that enough was enough. Taking on the name the Krakoan, Julian joined the mutant supervillain Empath to get revenge on humanity. Julian committed various terrorist acts in the name of mutant supremacy. Yet, despite turning against humanity for a time, in the end, Julian did not entirely succumb to the dark side. Retaining some of his more heroic aspirations, he refused to kill anyone. So, unsurprisingly, Julian eventually reformed and became a member of the New York mutant superhero team NYX.
9) Polaris
The daughter of Magneto, Lorna Dane, has often been pulled towards the dark side (sometimes by force). When Lorna debuted, the villain Mesmero used his telepathic powers to brainwash her into attacking the X-Men. The mutant heroes managed to break her free of Mesmero’s control and let Lorna join their ranks. Since then, Lorna has been the victim of brainwashing by several villains, including Malice, Apocalypse, and Grad Nan Holt. Lorna’s many instances of mind control have left her incredibly mentally unstable, and now she’ll turn into a villain without any outside influence. When her fiancé, Havok, dumped her at the altar, Lorna tried to kill him. She then went on a rampage until the X-Men managed to subdue her. Whether of her free will or not, Lorna will always be drawn towards villainy.
8) Gambit
The card-carrying mutant Remy Lebeau, aka Gambit, was in a bad place when he was approached by the villain Apocalypse. Remy had a messy breakup with Rogue. He also lost his powers when Scarlet Witch stripped most of mutantkind of their powers. So, when Apocalypse offered Remy a chance to get his powers back and restore the powers of countless other mutants, the hero was intrigued. Still, knowing that Apocalypse couldn’t be trusted, Remy decided to accept his deal, in part to keep an eye on the villain. However, this plan backfired spectacularly because Apocalypse easily brainwashed the newly empowered Remy into becoming a member of his Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Remy even tries to kill Rogue while in this villainous state. Happily, Remy would eventually be cured of his evil persona when the heroes Pixie and Magik purified his soul with their magical soul daggers and swords.
7) Nature Girl
The antlered mutant Lin Li, aka Nature Girl, began as a quiet and reserved student at the Jean Grey Institute before evolving into the cruel villain Armageddon Girl. Lin started her descent into villainy when she became friends with the mutant Curse, whose ability manipulated and enhanced Lin’s darkest impulses. Lin has the power to commune and control all manner of fauna and flora, so through Curse’s corruption, Lin sought to wipe out humanity for their role in the planet’s suffering. Lin murdered numerous innocent people and created the eco-terrorist mutant group X-Men Green. Even when Curse died trying to cure Lin, the corrupted mutant continued down the path of villainy. Attempting to use a serum called the Genus Serum to revert humanity to a beast-like state, Lin clashed with the X-Men on multiple occasions. From a kind-hearted nature-lover to a ruthless, genocidal maniac, Lin’s descent into madness is nothing short of tragic.
6) Vulcan
Gabriel Summers, aka Vulcan, is one of the few X-Men members whose transition to villainy was permanent. Gabriel is the long-lost brother of Cyclops and Havok. When Gabriel’s mother was pregnant with him, she was abducted by the aliens known as the Shi’ar Empire. Born into slavery, Gabriel eventually escaped and fled to Earth. Gabriel then joined the secret first X-Men team. It was under the tutelage of Professor X that Gabriel learned to harness his energy-manipulating powers. However, Gabriel’s incredible power couldn’t save his teammates, who all died during their first mission. Gabriel was left trapped in a coma while orbiting the Earth. Professor X wiped Cyclops’ memory of Gabriel to relieve the X-Man of his anguish. Eventually, when Gabriel awoke from his coma years later, he attacked the X-Men for leaving him for dead. Gabriel then left Earth and took over the Shi’ar Empire, becoming one of the most fearsome emperors in the universe.
5) Bishop
Hailing from an apocalyptic future, Bishop has traveled back in time to prevent it from coming to pass. When the mutant Hope Summers was born, Bishop became convinced that the child was destined to bring about the dark timeline that he was seeking to prevent from happening. When Bishop tried to kill the infant, another time-travelling hero named Cable saved her. Cable fled with Hope into the future so that he could raise her in hiding. Wanting to ensure that Cable and Hope would have no place to hide, Bishop travelled throughout Earth’s future, therein setting into motion various horrific events to wipe out humanity. Bishop justified his twisted actions by claiming that, once he killed Hope, the timeline would reset, and the terrible scenarios of his time travel would be undone. However, it turned out that Bishop was wrong: far from Hope’s destiny being to bring about an apocalyptic future, her destiny was to return to the present day and reset the timeline, thus saving the future. Hope was never a destroyer — she was a savior who needed to be present so that she could bring about positive change in the world. By attempting to save the world, Bishop had nearly doomed it by trying to kill Hope.
4) Beast
Hank McCoy, aka Beast, was one of the wisest, most kind-hearted members of the original X-Men. Hank’s descent into villainy began after a mutant-hating assassin temporarily killed Professor X. Hank became obsessed with protecting mutantkind, no matter the cost. When a biotech CEO developed technology that could rival the mutant nation of Krakoa, Hank had the man’s mind wiped, leaving him in a vegetative state. Hank also murdered and resurrected Wolverine, turning him into a mindless monster and servant. For his final plan, Hank created a younger, more innocent clone of himself to help him make a black hole cannon. Hank planned to use the cannon to trap the mutant-populated planet of Arakko into a cosmic vault, separating them from humanity and the rest of the universe. When the hero Wonder Man tried to stop the cannon, Hank realized the error of his ways and sacrificed his life to save the hero and Arakko. Now, the younger clone of Hank has replaced his predecessor and is trying to restore his heroic legacy.
3) Angel
One of the most iconic and tragic descents into villainy in the X-Men comics is that of Warren Washington III, aka Angel. Born with a large pair of wings, Warren’s father was ashamed of his son’s mutant features. When the villain Harpoon impaled the hero’s wings, Warren needed surgery to fix them. However, his father forced Warren to have his wings amputated, deeply traumatizing the mutant. Having nearly been killed in a bombing shortly afterwards, Warren was taken in and saved by the villain Apocalypse. Desperate to fly again, Warren begged Apocalypse to help him. The villain gave Warren an all-new set of metallic wings that could shoot razor-sharp feathers. Unfortunately, though, Apocalypse also brainwashed Warren and renamed him “Death,” the fourth member of his Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Under Apocalypse’s command, Warren battled his former teammates until Iceman finally managed to knock the brainwashed hero back to his senses. Nevertheless, even though Warren is free from Apocalypse’s influence, the trauma he endured followed him for many years.
2) Cyclops
The field leader of the X-Men, Scott Summers, fights for mutant rights, no matter the cost. During the events of Avengers vs. X-Men, the apocalyptic Phoenix Force was split into five smaller pieces, which then possessed five X-Men: Magik, Colossus, Namor, Emma Frost, and Scott. With Scott as their ringleader, the Phoenix Five created a new Utopia, a haven for all mutant kind. Unfortunately, the Phoenix Five then began using their power to rule the planet as dictators. One by one, as each member of the Phoenix Five fell, Scott absorbed their share of the Phoenix Force, becoming increasingly stronger – but also increasingly unstable. In this state, Scott murdered Professor X. Scott lost the Phoenix Force and was imprisoned, thanks to the combined efforts of Scarlet Witch and Hope Summers. After Cyclops escaped from prison, he became a more outspoken mutant activist who sought to instigate a violent revolution among mutants, much like Magneto.
1) Jean Grey
One of the most iconic X-Men storylines of all time centers on Jean Grey becoming the host of the universe-shattering entity known as the Phoenix Force. Jean merged with the Phoenix Force when she sacrificed her life to protect her friends from deadly solar radiation. The Phoenix Force brought Jean back to life, which had the effect of increasing her telepathic and telekinetic abilities. Taking on the name “Phoenix,” Jean continued to fight alongside the X-Men. But the Phoenix Force exists solely to destroy, and its corrupting influence transformed Jean into the Dark Phoenix. As the Dark Phoenix, Jean used her god-like powers to annihilate an entire civilized planet, killing billions. Ultimately, to stop the devastating consequences of the Phoenix Force, Jean sacrificed her life, thereby saving the X-Men. Years later, Marvel retconned Jean’s corruption by stating that the Dark Phoenix was just the Phoenix Force disguised as Jean Grey. Still, over the years, Jean has waged a constant internal battle to keep the Phoenix Force at bay, for whenever its full potential is unleashed, Armageddon will follow.
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