Iman Vellani Wants Ms. Marvel to Join the MCU’s X-Men (Exclusive)

Kamala Khan has only been a part of the Marvel Universe for about 10 years now, but the character has already been a part of several teams. She’s been an Avenger, a founding member of the Champions, and most recently an X-Man. The ending of The Marvels set up Kamala as the founder of the MCU’s Young Avengers team, but there is no shortage of groups Ms. Marvel could join. Speaking to ComicBook.com, Vellani revealed that the X-Men would be her team of choice, and why she’d pick them over other options. 

“On the big screen? X-Men. I don’t think that’s a bad answer. I think the X-Men is so cool, and it really just marks her as a legitimate mutant and all the naysayers can no longer say nay,” said Vellani. 

Selling Ms. Marvel as a Mutant

As Vellani notes, there have been some detractors to Kamala Khan’s emergence as a Marvel mutant. Some fans have expressed hesitation about the MCU having more influence on the comics, instead of vice versa. The character was originally introduced as an Inhuman, who gained her powers following her exposure to the Terrigen Mists. That’s been her status quo for most of her existence, but things started to change with the Ms. Marvel series on Disney+. In that series, Kamala Khan was introduced as the MCU’s first confirmed mutant. 

In the comics, there’s a lot we still don’t know a lot about Ms. Marvel’s mutant status. Last year, it was revealed that Ms. Marvel’s mutant powers have yet to emerge as a result of her also being an Inhuman. As a co-writer on the current Ms. Marvel comics, Vellani is helping to tell Ms. Marvel’s story as a mutant, and that could hugely shape the direction of the MCU. Vellani says “that’s the plan.” 

Kamala Khan: the X-Men’s New Gateway Hero?

Over the decades, the X-Men have had a number of younger mutants that have acted as gateway characters to introduce fans into their world. It’s a tradition that’s spanned different media: in the comics, that’s a role Kitty (now Kate) Pryde once played. In the 1992 animated series, it was Jubilee, and in the Fox movies it was Rogue. It’s possible that’s a role Kamala Khan could end up playing, but Vellani says that’s for the audience to decide. 

“I never thought about that. Because I still have my own X-Men characters that I look back to, and I think those books are so timeless in a way,” said Vellani. “I was just reading Grant Morrison’s run and Chris Claremont, which Chris Claremont’s a little edgy sometimes, but the Grant Morrison stuff is like… I can read it a million times. I think it totally works. But it is cool for people to kind of accept her as a mutant now. And I don’t know if people are actually looking to her as the literal new mutant and this is the new generation. But yeah, I don’t think that’s for me to say. I think the audience will take these two miniseries that I’ve done, and hopefully they’re happy with the results.” 

Would you like to see Ms. Marvel as a member of the MCU’s X-Men? Is there a different team you’d prefer? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!