10 Incredibly Powerful X-Men Villains Who Could Destroy The MCU

Bringing some of these incredibly powerful X-Men villains into the Marvel Cinematic Universe could put the entire franchise at risk of destruction. A new iteration of the X-Men team is coming to the MCU, with Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier set to return to direct Marvel Studios’ X-Men reboot. We’re still waiting to find out which mutant superheroes will be included in the first line-up of X-Men in the MCU, though the likes of Professor X, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm, and more have all been rumored. It won’t just be heroes debuting in the X-Men reboot, though.

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As well as introducing some of Marvel’s most iconic and formidable heroes, the X-Men reboot is expected to debut notable villains, too. In Marvel Comics, enemies of the X-Men are some of the most powerful and dangerous in the entire universe, so bringing these antagonists into the live-action MCU could pose a significant threat to the entire franchise and all the heroes residing in it. Some of them have had live-action adaptations before, but they’ve always been missing something that Marvel Studios can finally bring to life.

The greatest villains of the X-Men assembled together

10) Shadow King

Most notably depicted as the primary antagonist of FX’s Legion series, the Shadow King is a powerful entity and ancient mutant in Marvel Comics. First seen in 1979’s The Uncanny X-Men #117, the Shadow King factors significantly into Storm’s backstory, with the weather-manipulating Omega-level mutant crossing paths with him as a child in Egypt. Originally a simple telepath, the Shadow King was later revealed to be a much larger threat, with his psychic tendrils reaching into various universes, all preying on the bodies of powerful psychics. He would be a seriously terrifying addition to the MCU’s multiverse.

9) The Brood

Introduced to Marvel Comics in 1982’s The Uncanny X-Men #155, the Brood are an extraterrestrial race of insectoid, parasitic creatures that have evolved to consume any available resource and reproduce en masse. They were the first predators in the universe, born even before Galactus emerged, and have persisted as a vermin-like threat for the millennia since. The X-Men’s association with the Shi’ar Empire has brought them into conflict with the Brood many times, and the alien race has even performed experiments on heroes as powerful as Carol Danvers.

8) Vulcan

We’ve seen Scott and Alex Summers, but Gabriel Summers, the younger brother of Cyclops and Havok who was taken from his mother’s womb by the Shi’ar, has never been seen on-screen. He was adopted and trained by Moira MacTaggert during a mission to Earth, but he later transformed into a villain as the mutant Vulcan. As an Omega-level mutant, Vulcan can manipulate and absorb vast amounts of energy, including the energy inside other electrical and psychic humans and mutants. This makes him an incredibly dangerous villain who could introduce some interesting conflict if Cyclops debuts in the X-Men reboot.

7) Nimrod

Nimrod had a prominent role in X-Men: The Animated Series and even in X-Men ’97 as the father of Bastion, but the technologically-advanced descendant of the mutant-hunting Sentinels is yet to make his live-action debut. His shape-shifting powers, self-repair capabilities, superior intelligence, and knowledge of future events makes Nimrod a seriously powerful threat who would be great to see in the MCU. He helms from the Days of Future Past timeline, coming from a dystopian future where Sentinels rule over subjugated mutants and humans, so his debut in the MCU could set up some of Marvel’s biggest X-Men storylines.

6) Magneto

There’s little doubt that Marvel Studios will be reinventing Magneto for the MCU after years of him being portrayed in 20th Century Fox’s X-Men universe. Ian McKellen and Michael Fassbender did brilliant work as the Master of Magnetism in Fox’s franchise, but there are hopes that a Jewish actor will take on the legendary villain-turned-antihero-turned-villain in the MCU. Magneto has opposed the X-Men perhaps more than any other villain, and the full range of his powers has seldom been seen, but his command over magnetic fields means he could be one of the biggest threats in the entire universe.

5) Bolivar Trask

While many of the X-Men’s best villains are also mutants, some of the most terrifying antagonists of the team are actually ordinary humans. Bolivar Trask, for instance, is the human creator of the robotic Sentinels that have hunted down, subjugated, and killed mutants for decades in Marvel Comics. Trask creating the MCU’s Sentinels would change the shape of the franchise forever, and, as we saw in X-Men ’97, could lead to the entire world being put at risk. Themes of paranoia, discrimination, and fear of the unknown are core to X-Men stories, so utilizing these in the MCU is essential.

4) Onslaught

Although it might take some time to set up Onslaught as a formidable X-Men villain in the MCU – as he is the extremely powerful combination of the darkest corners of Professor X and Magneto’s minds – he would be an incredible addition. Onslaught’s power is unprecedented, and it took an epic battle between him and most of Marvel’s heroes to bring him down. Even the combined might of Franklin Richards and Nate Grey wasn’t enough. Onslaught’s emergence would change the power-levels of the MCU significantly, and present a massive existential challenge for Professor X, Magneto, and many more characters.

3) Apocalypse

Speak about a god complex. Apocalypse is one of the X-Men’s longest-running villains as an ancient mutant who uses Celestial technology to become an even bigger threat. Oscar Isaac’s iteration in X-Men: Apocalypse was heavily criticized, so it would be great to see Marvel Studios reinvent the supervillain for the MCU proper. Apocalypse is one of the most powerful beings in the entire universe, and his immortality means he is a prevalent and ever-present threat. His blood has healing properties to other mutants, allowing him to foster the Four Horseman, and he could be a Saga-spanning villain in the MCU.

2) Dark Phoenix

Hopefully it’ll be some time before Marvel Studios adapts the Dark Phoenix Saga for the MCU, as Fox tried it twice and both were seriously disappointing. This story in Marvel Comics, however, is one of Jean Grey’s most important, as she transformed into the supervillain known as the Dark Phoenix, imbued with the cosmic Phoenix Force. During the Dark Phoenix Saga, the titular villain poses an immense threat to the Marvel Universe – notably proven when she consumes a star, killing billions – so her debut in the MCU could put the entire franchise at risk of destruction, if done right.

1) Mister Sinister

Despite being long-rumored and teased for Fox’s X-Men franchise, Nathaniel Essex’s Mister Sinister never actually made his live-action debut. This is shocking, as he is one of mutantkind’s most prominent, long-running, and dangerous adversaries. Sinister was a human genetic scientist who became obsessed with engineering humanity into the perfect race of superhumans – so imagine his surprise when he learned about mutants. He experimented on mutants for decades, and himself, too, enhancing his own physiology to give himself longevity, telepathy, precognition, and molecular manipulation abilities.