It may feel like we’re living in the golden age of superhero movies right now, but fans felt the same way 25 years ago today when X-Men first hit theaters. The movie was released in theaters on July 14, 2000, and now you can stream it at home. In the U.S., the movie is available on Disney+ with any subscription, including a bundle. You can also digitally rent or purchase it on most major PVOD stores, including Amazon’s Prime Video, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, and the Microsoft Store. It’s never a bad time to revisit this superhero classic, but in light of the anniversary and all the buzz around comic book movies right now, an X-Men rewatch might be especially appropriate this week.
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X-Men is not a particularly faithful comic book adaptation by today’s standards, but it was one of the early dominoes that led to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the general love for comic book adaptations today. The movie leaned into its fantastical premise where it really mattered, even if we didn’t get to see Wolverine’s yellow suit on the big screen until just last year. Now that 20th Century Studios’ X-Men franchise is coming to a close and Marvel Studios is preparing to introduce its own X-gene, the nostalgia for this movie will likely grow even stronger.
The script for this movie was written by David Hayter based on a story by Tom DeSanto and Bryan Singer, with Singer directing. It follows Logan, a.k.a. Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) closely, as both he and teenage runaway Marie, a.k.a. Rogue (Anna Paquin) stumble into a world of others like themselves — mutants born with unique abilities. They take refuge with Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) at his School for Gifted Youngsters, but inevitably become embroiled in his conflict with Erik Lehnsherr, a.k.a. Magneto (Ian McKellen) and his faction of mutant extremists.
Even without the colorful costumes and other trappings of comic book lore, this movie is as fun and watchable today as just about any MCU film. That can’t necessarily be said for every X-Men movie, but at least they got a strong start. Several of these characters are also expected to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, so a rewatch is in order at some point in the next year and a half or so.
If you need a real reminder of its age, X-Men was released on both DVD and VHS simultaneously when it came to home video in November of 2000. It was a huge success in those formats, and as the series went on, re-releases and box sets continued to be profitable as well. The movie bounced around between platforms a bit in the streaming era — even after Disney acquired 20th Century Studios. Early on, Disney+ did not host many movies with PG-13 ratings, but thankfully that strategy has changed. The X-Men films are even included on the streamer’s landing page for all Marvel content, which may hint at how closely they’ll be tied into the MCU in the upcoming Multiverse Saga finale.
X-Men is streaming now on Disney+ for those interested in celebrating its 25th birthday. You can also digitally rent or purchase the movie on PVOD stores, or find it on DVD or Blu-ray.
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