Mission: Impossible II Has Two Shocking Casting Connections to X-Men

When it comes to Fox’s X-Men movies, it has some of the most iconic casting choices for a superhero franchise. While some characters have been recast with younger actors for the prequel films, there’s one actor in particular who is forever connected to his mutant. Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of Wolverine is iconic, to say the least. It’s hard to imagine someone else in this role, especially after Jackman has been in the role for a quarter of a century now, with X-Men first hitting theaters in 2000. However, Jackman was almost not cast in this role, but Mission: Impossible II surprisingly enough kept the door open for Jackman.

In fact, there are two major ways in which the Tom Cruise sequel impacted the future of the X-Men franchise.

Mission: Impossible II‘s Main Villain Almost Was the Face of Fox’s X-Men Movies

The original casting choice for Wolverine in X-Men was Dougray Scott, however, prior to that, he was cast as the villain in Mission: Impossible II, Sean Ambrose. In the second installment of the blockbuster franchise, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team are determined to stop a deadly, man-made virus from being released on an unsuspecting public. On top of that, Hunt must go head to head with Sean Ambrose, an agent turned terrorist.

This was a major break for Scott, and his upward trajectory seemed to still have momentum, as he was cast to portray Wolverine in X-Men. Unfortunately, he would not be able to keep this role due to production issues on set for Mission: Impossible II, which would eventually mean that Scott had scheduling conflicts between Mission: Impossible II and X-Men. The production of X-Men could not wait for Scott, so Jackman took over as Wolverine, as Collider reported.

Mission: Impossible II Almost Had X-Men’s Villain in the Palm of Its Hand

This is not the only connection between X-Men and Mission: Impossible II, and once again, this connection has to do with casting. However, where the casting in Mission: Impossible II led to X-Men needing to recast Wolverine, it was also the spy film’s inability to lock in Ian McKellen that kept his schedule open for X-Men.

While it is not confirmed what role he was up for in Mission: Impossible II, McKellen has previously revealed he turned down a role in the Tom Cruise-led feature. As a result, he was free to accept roles in other movies that were filming during Mission: Impossible II’s production, like X-Men, where McKellen portrayed Magneto.

Mission: Impossible II unintentionally had a massive impact on X-Men’s casting for two of its most iconic roles. If it weren’t for the scheduling conflicts, Jackman may not have had the chance to step up for the role of Wolverine. Meanwhile, McKellen’s decision to turn down Mission: Impossible II left his schedule open to portray Magneto.