X-Men '97: Wolverine Voice Actor Recording for Marvel Studios Revival

By Cameron Bonomolo

X-Men: The Animated Series star Cal Dodd is taking another stab at voicing Wolverine in X-Men '97. The all-new original series from Marvel Studios picks up where the beloved '90s cartoon left off, continuing the animated adventures of the mutants assembled by Professor Charles Xavier (voice of Cedric Smith) in the version that aired between 1992 and 1997. After announcing the Disney+ revival in November, Marvel confirmed Dodd's return alongside original cast members Lenore Zann (Rogue), George Buza (Beast), Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm), Chris Potter (Gambit), Catherine Disher (Jean Grey), Adrian Hough (Nightcrawler), and Christopher Britton (Minister Sinister). 

"Guess what I was doing in the studio today? SO great to be back!!!," tweeted Dodd, who voiced the metal-clawed mutant in all five seasons of X-Men: The Animated Series and two episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series. The 2023 revival marks Dodd's first time voicing the character since the original X-Men ended in 1997. 

In April 2020, Dodd voiced support for a potential X-Men revival with the surviving cast when series producer and director Larry Houston confirmed talks with Disney about bringing back the Marvel cartoon that ran for 76 episodes. Co-stars Norm Spencer, who voiced Cyclops, and David Hemblen, the actor behind the X-Men's archenemy Magneto, both passed away that same year. 

New voices confirmed in undisclosed roles include Jennifer Hale (Avengers Assemble), Anniwaa Buachie (Archer), Ray Chase (Pokémon), Matthew Waterson (Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia), JP Karliak (Spidey and His Amazing Friends), Holly Chou (The Big Sick), Jeff Bennett (Young Justice), and AJ LoCascio (Voltron: Legendary Defender). Beau DeMayo (Netflix's The Witcher, The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf) is head writer. 

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(Photo: Marvel Studios / Disney+)

"This is the first X-Men title produced by Marvel Studios," Brad Winderbaum, Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation at Marvel Studios, said when announcing X-Men '97. "What an amazing first step to reintroduce audiences to the X-Men with a look at one of the most pinnacle eras of the X-Men comics, which was the '90s. That iconic style that has its roots in Chris Claremont, and is celebrated in Jim Lee, and then again in The Animated Series. Over the years, as we've met with so many filmmakers who have come in to pitch on various projects, the touchstone that we hear over and over again is X-Men: The Animated Series."

Added Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt, VP of Animation at Marvel Studios, "As an animated show, the original X-Men was the forerunner to some amazing action series. Everyone that is making X-Men '97, top-down, is a fan. On this project, instinctually, we knew exactly what this is. To bring this series forward and pick up that baton, and not just keep running at the same pace, but to really elevate. That's the responsibility."

All episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series are now streaming on Disney+. X-Men '97 premieres in 2023. 

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