Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has provided the clearest confirmation yet of when the MCU’s new X-Men era will begin, placing the mutant team’s arrival after Avengers: Secret Wars. Speaking during an appearance at Bilibili World in Shanghai on July 11, 2026, Feige outlined Marvel Studios’ upcoming theatrical sequence. He pointed first to Avengers: Doomsday, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars, before confirming that “the mutants are coming and the X-Men are coming.” The comments, initially detailed in Murphy’s Multiverse’s report on Feige’s announcement, establish the broad release window for Marvel Studios’ highly anticipated reboot. However, Feige did not announce an exact release date for the standalone X-Men film.
Kevin Feige Places X-Men After Avengers: Secret Wars
Feige’s statement confirms that Marvel Studios intends to launch its new version of the X-Men after the conclusion of the MCU’s Multiverse Saga. Marvel’s current official schedule lists Avengers: Doomsday for December 18, 2026, and Avengers: Secret Wars for December 17, 2027. Based on Feige’s comments, the new X-Men movie will therefore arrive sometime after December 2027, unless Marvel changes its existing theatrical plans.
This is an important distinction because the announcement does not confirm a particular year, filming date or theatrical slot. Reports suggesting a specific 2028 release remain unofficial until Marvel Studios or Disney publicly announces one. Feige previously described Secret Wars as the project that would lead the MCU into a new age of mutants. In November 2024, Entertainment Weekly reported his earlier comments about the X-Men becoming central after the crossover. His latest statement strengthens that plan by presenting the X-Men as one of Marvel’s major priorities immediately following the two upcoming Avengers films.
The Marvel Studios chief also described bringing a new version of the team into the MCU as personally significant. Feige began his career on the original X-Men movie released in 2000 and subsequently worked on several films connected to the franchise.
Marvel’s New X-Men Movie Is Already in Development
Although Marvel has not confirmed a title or release date, active development on the new X-Men movie has been publicly reported. Jake Schreier, who directed Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts*, is attached to direct the reboot. Deadline first reported Schreier’s negotiations with Marvel in May 2025, before Feige later publicly acknowledged his involvement. The creative team has continued developing the screenplay. In April 2026, Variety reported that Schreier was working with Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo, known for their work on acclaimed television projects including Beef and The Bear.
Schreier has indicated that the filmmakers are looking for material and ideas that have not already been extensively explored in previous X-Men adaptations. The goal appears to be creating a recognisable X-Men story while avoiding a direct recreation of the films produced under 20th Century Fox. Marvel has not yet announced the film’s official cast. The studio also remains silent on which mutants will make up the team, who they will face as the central villain, and whether established MCU characters will appear.
Feige has previously discussed introducing new actors as Marvel moves beyond Secret Wars. ScreenRant’s coverage of his casting comments noted that the permanent MCU lineup will be separate from the legacy performers returning through the Multiverse Saga.
Legacy X-Men and the New MCU Team Are Different
Several performers from Fox’s X-Men films are involved in Avengers: Doomsday, including actors associated with characters such as Professor X, Magneto, Cyclops, Mystique and Nightcrawler. Their participation does not mean they have been confirmed as the permanent cast of Marvel Studios’ standalone reboot. The upcoming Avengers films are expected to use established versions of characters as part of the MCU’s multiverse storyline, while the later X-Men project will introduce Marvel Studios’ own interpretation of the team.
This strategy allows Doomsday and Secret Wars to honour the earlier films while setting the stage for a fresh phase of the franchise. It also gives Marvel an opportunity to establish younger versions of major characters and explore relationships that received limited attention in previous adaptations. Recent MovieWeb coverage of the confirmed X-Men timeline similarly notes that the latest announcement establishes the film’s position after Secret Wars without providing a specific theatrical date.
What Marvel Has and Has Not Confirmed
Kevin Feige has now confirmed that Marvel Studios’ new X-Men era will follow Avengers: Secret Wars. Jake Schreier is developing the film as director, and screenplay work is underway.
Marvel has not confirmed the movie’s title, cast, production start, storyline or release date. Any specific date circulating online should therefore be treated as an unconfirmed report rather than an official Marvel Studios announcement.
For now, the clearest timeline is Avengers: Doomsday in December 2026, Avengers: Secret Wars in December 2027 and the arrival of Marvel Studios’ new X-Men sometime afterward. The announcement gives audiences a more definite picture of the MCU’s future while leaving the exact launch date of its mutant era undisclosed.
