Ever since the upcoming X-Men reboot was announced, there is one big question I haven’t been able to get out of my mind, and I know I’m not the only one. Will Rogue have an accent, and will Inde Navarrette be able to nail the Southern twang? The actor has previously shared her desire to get her character’s accent right by channeling her own Texan roots. Now, she's given us a sweet sample, but while her take on Rogue’s accent is charming, I’m excited to see more so I can get a better feel for it.
While she was at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival for “Dialogues: The Obsession" panel, Navarrette spoke with eTalk about her new role. Of course, they couldn’t resist asking her about her accent progress, and who could blame them? As someone who hears varying degrees of twang (depending on how far into the woods you go) on a regular basis, I’m excited to see the Obsession star really have fun with the Southern accent. When asked to give a little ‘sugar,’ she didn't disappoint:
You know what, God bless me. I haven’t done a lot of practice, but I mean - my version’s just ‘sugar.’ But I think that you know I’m gonna work on it if you don’t like it and I’m gonna figure out and talk to the Marvel team on what we wanna do.
The spirit is definitely there, and if she could just lean into the ‘God bless me,’ Navarrette will be good to go. Though seeing her attempt has my curiosity officially piqued. The X-Men movie is already the upcoming Marvel movie I’m most excited about (No offense, Doctor Doom), so getting even a little taste of one of its characters has me ready for a trailer.
Also, this isn’t the first time Navarrette has been asked about the accent. She previously shared a desire to go to Mississippi (where Rogue is from) and get a first-hand listen. However, it’s unknown if such a trip has fit into her schedule. What we do know for sure is that she and the rest of the cast have been hard at work figuring out their takes on the characters. Given Anna Paquin’s Rogue was a significant part of the first two movies, and the fact that Rogue is an important character overall, I love seeing Navarrette going all in, which you can see for yourself below:
My hope is that Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier will take note from the success of X-Men ‘97 and lean into the humanity of the superpowered people. Especially since the reboot seems to be focusing on expanding characters that took a back seat to Wolverine in the original movies. In addition to Inde Navarrette playing Rogue, the new movie stars Kit Connor as Cyclops, Sadie Sink as Jean Grey, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, Maya Boyd as Storm, Christopher Abbott as Professor X, and Adam Driver as Mr. Sinister.
Meanwhile, a handful of original X-Men actors are reprising their roles for Doomsday, which makes me as excited as I am confused about how this will tie into the reboot plot. Hopefully, we’ll find out on December 18 when the next stage in MCU evolution hits the 2026 movie schedule.
A sneak peek at Rogue and the other X-Men shouldn’t be too far behind, and maybe we'll even get to hear a little 'sugar' before the year is gone.
