Why Magneto Isn’t In Logan, According To Ian McKellen

It's hard to picture an X-Men movie without Magneto. The character has been a longtime frenemy of the X-Men throughout most of their movies, and is one of the pillars of the franchise. Ian McKellen originally brought the character to life and has played him in four movies thus far. Despite the fact that both Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart are getting their swan song in Logan, Magneto didn't quite make the cut. Here's what Ian McKellen jokingly had to say about his exclusion from the latest X-Men film.

When you get to my age, you want to leave aside those tired old franchises, move onto something fresh.

First off, Ian McKellen is awesome and he's totally having some fun with that statement. Appearing on The Graham Norton Show -- where nothing should ever be taken seriously -- McKellen made a fun appearance alongside Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart to promote Logan. McKellen further elaborated his distress over how he wasn't included in Logan.

I sometimes cry myself to sleep. I simply don't know why I'm not in it, darling.

It's easy to see why Ian McKellen was brought on the show with Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart, despite not actually being in the movie they're promoting. The three have a great repartee, and are clearly having a blast together on that couch. McKellen wasn't too distressed over his exclusion from the movie, and simply asked Jackman if he could "do another one" and put him in it. Better yet, leave "that one" (Stewart) out of it altogether! "It's time you died," McKellen tells him, to huge laughs. As they remember, though, Professor X did die in X-Men: The Last Stand, after being vaporized by Jean Grey, but that was only "to the level of DNA," as Jackman recalls, so, of course he came back.

The almost post-apocalyptic setting of Logan makes it pretty difficult to have a huge cast of mutants, which logically explains why Magneto isn't around. I'm personally okay with Magneto not being in the film, but after this, I definitely want someone to force Jackman, Stewart, and McKellen to share a studio apartment and then film what happens.

I'd highly recommend watching the full clip from The Graham Norton Show, we've I've provided for your viewing pleasure below. Enjoy!

Magneto may not be in it but you can catch Logan when it arrives in theaters just a week from now on March 3.

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Matt Wood

Matt has lived in New Jersey his entire life, but commutes every day to New York City. He graduated from Rowan University and loves Marvel, Nintendo, and going on long hikes and then greatly wishing he was back indoors. Matt has been covering the entertainment industry for over two years and will fight to his dying breath that Hulk and Black Widow make a good couple.