Though it remains to be seen when the X-Men will make their official debut within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the public doesn’t have to wait much longer for mutant-packed action from Marvel Studios. X-Men ’97 debuts to Disney+ subscribers in a week, and following the trailer for the X-Men: The Animated Series revival premiering last month, excitement for the show is higher than ever However, word’s come in that the upcoming Marvel TV show has been hit with a major behind-the-scenes shakeup, as creator Beau DeMayo has been fired.
According to THR, DeMayo and Marvel Studios “parted ways” early last week, with his company email being deactivated, and the cast and crew being informed he was no longer working X-Men ’97. No reason for the firing has been provided, but it was also noted in the article that DeMayo’s Instagram account has been deleted too. While this certainly isn’t the first time Marvel has cut ties with writers and other creative talent, but the fact that it’s happening right before X-Men ’97’s debut is puzzling.
Marvel announced that Beau DeMayo was leading the charge on X-Men ’97 back in November 2021, and it’s the third MCU-related project he’s worked on, having previously written an episode of Moon Knight and also tackled earlier drafts of the Blade reboot. He’d already completed writing for X-Men ’97 Season 2 and in addition to making plans to attend the series’ Hollywood premiere on March 13, he had reportedly been discussing early Season 3 ideas with members of his team.
Now his time on the show has come to an end, though again, the circumstances surrounding DeMayo’s firing remain a mystery. Neither Marvel nor DeMayo’s representatives returned THR’s requests for comment. Because X-Men ’97 Season 2 is already in the works, presumably the new showrunner will be announced soon, though it’s also possible Disney and Marvel will want to space that announcement a ways off from the show’s first season premiere.
X-Men ’97 picks up after the events of X-Men: The Animated Series, which originally ran for five seasons from 1992 to 1997. Many of the show’s original cast members returned to reprise their respective roles or play different characters, including Cal Dodd, Lenore Mann, George Buza and Alison Sealy-Smith, to name a few. Although X-Men ’97 will not be tied to the MCU’s continuity, it’s one of the many ways Marvel Studios has been playing around with the X-Men characters of late. Previously Patrick Stewart played Earth-838’s version of Professor X in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Kelsey Grammer cameoed as Beast in The Marvels’ end-credits scene. Later this year, Deadpool & Wolverine will feature the return of Hugh Jackman’s adamantium-clawed protagonist amongst many other X-Men characters, including including Pyro.
The first two X-Men ’97 episodes premiere Wednesday, March 20, and the remainder of the episodes will be released weekly until May 15. In the meantime, look over the best Disney+ TV shows available to watch now, assuming you don’t want to occupy your time going through the Marvel movies in order.
