Marvel Studios – the production company responsible for the Marvel Cinematic Universe – is also behind upcoming Disney+ animated series X-Men ’97. So, is X-Men ’97 set in the MCU as a result?
Related: When Does X-Men ’97 Come Out?
Is X-Men ’97 Set in the MCU?
X-Men ’97 is a continuation of mid-90s cartoon X-Men: The Animated Series and takes place in the same fictional reality as that show, Earth-92131. Meanwhile, mainstream MCU canon unfolds on Earth-616 or Earth-199999. So, either way, X-Men ’97 is part of its own, separate continuity. Ex-showrunner Beau DeMayo said as much in a February 2024 Instagram story, describing X-Men ’97 as “[its] own thing.”
Case closed, right? Not necessarily. See, the introduction of the multiverse concept to the MCU means that any Marvel movies and TV shows set outside Earth-616/199999 are now technically canon. Heck, there’s a whole MCU series – Disney+ anthology effort What If…? – focused exclusively on realities other than that of the core MCU.
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What’s more, Marvel Studios has included nods to pre-MCU legacy productions in recent projects. Notably, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Ms. Marvel both sample the X-Men: The Animated Series theme tune. As such, that series (and by extension, X-Men ’97) is clearly part of the MCU’s wider, multiversal tapestry. It just doesn’t directly impact life on Earth-616/199999.
X-Men ’97 executive producer Brad Winderbaum backed up this reading of the show’s canonical status in a March 2024 interview with Variety. According to Winderbaum, the finale of Disney+ MCU show Loki effectively enshrined X-Men ’97 and its predecessor – along with every other Marvel animated series from the 90s – in the MCU, but outside the so-called “Sacred Timeline” that binds together 2008’s Iron Man and its many direct and indirect sequels, prequels, and tie-in TV shows.
Will X-Men ’97 Include Any MCU Cameos?
So, if X-Men ’97 is part of the MCU multiverse, does that mean MCU heroes and villains will cameo in the Disney+ series? Maybe. In the Variety interview, Winderbaum promised fans that X-Men ’97 would make the same amount of room for guest appearances as its X-Men: The Animated Series, but stopped short of confirming any Sacred Timeline crossovers.
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“It’s exactly the same level of cameos as the original series,” Winderbaum explained. “Even though X-Men ’97 is not in the Sacred Timeline, there is a universe of ’90s cartoons that we know. Because of Loki and every other multiverse story, we know that if your brain wants to go there, you know there’s always potential for connections.”
X-Men ’97 arrives on Disney+ on March 20, 2024, and will run for 10 episodes.
