The Marvels director reveals her X-Men movie pitch – including a Cyclops/Storm MCU team-up

Storm in X-Men
(Image credit: 20th Century Studios)

The Marvels director Nia DaCosta has opened up on her initial meeting with Marvel, one which featured her reeling off her big idea for an X-Men movie.

Speaking to The Guardian (H/T Screen Rant), DaCosta recounted her high-energy sitdown with Marvel producer Mary Livanos.

"I just nerded out," DaCosta said. "I was like, here are the movies I think you should do! Galactus, Storm, and Scott Summers team-up movie! Blah blah blah!"

After that onslaught was out of the way, DaCosta felt thankful for Marvel’s surprisingly hands-off approach.

"She just endured me going in super-deep. And she also gave me a lot of confidence that I would have the creative latitude to not just basically be a puppet on a string," DaCosta explained.

It’s unclear whether Marvel turned down the X-citing opportunity or merely had other plans already locked-in for the mutants. DaCosta clearly had the confidence – and knowledge – to start pitching ideas that involve Fox’s roster of characters (now at Disney) within the MCU, including an iconic Fantastic Four villain.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige hinted in a 2019 interview with io9 that X-Men weren’t in the current five-year plan for the MCU – meaning a 2025 start date for the mutants' arrival is looking likely.

Of course, plans can change, and we might even get a cosmic X-Men adventure sooner rather than later. Either way, we can be confident that the Candyman director is set to deliver her own vision for the Captain Marvel sequel, which is set to star Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, and Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel.

For more on The Marvels and other exciting MCU projects, check out our complete guide to Marvel Phase 4.

Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.