X-Men '97

X-Men '97 is an American animated television series created by Beau DeMayo for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the X-Men. It is a revival of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997) produced by Marvel Studios Animation, and continues the story of the X-Men from the earlier series. DeMayo was head writer for the first two seasons and Matthew Chauncey took over for the third, with Jake Castorena as supervising director.
Ray Chase, Jennifer Hale, Alison Sealy-Smith, Cal Dodd, J. P. Karliak, Lenore Zann, George Buza, A. J. LoCascio, Holly Chou, Isaac Robinson-Smith, Matthew Waterson, Ross Marquand, and Adrian Hough star as members of the X-Men. Sealy-Smith, Dodd, Zann, Buza, and Hough reprised their roles from the original series, as did Christopher Britton. Original series stars Catherine Disher, Chris Potter, Alyson Court, Lawrence Bayne, and Ron Rubin returned to voice new characters.
The revival was first discussed in June 2019 and formally announced in November 2021, with DeMayo and Castorena attached. Chase Conley and Emi Yonemura also directed episodes. The series is the first X-Men project from Marvel Studios since the company regained the film and television rights to the characters. Animation was provided by Studio Mir and Tiger Animation, and is a modernized version of the original series' style. DeMayo was fired as head writer in March 2024 after completing work on the first two seasons. Chauncey was hired to write the third season in July 2024.
X-Men '97 premiered on March 20, 2024, with its first two episodes. The rest of the ten-episode first season was released weekly until May 15. It received critical acclaim and various accolades. The second season is scheduled to premiere in 2026. A third is in development.
X-Men '97 continues the story of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997). In both series, mutants are people born with superhuman abilities that generally manifest during puberty. The X-Men are a team of mutant superheroes founded by Professor Charles Xavier to protect mutants and humans alike. At the end of The Animated Series, Xavier nearly dies in an assassination attempt and is taken to space to be healed by the alien Shi'ar Empire. X-Men '97 begins a year later and sees the X-Men facing new challenges without Xavier, under the leadership of their former adversary Magneto. As with the original series, X-Men '97 combines action, soap opera-style drama, and exploration of serious topics.
Recurring guests in the first season include Gui Agustini as Roberto da Costa / Sunspot, a young mutant rescued by the X-Men who can channel solar energy; Catherine Disher—who voiced Jean Grey in the original series—as Dr. Valerie Cooper, a United Nations official; Gavin Hammon as Sentinel creator Dr. Bolivar Trask, replacing original voice actor Brett Halsey, as well as Shi'ar chancellor Lord Araki; Eric Bauza as the Master Mold supercomputer and mutant-hunting Sentinels, replacing original voice actor David Fox who died in 2021; Donna Jay Fulks as news reporter Trish Tilby, as well as the mutants Tommy and Amelia Voght; Christopher Britton as Dr. Nathaniel Essex / Mister Sinister, a scientist from Victorian era-London who has enhanced himself using mutant DNA, reprising his role from the original series; Gil Birmingham as Forge, a mutant who can invent advanced technology, replacing original voice actor Marc Strange; Christine Uhebe as Roberto's mother Nina da Costa; Chris Potter—who voiced Gambit in the original series—as Nathan Summers / Cable, the son of Cyclops and Madelyne Pryor who was taken to the future as an infant after being infected with a techno-organic virus; Theo James as Bastion, the anti-mutant leader of OZT, a human-machine hybrid created by Nimrod whose parents were background characters in the original series episode "One Man's Worth"; and Ron Rubin—who voiced Morph in the original series—as U.S. president Robert Kelly, replacing original voice actor Len Carlson, who died in 2006.
Actors who voice multiple characters include Todd Haberkorn, who voices former government agent Henry Peter Gyrich who attempted to assassinate Xavier, replacing original voice actor Barry Flatman; and Ronan the Accuser, a high-ranking member of the Kree Empire. David Errigo Jr. voices Leech, a young Morlock who can nullify other mutants' powers, replacing original voice actor John Stocker; Mojo, an interdimensional media mogul from the Mojoverse, replacing original voice actor Peter Wildman; Sean Cassidy / Banshee, an Irish mutant with a sonic scream who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original actor Jeremy Ratchford; and Gladiator, the Strontian leader of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. Courtenay Taylor voices Callisto, the leader of the Morlocks, replacing original voice actor Susan Roman; and Illyana Rasputina / Magik / Darkchylde, a mutant sorcerer, replacing original voice actor Tara Strong. Martha Marion voices Emma Frost, a former member of the Inner Circle Club who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor Tracey Moore; and Dr. Moira MacTaggert, a Scottish geneticist who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor Lally Cadeau. Kari Wahlgren voices young Bastion, who is called Sebastian, and his mother Rose.
Other guest stars include Lawrence Bayne—who voiced Cable in the original series—as Carl Denti / X-Cutioner, leader of the anti-mutant group Friends of Humanity; Kimberly Woods as a vision of Bishop's younger sister Shard, replacing original voice actor Kay Tremblay; Abby Trott as Spiral, Mojo's assistant, replacing original voice actor Cynthia Belliveau; Travis Willingham as Sebastian Shaw, a former member of the Inner Circle Club who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor David Bryant; Morla Gorrondonna as Lilandra Neramani, the empress of the Shi'ar Empire, replacing original voice actor Camilla Scott; Cari Kabinoff as Lilandra's sister Deathbird; Jeff Bennett as Ford, the da Costa family's butler; Anjali Bhimani as Bastion's assistant Daria; Rama Vallury as Baron Zemo, a member of OZT; Gates McFadden as Rachel Summers / Mother Askani, leader of the Askani Clan in a desolate future; and Adetokumboh M'Cormack as En Sabah Nur, a younger version of Apocalypse living in Ancient Egypt. Additionally, Josh Keaton and Michael Patrick McGill reprise their respective roles as Steve Rogers / Captain America and Thunderbolt Ross from the series What If...? (2021–2024); Bayne voiced Captain America in the original series.
In addition to Callisto, Leech, and Tommy, the Morlocks Ape and Erg are seen. Characters that appear in Genosha include Glob Herman, Pixie, Nature Girl, Gentle, Multiple Man, Exodus, Dazzler, Boom Boom, Squid-Boy, Marrow, Blob, Forearm, Angel Salvadore, Mimic, Psylocke, Cipher, Frenzy, and members of the Savage Land Mutates. Other characters that make non-speaking appearances in the first season include Cyclops's brother Vulcan who is a member of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard; Alpha Flight members Northstar, Puck, and Aurora; Japanese mutant Silver Samurai; the Russian superhero team Winter Guard which includes the mutants Omega Red and Darkstar alongside Crimson Dynamo; Iron Man from the 1990s series of the same name; the magic-wielding superhero Doctor Strange; New York heroes Daredevil, Cloak, and Dagger; and the characters Peter Parker / Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson, and Flash Thompson from the animated series Spider-Man (1994–1998), revealing that Spider-Man has found Mary Jane following the events of that series' finale. Magneto sees a vision of his children Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch, Pietro Maximoff / Quicksilver, and Lorna Dane / Polaris, while alternate versions of Polaris and Rachel Summers are seen in the future that Cable is trying to prevent.
Characters that are set to appear in the second season include Sabretooth, Lady Deathstrike, Havok, Mariko, Polaris, and Danger.
Larry Houston, the producer and director of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997), said in June 2019 that he and that series' creative team were discussing a potential revival with Disney. They wanted to continue the story from where the original series ended. Disney subsidiary Marvel Studios was developing their first animated series, What If...? (2021–2024), and executives began discussing what their next animated project could be. The first idea considered was a revival of X-Men: The Animated Series, which was suggested by Brad Winderbaum. The head of streaming, television, and animation at Marvel Studios, Winderbaum was a fan of the series, and said several filmmakers who had met with Marvel Studios in the past had cited that series as a touchstone. In November 2020, Beau DeMayo was asked to present a pitch for the revival after working as a writer for Marvel Studios' live-action Disney+ miniseries Moon Knight (2022). Jeff Trammell also presented a pitch for the revival, but his desire to create an original story rather than continue the narrative from X-Men: The Animated Series led to Marvel Studios suggesting he present a pitch for their Spider-Man animated series, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025–present), instead.
By June 2021, Marvel Studios Animation was developing a slate of at least three series in addition to What If...? that, as of August 2021, were in various stages of development and not expected to be released until 2023. In November, one of these was announced to be X-Men '97, a revival and continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series. Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt, VP of animation at Marvel Studios, said many of the people involved with the revival were fans of the 1990s series and "knew exactly" what the continuation should be. DeMayo was announced as head writer and executive producer, with Jake Castorena as supervising director and Charley Feldman as supervising producer. Houston and the original series' showrunners, Eric and Julia Lewald, were consulting on the revival, assisting with any "red flags" that arose and suggesting things they would like to see. The trio were contacted by Winderbaum shortly after the revival series entered development, and were excited that Marvel chose to make a direct continuation of their series. The Lewalds attributed Disney and Marvel Studios' fast-tracking of the revival to the success of the original series streaming on Disney+ and the book X-Men: The Art and Making of The Animated Series (2020). Castorena, Chase Conley, and Emi Yonemura directed episodes of the first season. Marvel Studios' Winderbaum, Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Victoria Alonso also served as executive producers.
The series is the first X-Men project from Marvel Studios since they regained the film and television rights to the characters from 20th Century Fox, which put more pressure on DeMayo to get the project right in addition to wanting to respect the original series. X-Men '97 is not set in the Sacred Timeline of Marvel Studios' shared universe, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), though Feige did consider integrating the series with the MCU during development. Instead, X-Men '97 shares continuity with the original series and several other animated Marvel series that were released in the 1990s, including Iron Man (1994–1996), Fantastic Four (1994–1996), Spider-Man (1994–1998), The Incredible Hulk (1996–97) and Silver Surfer (1998); within Marvel Comics' multiverse, X-Men: The Animated Series exists on Earth-92131. Winderbaum said X-Men '97 would continue the original series' tradition of featuring crossover cameo appearances from the other 1990s series. During Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, X-Men '97 and the studio's other animated series were described as being part of the "Marvel Animated Multiverse", and Winderbaum acknowledged that there was potential to connect the series with other MCU properties using the MCU's multiverse.
Work on a second season had begun by July 2022, and writing on the second-season finale started by July 2023. Conley and Yonemura returned as directors for the season. By March 2024, DeMayo had finished writing for the second season, and had begun discussing ideas for a potential third season when he was fired by Marvel Studios ahead of the series' premiere. He was not involved in further promotion for the series and missed its red carpet premiere, which The Hollywood Reporter said was unusual for someone working on a Marvel Studios project, "even if they've been shuffled to the side" or replaced by other creatives. Marvel said DeMayo had been fired after an investigation that led to "egregious" findings, which reportedly involved sexual misconduct. An agreement made following DeMayo's exit allowed him to still tweet about the series. Winderbaum praised DeMayo's work on the series and said his departure would not negatively affect work on the third season, which was in development by the end of the month and remained on track to meet its production schedule. The studio was searching for DeMayo's replacement by then.
In June 2024, after DeMayo posted gay pride-themed X-Men fan art on his Instagram account, Marvel told him that they would be removing his credits from the second season because of the post. This decision was reportedly based on multiple instances that Marvel viewed as violations of DeMayo's termination agreement, in addition to the fan art post. DeMayo said the breaches of his termination agreement were posts that he had made about the first season while it was being released, along with him participating in a screening of the series at a bar. His lawyer Bryan Freedman said the agreement included "illegal unconscionable items". DeMayo released a video in which he denied reports of his own egregious misconduct and accused crew members and Marvel executives of "egregious prejudicial misconduct" against him, saying others had weaponized his identity as a gay Black man to undermine his work. He listed a series of concerns about crew and executives who worked on the series, and also suggested that his role on the second season had been "aggressively marginalized" before his firing due to concerns that he had expressed about the workplace culture of Marvel's in-development film Blade (2025) while he was working on that project. Matthew Chauncey, a writer on What If...?, was hired in July 2024 to write and executive produce the third season, replacing DeMayo. The scripts for the second season had reportedly been revised and rewritten by then, with Chauncey overseeing the rewrites.
In February 2025, Winderbaum said the second season would be released in 2026, more than a year after the first, but he hoped that future seasons could be released annually. He said X-Men '97 and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man were the studio's top priorities for "get[ting] to a place where we can reliably have very strong seasons every year".
By April 2022, the Lewalds had seen premises for all 10 episodes and several completed scripts from the first season, as well as the series' bible, which confirms that—as with the original series and the comic books—the revival's central ethos is the X-Men are allegories for people who face prejudice and discrimination. Eric Lewald described X-Men '97 as an extension of the original series that the Marvel Studios team had made their own, while Vasquez-Eberhardt said the original series "embraced action, soap opera and serious topics", and the revival would do the same. DeMayo wanted to honor the original series while bringing it into the modern world, hoping to retain its earnestness, emotional sincerity, and focus on found family while updating the social commentary to reflect contemporary society. The new series explores whether Professor Charles Xavier's dream of mutant/human co-existence and his focus on empathy are still relevant to modern audiences, with DeMayo feeling that issues of social acceptance had become more complicated since the 1990s.
The revival begins a year after the loss of Xavier during the original series' finale. Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm, Wolverine, Rogue, Beast, Gambit, and Jubilee return as members of the X-Men, now led by their former adversary Magneto. Joining the team in the first season are Bishop, a time-traveling ally of the X-Men; Morph, who rejoins after their death and resurrection in the original series; and Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler. Winderbaum said fans remembered these three characters as being more important in the original series than they actually were, and the creatives wanted to make-up for that by elevating them in the revival. The X-Men question their future after Xavier's loss and a subsequent increase in sympathy towards mutants. Cyclops and Storm want to continue Xavier's dream but others, such as Jean Grey, want to build new lives. Magneto is moved by the growing mutant sympathy and wants to follow in Xavier's footsteps as the team's leader. The main antagonists for the first season are the returning Mister Sinister and the Sentinels, along with new villain Bastion. Deadpool does not appear in the season because Marvel was saving him for the film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), though Winderbaum said they could have used him if there was an "insanely compelling reason".
DeMayo said the original series' melodrama and exploration of character relationships was key to its success and set it apart from other animated series at the time, which Marvel executives felt was a compelling approach to the material. X-Men '97 also retains the campiness of the original series in its writing, such as Storm announcing her attacks and Rogue using "syrupy" Southern metaphors and analogies. DeMayo found it particularly difficult to write for Rogue, who developed in ways that he did not initially plan for throughout the first season; and for Jubilee, who was introduced as a representative for younger audiences in the 1990s and needed to remain relevant for younger audiences in the modern day. DeMayo was more comfortable writing for Beast, whose scientific terms are similar to the writer's work on the series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022–present).
As with the original series, various comic book storylines were adapted for the revival. The Animated Series was primarily influenced by Chris Claremont's run on the comics from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, and X-Men '97 continues to adapt stories from that era as well as elements from later in the 1990s and into Grant Morrison's early 2000s run. "The Trial of Magneto" from Uncanny X-Men #200 (1985), by Claremont and John Romita Jr., is adapted in the second episode. The third episode is a condensed version of the comic book crossover event "Inferno" (1989). The "Lifedeath" storyline from Uncanny X-Men #186 (1984), by Claremont and Barry Windsor-Smith, is adapted in the fourth and sixth episodes; the fourth episode contains two mini-episodes, the first part of "Lifedeath" and also "Motendo" which is an homage to the 1992 X-Men arcade game.
Central to DeMayo's pitch for the revival was the idea that the original series was made in a "simple [time] of right and wrong, where questions about identity and social justice had relatively clear cut answers", but the people who grew-up watching the original had since experienced 9/11, a rise in populist movements, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other traumatic events. DeMayo particularly highlighted the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting which had personally impacted him as a gay man who had partied at that club. He wanted the X-Men to go through a similarly traumatic event and face "the realities of an adult and unsafe world" just like the audience of the original series had, which led to the attack on the mutant nation of Genosha in the fifth episode. This is based on the "E Is for Extinction" storyline from New X-Men #115 (2001) by Morrison and Frank Quitely, though the attack is not perpetrated by Cassandra Nova as in that comic. Following the fifth episode, the X-Men have to decide how they will change in response to the attack and whether social healing or social justice is needed. The reveal that Bastion is responsible for the Genosha attack leads to the season's three-part finale, which includes elements from the crossover event "Operation: Zero Tolerance" (1997). The final episodes see the X-Men split into two teams, Blue and Gold, as was done in the 1990s comics. Magneto ripping the adamantium metal from Wolverine's skeleton at the end of the ninth episode was adapted from the crossover event "Fatal Attractions" (1993).
In September 2024, DeMayo stated that Marvel Studios had removed his planned tenth episode of the second season and re-written the rest of the episodes to reflect this change. He explained that in his version of the scripts there had been hints throughout the season leading to the appearance of the character Onslaught in the tenth episode, which also included elements based on the comic book storyline Age of Apocalypse (1995). The episode would have ended with Gambit freeing Bishop from prison in an Age of Apocalypse timeline and the pair escaping from evil Cyclops in a similar scene to the Darth Vader hallway scene at the end of the film Rogue One (2016). DeMayo opined that the decision to change his scripts came from directors and executives who believed they "know better than the comics" and added that "Marvel loves shooting themselves in the foot".
With the revival's announcement, several voice actors were revealed to be returning from the original series: Cal Dodd (Logan / Wolverine), Lenore Zann (Rogue), George Buza (Henry "Hank" McCoy / Beast), Catherine Disher (Jean Grey), Chris Potter (Remy LeBeau / Gambit), Alison Sealy-Smith (Ororo Munroe / Storm), Adrian Hough (Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler), Christopher Britton (Nathaniel Essex / Mister Sinister), and Alyson Court (Jubilation Lee / Jubilee). Lawrence Bayne (Nathan Summers / Cable) and Ron Rubin (Morph) also returned. Dodd, Zann, Buza, Sealy-Smith, Hough, and Britton all reprised their roles from the original series, while the others voice new roles: Disher voices Dr. Valerie Cooper, Potter voices Nathan Summers / Cable, Court voices Abscissa, Bayne voices Carl Denti / X-Cutioner, and Rubin voices President Robert Edward Kelly.
Ray Chase takes on the role of Scott Summers / Cyclops following the death of original voice actor Norm Spencer; Jennifer Hale replaces Disher as the voice of Jean Grey; Holly Chou replaces Court as Jubilation Lee / Jubilee, with Court previously stating that she would not return to the role and hoped an Asian-American actor would voice the character instead; A. J. LoCascio replaces Potter as Remy LeBeau / Gambit; Matthew Waterson voices Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto, following the death of David Hemblen; Gui Agustini voices Roberto da Costa / Sunspot; J. P. Karliak replaces Rubin as Morph; Isaac Robinson-Smith voices Lucas Bishop, replacing Philip Akin; Ross Marquand voices Professor Charles Xavier, replacing Cedric Smith; Gil Birmingham voices Forge following the death of Marc Strange; and Eric Bauza voices the Sentinels after the death of David Fox.
Meredith Layne was the casting and voice director for the series, responsible for casting actors and directing the voice recording sessions. New cast members were hired for instances where the original voice actor was not available or their voice was no longer appropriate for the character, and were intended to match the original performances. Recasting was also done to have more authentic representation (as with Court and Jubilee), because of specific vocal intonations (as with Cable to better highlight the "weird" father-son relationship with Cyclops), or for symbolic reasons (as with Disher now voicing Valerie Cooper). Regarding Disher's new role, DeMayo explained that Cooper delivers the series' thesis and he wanted Disher to be the one to present that since he felt "she was such the heart of the original series" and her original role as Jean Grey was "the epitome of empathy".
In February 2024, DeMayo said Theo James, who DeMayo worked with on the film The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf (2021), had been cast in a "fan favorite" role, later revealed to be Bastion. Reprising their voice roles from What If...? in the first season are Josh Keaton as Steve Rogers / Captain America and Michael Patrick McGill as Thunderbolt Ross. Gates McFadden is introduced at the end of the first season as Mother Askani, a future version of the daughter of Cyclops and Jean Grey. DeMayo and Winderbaum decided to cast McFadden after discussing her performance as Beverly Crusher in the third season of Star Trek: Picard (2023). Winderbaum had felt that Crusher and Jean were similar characters since he had been reading X-Men comics around the same time as the series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994) was being released, so he thought it was poetic to cast McFadden as a version of Jean's daughter.
Voice recording began by November 2021, primarily taking place remotely over Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Chase and Hale recorded scenes for the third episode together in-person because of how much dialogue they share in that episode, but they said this was a rare occasion. Dodd revealed in February 2023 that he had started recording for the second season, and Zann stated in August 2023 that she had begun recording for it as well. By May 2024, she had completed her work on the season except for additional dialogue recording (ADR). Bayne also returned for the season. Despite the pandemic having less of an impact on the second season, recording continued to take place remotely for most cast members due to them being based in different locations. In March 2025, Zann said she was beginning recording for the third season in the week of March 17.
Animation was provided by Studio Mir and Tiger Animation. The 2D animation style of the original series was retained, but "slightly modernized" to improve the quality and reflect advances in animation since the 1990s. Castorena's pitch for the job of supervising director was to make the series "fresh, but familiar", and he said it needed to be "the show we remember, but it has to be in 4K". Houston advised the animation team on how the original series was made, and the storyboard artists reviewed the original to inform their composition, editing, and cinematography decisions. Winderbaum said there was a "code of ethics" they followed to align with the restrictions of the 1990s animation, but they occasionally broke this for dramatic effect such as during key action sequences. A VHS-inspired effect was applied to the animation to make it appear more like 1990s television. 3D animation was used to lay out scenes and create more complicated vehicles and ships, but the animation team drew over this in 2D to maintain the series' art style. The opening title sequence of The Animated Series was recreated with updated animation for the revival. Houston worked with episodic directors Conley and Yonemura to recreate the title sequence based on Houston's original storyboards.
DeMayo said the costumes chosen for each character indicated which comic book storylines were being adapted by the series. Lead character designer Amelia Vidal retained the design concepts from the original series along with the style and aesthetics of the X-Men comic books of the 1970s to the 1990s. Any changes from those were made to either better serve the story or to assist with the technical side of the animation. Nightcrawler's design is based on his appearance during John Byrne and Dave Cockrum's 1970s comic book runs. In the final episodes of the first season, the X-Men don costumes based on their original comic book designs and those of the failed 1989 animation pilot X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men. DeMayo said this was always planned as part of the series' exploration of nostalgia. The original series' animators could not move Mister Sinister around much because of his complex design, which includes tendrils coming from his back; this was not an issue for the new series, but the animators chose to restrict the character's movements to align with the original series.
To show emotion with Cyclops, whose eyes and eyebrows are covered by his visor, animators adjusted how the glints and reflections appeared on his visor. Castorena said other mutants' powers were also used in unique ways to convey their emotions, and his goal was to use mutant powers in ways that had not been seen before such as having Gambit charge Wolverine's claws with kinetic energy. Morph's shape-shifting powers allow for cameo appearances of other mutants. A background in the fifth episode features the Watcher in a blink-and-you-miss-it Easter egg for fans. The Watcher was included because that character observes important moments throughout the multiverse, including the massacre in Genosha. Castorena said this was not necessarily the same version of the Watcher that appears in What If...? since a different version of the character also appeared in the original series.
Work on the animatics for the first season had begun by November 2021, and full animation began by April 2023. The first season was in post-production by July, and animatics for the entire second season had been created by March 2024.
One of Feige's stipulations for reviving X-Men: The Animated Series was ensuring Marvel Studios was able to use that series' theme song, which was composed by Ron Wasserman. Wasserman composed the theme while under contract with producer Haim Saban, giving legal ownership of the song to Saban. Following legal battles over the use of the theme, Marvel Studios paid a large sum to secure the rights to it in 2022. This was done on the condition that it be re-recorded for future projects and credited to the original series' music executives, Saban and Shuki Levy. Wasserman was set to meet with Marvel about his involvement in the revival by early 2022, but John Andrew Grush and Taylor Newton Stewart—known professionally as the Newton Brothers—were announced to be the composers for X-Men '97 that July.
The Newton Brothers were hired while Marvel was still in the process of securing the rights for the original theme. On revisiting the original series, the composers realized that the music did not match with their childhood memories and many of the original synthesizer sounds would now sound dated to modern audiences. They chose to modernize the score with an orchestra, choir, and some modern synthesizers. However, they felt the theme song should remain more true to the original style, to not "ruin the nostalgic vibes" and embrace the sincerity of the original series. They produced eight different versions of the theme, each with a different amount of orchestral music versus synthesizer music, before settling on the final version. The main melody is played on a synthesizer and an electric guitar, the latter performed by Nili Brosh. The X-Men '97 version of the theme, credited to Saban and Levy, was first heard in the MCU film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) and then the series Ms. Marvel (2022) when those projects referenced mutants.
After discussing the score's tone with DeMayo, the Newton Brothers decided to begin closer to the original series and modernize the music more with each episode. They began by experimenting with ideas separately and then came together to write musical suites for each main character, defining sounds and instruments which could be their "calling cards". For instance, Storm's music uses woodwind instruments, choir, and chanting to reflect the wind aspect of her powers, while a waterphone and other metallic sounds were used for Magneto. To ensure the music did not become too modern, the composers took influence from 1990s musicians such as Michael Jackson, the Prodigy, Radiohead, and Depeche Mode. Jackson's "Thriller" particularly inspired the third episode, which "got the Gothic treatment" and includes an organ. The song "Happy Nation" by Ace of Base, which was released days after X-Men: The Animated Series premiered in 1992, is used prominently in the series in relation to the nation of Genosha and the Sentinel attack on it.
The X-Men '97 version of the main theme was released by Marvel Music and Hollywood Records as a digital single on March 20, 2024. The next month, Stewart confirmed that he and Grush were returning for the second season but said they had not yet begun writing music for it. A full soundtrack album for the first season was released on May 24. All music composed by the Newton Brothers:
The series was discussed during Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, where animatics were shown. Completed animation from the series was shown a year later at the 2023 San Diego Comic-Con, where Hasbro's Marvel Legends figures for the series were also revealed. In December 2023, Marvel Comics announced a four-issue comic book prequel series, also titled X-Men '97, written by Steve Foxe and with art by Salva Espin. The comic was made in collaboration with the series' producers. Foxe said the comic was an "original tale that feeds right into" the new series. The first issue was released in March 2024. Foxe and Espin previously worked on X-Men '92, a comic book continuation of the original series. Select X-Men comic books released in March 2024 feature variant covers based on Hasbro's Marvel Legends figures for the series.
A trailer for the series was released on February 15, 2024, when the first season's premiere date was announced. Charles Pulliam-Moore at The Verge and Joshua Rivera at Polygon both praised the trailer's nostalgia for the original series and specifically focused on the use of the original series' main theme. Ben Travis, writing for Empire, also noted the nostalgia and music as well as the "narrative weight" suggested by the trailer's character details. James Whitbrook at Gizmodo felt something was off about the trailer and identified that the animation "flits between looking oddly flat and stilted and some elements that almost look 3D", along with the combination of new and returning voice actors. However, he liked the series' aesthetic and some of the story ideas suggested by the trailer, and hoped that the elements which made him uneasy would work better when actually watching the series. The trailer reportedly set an internal Disney record as the biggest trailer launch for a Disney+ animated series, surpassing the trailers for What If...? and the service's Star Wars animated series.
Arcade1Up announced a home arcade cabinet, themed around X-Men '97, later in February. It features eight Marvel/Capcom video games: X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men: Children of the Atom (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes in War of the Gems (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes (1998), and Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000). The titles for each episode of the first season were announced on a poster done in the style of a 1990s issue of TV Guide. The first three episodes debuted at the series' world premiere in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on March 13. By the end of the month, viewership for all five seasons of the original series had increased on Disney+ by 522 percent since the release of the trailer in February.
X-Men '97 premiered on Disney+ on March 20, 2024, with its first two episodes. The rest of the ten-episode first season was released weekly until May 15. The season was originally scheduled for release in late 2023. The second season is scheduled to premiere in 2026. Winderbaum hoped that future seasons could be released annually.
According to Whip Media, which tracks viewership data for the 25 million worldwide users of its TV Time app, X-Men '97 was the most anticipated new series of March 2024. Disney announced that the first two episodes had 4 million views worldwide in the five days following their release, marking the biggest first-season premiere for a full-length animated series on the service since the first season of What If...? in 2021. The company announced that the first-season finale was watched by 3.5 million views globally during its first five days, which was similarly the biggest season finale for a full-length animated series on the streaming service since the first season of What If...? Disney added that viewership had grown consistently over the four episodes leading up to the finale, and views for the original series had also doubled since X-Men '97 premiered.
The series debuted on Whip's U.S. top streaming originals chart in fourth place during its premiere week. It was in third place, behind Amazon Prime Video's Invincible and Disney+'s Star Wars: The Bad Batch, for the next two weeks; in second place, behind Prime Video's Fallout, for the following three weeks; and at first place for the two weeks after that. For the week that the first-season finale was released, the series was second on Whip's chart behind Netflix's Bridgerton. JustWatch, a guide to streaming content with access to data from more than 20 million users, included X-Men '97 on its list of top 10 U.S. streaming series for the week it premiered. Luminate, which gathers viewership data from smart TVs in the U.S., reported that X-Men '97 was the fifth-most watched Disney+ series of 2024 with 1.4 billion minutes viewed.
The first season received critical acclaim, was called "Marvel's best release in years", and was praised for its nostalgic animation, "smart writing, and captivating action sequences". Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes calculated that 99% of 79 critics reviews were positive, with an average rating of 8.9 out of 10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Pulling off the x-traordinary feat of staying true to its beloved predecessor while charting a path forward for the franchise, X-Men '97 is simply x-cellent." Metacritic assigned a weighted average score of 82 out of 100 based on 14 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
Jordan King of Empire Magazine praised the series for maintaining the spirit of the original X-Men: The Animated Series while introducing fresh elements, calling it "a fitting tribute to the legacy of the X-Men." Similarly, Maya Phillips of The New York Times highlighted how the show revisits the franchise's roots, noting that its themes feel more timely than ever.
Some reviewers emphasized the series' successful modernization of a "beloved classic". In his review for Screen Rant, Simon Gallagher called X-Men '97 "the next step in evolution" for the series, while Tatat Bunnag of the Bangkok Post praised it as a "great introduction to the classic series for a new generation." Joshua Rivera of Polygon underscored the series' focus on its characters, stating, "X-Men '97 wasn't about superheroes, it was about people."
The animation style also drew attention. William Hughes of AV Club noted that the revival captures the essence of the original series, commenting that it matches viewers' childhood memories rather than replicating specific elements. Meanwhile, Alison Herman of Variety complimented the show's throwback visuals, writing that the "neon-colored, two-dimensional style" made for an engaging viewing experience.
The series also garnered praise for its voice acting and storytelling. Hayden Mears of TV Line described X-Men '97 as "confident and charming," bolstered by excellent voice performances while Brian Lowry of CNN observed that the series takes advantage of the streaming format to present a slightly more adult tone while remaining true to the original's spirit. Nick Schager of The Daily Beast remarked that although it "may not reinvent the wheel," it sets the groundwork for Marvel's exciting future. Francis Agustin of the BBC noted that the series was a shift away from the heavily interconnected Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Critics also appreciated the modern themes woven throughout the show. Alex Abad-Santos of Vox posited that X-Men '97 serves as Marvel's best argument for an X-Men animated feature, while Mini Anthikad-Chhibber of The Hindu found much to enjoy in this "old-school adventure." James Whitbrook from Io9 noted that the show successfully balances nostalgia with contemporary storytelling, while Mike Ryan of Uproxx expressed surprise at how much he enjoyed the series, despite not being a die-hard fan of the original.
However, the series' use of nostalgia garnered mixed reactions. Charles Pulliam-Moore of The Verge referred to it as Marvel's "omega-level nostalgia play," while Rohan Naahar of The Indian Express criticized the show for leaning too heavily on glorified nostalgia marketing, while Brittany Frederick of CBR found the balance between old and new elements to be effective, describing the premiere as "a blast for both old and new fans alike." Witney Seibold of Slashfilm likened the series to "classic rock," suggesting that while it's familiar and comforting, it has lost some of its edge. Yet, Seibold acknowledged that the show’s appeal lies in its comforting sense of nostalgia.
In February 2021, the documentary series Marvel Studios: Assembled was announced. The specials go behind the scenes of the Marvel Studios films and television series with cast members and additional creatives. The special for this series, "The Making of X-Men '97", features cast members from the original series and X-Men '97, and explores the origins of the original series. It was released on Disney+ on May 22, 2024.