X-Men '97
Produksi > Pengembangan

Larry Houston, produser dan sutradara dari X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997), mengatakan pada Juni 2019 bahwa dia dan tim kreatif serial membahas potensi kebangkitan dengan Disney. Mereka menginginkan melanjutkan cerita dari saat serial original berakhir. Anak perusahaan Disney, Marvel Studios sedang mengembangkan serial animasi pertama mereka, What If...?, dan pihak eksekutif mulai membahas mengenai apa proyek animasi mereka selanjutnya. Ide pertama yang dipertimbangkan adalah kebangkitan X-Men: The Animated Series, yang disarankan oleh Brad Winderbaum. Kepala streaming, televisi, dan animasi di Marvel Studios, Winderbaum merupakan penggemar serial ini,:15:50–16:02 dan mengatakan beberapa pembuat film yang telah bertemu dengan Marvel Studios di masa lalu telah mengutip bahwa serial ini sebagai batu ujian. Pada November 2020, Beau DeMayo diminta memberikan masukan untuk kebangkitan setelah sebelumnya bekerja sebagai seorang penulis untuk serial aksi langsung Disney+ Moon Knight (2022).
Pada Juni 2021, Marvel Studios Animation telah mengembangkan daftar setidaknya tida serial sebagai tambahan untuk What If...? yang, sampai Agustus 2021, berada pada beragam tahapan pengembangan dan tidak akan dirilis hingga 2023. Pada November, salah satunya diumumkan sebagai X-Men '97, sebuah kebangkitan dan kelanjutan dari X-Men: The Animated Series. Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt, VP animasi pada Marvel Studios, mengatakan banyak orang terlibat dengan kebangkitan adalah penggemar dari serial 1990-an dan "tau pasti" seperti apa kelanjutan itu. DeMayo diumumkan sebagai kepala penulis dan produser eksekutif, dengan Jake Castorena sebgai direktur pengawas dan Charley Feldman sebagai produser pengawas. Houston dan pengarah acara serial original, Eric dan 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).:55:47–56:48 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 Spider-Man (1994–1998), Iron Man (1994–1996), and Silver Surfer (1998); within Marvel Comics' multiverse, the X-Men series exist on Earth-92131. 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. DeMayo had finished writing for the second season and began discussing ideas for a potential third season by March 2024, 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. Reportedly, DeMayo was difficult to work with and his use of a non-explicit OnlyFans account was not received well by Disney executives. Winderbaum said the studio parted ways with DeMayo, rather than firing him, and praised his work on the series. He said DeMayo's 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.