Casting is the thing that makes or breaks superhero movies. The right actor can make a character an icon, and the wrong actor can bring down the whole movie. The X-Men series, in its many years under Fox, delivered some of the most iconic casting calls ever. Hugh Jackman as Wolverine and Patrick Stewart as Professor X are still gold standards. But with the successes came some head-scratching choices, performances that didn’t quite work, and interpretations that lost the spirit of characters fans adored. Below are ten of the most egregious missteps, culminating in the worst of them all.
10. Taylor Kitsch as Gambit
Gambit is meant to exude charm, danger, and a touch of roguish charm. When Taylor Kitsch appeared as the Cajun mutant in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, however, none of that existed. In place of a magnetic, smooth-talking antihero, we had a dull, lackluster performance that failed to leave a mark with viewers. Fans cried out for years for a decent Gambit interpretation, testimony to just how memorably bad this one turned out to be.
9. Ben Foster as Angel
Ben Foster is a great actor, but The Last Stand didn’t do him any good. His interpretation of Angel was robbed of depth, boiled down to a brooding subplot that hardly had anything to do with the overall story. Rather than the confident, complex character from the comics, Foster’s Angel felt moody and inconsequential. A great actor wasted on a paper-thin character.
8. will.i.am as John Wraith
Musicians crossing over into superhero roles can occasionally be a delightful shock. This was not one of those instances, will.i.am’s John Wraith in Origins is regularly named one of the series’ worst casting mistakes. With minimal acting talent and zero on-screen presence, his performance was lackluster and unimpressive, demonstrating that star power does not always translate into screen power.
7. Daniel Cudmore as Colossus
On paper, Daniel Cudmore fit the bill for Colossus perfectly: tall, athletic, and imposing. Sadly, his acting never quite caught up with the character’s heart or complexity. Both in X2 and The Last Stand, Colossus was no more than a background presence without any emotional heft. It wasn’t until the Deadpool movies rebooted him that fans were finally given the Colossus they’d been waiting for.
6. Danny Huston as William Stryker
Brian Cox provided us with a wonderful, multifaceted William Stryker in X2. Danny Huston’s take in Origins was not so good. Rather than a menacing, calculating killer, Huston portrayed him as a slippery, one-dimensional con artist. Lacking gravitas or substance, Stryker was reduced to just another generic bad guy, forgotten within a matter of seconds.
5. Halle Berry as Storm
Halle Berry is a force of nature actor, but her Storm never really took flight the way people wanted it to. From the goofy “toad and lightning” line to the absence of the kind of strong character development the role deserved, Berry’s Storm never had the same commanding, regal air as the comic book version. Even with Days of Future Past providing her with a bit more substantial moment or two, it wasn’t enough to salvage the overall letdown.
4. Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse
Oscar Isaac has shown himself to be one of the greatest chameleons of his generation, but you’d never suspect it from X-Men: Apocalypse. Underneath thick prosthetics and clunky dialogue, Isaac’s ability was totally suffocated. Rather than an awe-inspiring, godlike bad guy, we were presented with a forgettable blue form that never managed to bring us awe or fear.
3. Shawn Ashmore as Iceman
Bobby Drake/Iceman is a comic book powerhouse and a founding X-Man. On screen, however, Shawn Ashmore’s portrayal never even approached that potential. He was instead developed as an insecure, lovesick teenager rather than the snarky, self-assured hero fans are familiar with. Ashmore did his best, but the character was scripted as a background figure, taking away from Iceman the impact he was due.
2. Tyler Mane as Sabretooth
Sabretooth must be a feral, frightening counterpoint to Wolverine, a monster held in check by his human flesh. Tyler Mane looked the part, but his performance couldn’t support the menace the character needed. In the initial X-Men movie, he was no more than a snarling henchman, not the deadly arch-villain that fuels Wolverine’s legend.
1. Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut
And at the top of the list sits Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut in The Last Stand. On paper, the choice made sense: a tough guy actor playing an unstoppable mutant bruiser. In practice, the performance was so over-the-top it veered into parody. His infamous “I’m the Juggernaut!” line lives on in internet infamy, but mostly as a punchline. What should have been a fearsome villain turned into one of the franchise’s most laughable misfires.
The X-Men movies provided many great performances for viewers, but they also demonstrated the delicacy of casting. When an actor is miscast in a part, even the largest franchises can falter. With the X-Men now officially joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe, fans are praying the next generation of mutants will receive the casting they are worthy of.