Patrick Stewart teases his Professor X return along with Ian McKellen's Magneto

In a recent interview with ET Online, Patrick Stewart revealed that there is a possibility for him to reprise his role of Charles Xavier (Professor X) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The actor also shared that he might be joined by Ian McKellen's Magneto, who may make his MCU debut.

Stewart played Professor X in seven installments of 20th Century Fox's X-Men films from 2000 to 2017. He then returned in 2022's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where he played an alternate version of the character different from the Fox version, who was depicted as one of the members of the Illuminati. Patrick Stewart's Professor X met his demise in the film at the hands of Wanda Maximoff, aka Scarlet Witch, who killed him through a mental attack.

McKellen, on the other hand, played Magneto for five installments from 2000 to 2014 and has not returned to the role since then.

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"But we're not done, Sir Ian and myself": Patrick Stewart opens up about the possibility of his MCU return and Ian McKellen's debut in the media franchise

Patrick Stewart teases his Professor X return along with Ian McKellen's Magneto (Images via Marvel)

Speaking to ET Online, Patrick Stewart teased his next MCU outing, though he did not reveal which film. Moreover, he stated that Ian McKellen could join him as Magneto:

"Actually, it went very well. He did say something like 'Hey, I would've done this!', yes that's true. But we're not done, Sir Ian and myself. We're... we got plans."

Stewart revealed in an earlier interview with Comicbook.com that he was told to be on standby when asked if he could return as Professor X in Deadpool 3. This happened sometime after his co-star from the franchise Hugh Jackman, who played Wolverine, was announced to be making his return to the third Deadpool film after last playing the character in 2017's Logan, where he died in battle.

"I've been told to standby. I know nothing more than that, honest."

As of now, it is currently unknown as to which film Patrick Stewart could return as Professor X. The only two possible ones right now are Deadpool 3 and 2026's Avengers: Secret Wars, both of which will heavily involve the multiverse, as per various reports and rumors. The same goes for Ian McKellen's Magneto, who could appear in either Deadpool 3 or Avengers: Secret Wars, or both.

If Stewart returns to play Professor X in Deadpool 3, he could either be playing the Fox version of the character or another version entirely. This is because the version of Professor X from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness died at the hands of Scarlet Witch. However, he also died in 2017's Logan after being killed by a clone of Wolverine, dubbed X-24.

Despite both his aforementioned deaths, Marvel could still bring Patrick Stewart's Professor X back. The studio has already shown this via the workings of the multiverse that it is possible to bring back versions of characters who are alive in another timeline or resurrect them entirely. A few examples of this can be seen in Jackman's Wolverine in Deadpool 3 and Alfred Molina's Doc Ock and Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Nonetheless, it would be a treat for fans to see Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen as Professor X and Magneto one or two more times as they both have been praised for their performances in the X-Men films.

As of now, there are no confirmed plot details for Deadpool 3. However, it is rumored to be a multiversal adventure involving Deadpool, Wolverine, and the Time Variance Authority.

Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool, Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, Leslie Uggams' Blind Al, Lewis Tan's Shatterstar, and Emma Corrin, who plays an undisclosed character, are the only cast members confirmed for Deadpool 3. However, it is possible that other X-Men characters like Patrick Stewart's Professor X and Ian McKellen's Magneto could join them.