A big reveal in the season finale of Ms. Marvel has signaled to fans that both mutants and the X-Men may be making an appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Spoilers for Ms. Marvel and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ahead, you’ve been warned.
In the season finale of Ms. Marvel, the titular character meets up with her friend Bruno who’s been looking into the possible origin of her powers. After comparing her genes with her family, Bruno concludes that Kamala has some sort of “mutation” and the leitmotif of X-Men: The Animated Series plays.
It’s a little overt and it’s shameless fanservice, but it’s a good thing us comic nerds like shameless fanservice. As soon as Bruno drops the word “mutation” we get the little electrical-guitar synth sounding bite from the 90s cartoon.
For those who have follows the tumultuous movie history of the X-Men this is a big deal. Marvel sold the film rights to the characters to 20th Century Fox back in 1994. Similar to how Sony still owns the film rights to Spider-man (Sony and Disney worked out a deal to mutually profit off the character).
In the mid 2010s, there was a huge push for the Inhumans, an oft-overlooked group of misfits with assorted powers who lived on the dark side of the moon. After the events of Secret Wars, a cascade of “Terrigen Mist” awoke Inhuman powers in normal every day people. This created a situation where Inhumans could work as a stand-in for X-Men and mutants. Otherwise everyday people awakening to powers with the Inhumans in a position to “protect a world that hates and fears them”, a common theme in X-Men.
This push for Inhumans to become a staple of the MCU ultimately didn’t work out with the TV series succumbing to low ratings and being considered non-canon. Fans also speculate that Kamala being an Inhuman in the comics was also a part of this push to build up the Inhumans brand.
Things changed however when Disney acquired 20th Century FOX in 2019, bringing X-Men under the company’s ownership with the rest of Marvel. In the years since, Disney has yet to do anything overt with their new film rights, but changing Ms. Marvel from an Inhuman to a Mutant might mean that big things are in motion for the IP.
