5 X-Men Characters/Groups Who Deserve Their Own Spinoff Movies

On the morning of June 2nd, comicdom’s resident “Magoo,” Rob Liefeld took to Twitter to complain (as Mr. Liefeld often does) about the rumored X-Force movie being delayed due to the announcement of X-Men: Apocalypse in 2016. He even went on to point out that iconic X-Force leader/time-traveling badass Cable most likely won’t be making an appearance in the much anticipated sequel to this year’s Days of Future Past. Now, while the other fanboys are lamenting Cable’s presumed absence in a movie tailor-made for his big screen debut (a fact I tend to agree with given the fact that “Big Nate” and Apocalypse were the bitterest of enemies in the comics), my gears started turning in a different direction. Since the X-Force movie is most likely a safe bet (though which of the 3 different lineups they’ll use is a matter of great debate), what are some other X-teams and/or characters deserving of their own spinoff movies? And since I’ve been dying to “let my fingers do the talking” for the great fans of UTF.com, I’ll share with you my picks for these spinoffs.

1. X-Factor

Now if the first thought that just popped into your head involves Simon Cowell or Sharon Osbourne, I’m pretty sure you’ve accidentally navigated to the wrong site. Just go on and hit the back button a couple times and return yourself to whatever teeny-bopper Hell you were spawned from. Or if you’d like to be a bit more proactive, I’m sure there’s a nice, pretty bridge that you could… Never mind! Now for those of you born before 1997, you know exactly who X-Factor is; a group of government-sanctioned mutant heroes led by Cyclops’ brother/leather lover Havok and Magneto’s daughter/naturally green-headed Polaris (I wonder if the carpets match the drapes, on second thought… eww) that first appeared in comics in 1991 (though the original X-Factor debuted in ’86 and consisted of the 5 original X-Men, but since this article is about spinoffs we’ll just skip over that little tidbit). The ’90s team, created by Peter David and Larry Stroman, also consisted of the werewolf-like Wolfsbane, super-techie Forge, the token strong guy Strong Guy (yes his codename was Strong Guy and his real name was Guido, so Marvel pretty much beat Jersey Shore to the punch by a good 15 years), the rather lazily-named Multiple Man (guess what his power was) and Quicksilver; the silver-haired speedster who set moviegoers abuzz after his calamitous cameo in Days of Future Past. And that’s just scratching the surface of mutants who’ve operated under the X-Factor banner (a list that includes such notable names as Sabretooth, Mystique, and DOFP‘s Bishop’s little sister Shard). With roster depth like that to pull characters from, along with the unique concept of a mutant team working for the government, would make an X-Factor movie a must-see.

2. Generation X

Created in 1994, this X-Men spinoff group consisted mainly of mutant teenagers (as if the name didn’t give that away) of which resident mallrat/walking-talking fireworks stand Jubilee was the centerpiece. Now don’t get me wrong, Jubes is by no means the worse X-person ever introduced (not even close), but she was shoved down our throats a bit too much in the 90s (especially in the classic X-Men animated series). The remainder of the team consisted of some of the most unique superheroes ever seen in comics (then again, it was the 90s). You had Chamber, who blew off the bottom half of his face the first time he used his powers; Skin, whose entire mutant power was that he had 4 feet of extra skin; Husk, who could shapeshift by ripping off her skin; Mondo, the chunky Samoan that could absorb textures; Synch, who could “synchronize” or copy the powers of any nearby mutant; and Supergirl-esque M, the team’s resident heavy-hitter. The team was mentored by the Irish screamer Banshee (also seen in X-Men: First Class) and the perfect teacher for a bunch of horny teens, Emma Frost (formerly known by the not at all racist moniker, the White Queen). By the way, for the 1 or 2 of you who are reading this and wondering why I haven’t mentioned the x-tremely awful, made-for-tv movie Generation X, you obviously have forgotten just how horrible it was (if you haven’t seen it, trust me don’t). Vomit-inducing special effects aside, there’s obvisously some potential here, especially if they can get January Jones to reprise her role as Emma Frost. She could actually use this movie as a vehicle to leading-lady-hood (and there’s nothing wrong with that!), as she would most likely be the most well known star in the movie. Besides, after being subjected to possibly the worst comic book adaptation ever, Fox kind of owes us.

3. Cable

A couple years ago, I wrote a blog describing a movie titled Cable: the Last X-Man which had either Bruce Willis or Gerard Butler (this was before Gerard played Cable in Gamer) in the eponymous role of the X-Verse’s resident half-mutant/half-cyborg time-traveling, big gun toting, telepathic badass (did I mention he’s also the future son of Cyclops and Jean Grey?) In my half-assed script (whose link I cannot locate), Cable and his ragtag group of resistance fighters were in a war against the 2-story tall robots called Sentinels and their leader evil robotic leader Master Mold (so basically Terminator: Salvation with better special effects). Now obviously my idea won’t really work now, not with Days of Future Past calling dibs on the Sentinel-controlled future. Heck, I had even included Bishop and Blink in my version. Be that as it may, I now find myself agreeing with Rob Liefeld (wow, I never thought I’d say that) that to not include Cable in the rumored/upcoming X-Force movie is not only an insult to their long-time leader, but to us fans as well. This is a character so loved by the fans that they could put Dolph Lundgren in the role and still break $100 million. As ass-kicking as the newer version of X-Force is (with Wolverine and Deadpool on the team, how can it be anything but), to not have Nathan Summers in the movie would be like not having Han Solo in the new Star Wars movies (don’t get any ideas J.J.).

4. Weapon X

Now when most people hear the words “Weapon X” they instantly think of everyone’s favorite adamantium-clawed Canadian, Wolverine. This would be because he is Weapon X, or rather the 10th (Roman numeral X for you younglings) weapon created by the Weapon X/Weapon Plus/Department H program. Currently, Mr. Hugh Jackman is “on the fence” on whether to continue making movies as Wolvie past X-Men:Apocalypse and The Wolverine 2 (and we all know it just wouldn’t be the same without him), and his presence would definitely be welcome in a movie based on the project that made Logan whohe is today. But, if they did it right, they could pull this movie off without Hugh Jackman (or at least with a cool cameo like in X-Men: First Class). First off they would have to refrain from bringing in any of the actors from X-Men Origins: Wolverine (except for Ryan Reynolds of course) to prevent viewers from being reminded of that shitfest of a movie. Secondly, they need to find a character that could fill the role of hardass loner/indestructible walking Ginsu knife. Fortunately two characters immediately spring to mind: Wolverine’s conflicted son Daken and Wolverine’s female clone X-23. Both of these characters are fairly fresh in the comics and have yet to be “tainted” by uninspired appearances on film or television, and since I’m pretty sure Wolvie Jr. will be showing up in he current X-Men cinematic universe sooner rather than later (quite possibly in The Wolverine 2) that leaves X-23 as the main focus of this movie. Now casting is the next important step, and who here wouldn’t kill to see Summer Glau (a/k/a River from Firefly, duh) kicking ass and taking names, complete with her own set of adamantium claws (she did do a damn fine job as Lady Ravager on CW’s Arrow)? The rest of the cast could be rounded out with other notable Weapon X/Weapon Plus creations like: French assassin Fantomex, smart-mouthed sharpshooter Maverick, and Russian super soldier Omega Red (who could be one of the film’s villians). Throw in the deranged Dr. Cornelius (the man who really created Wolverine) and a much better iteration of Lady Deathstrike (just so you can have an epic girl-on-girl final battle), and be prepared for hordes of fanboys screaming “Shut up and take my money!”

5. Deadpool

Come one now, who else did you expect? Of course they need to make a movie starring everyone’s favorite Merc With a Mouth, Deadpool. It would be even better if they bring back Ryan Reynolds to reprise his role from X-Men Origins: Wolverine (one of the few bright spots in that film). Not only did Ryan perfectly nail Wade Wilson’s personality, he has stated time and again how much he wants to do a Deadpool solo movie. This is one movie that the bigwigs at Fox need to get off their overpaid asses and make already. Wade has legions of fans, hell just go to any comic convention and the only thing you’re likely to see more than Deadpool cosplays is Heath Ledger Jokers. Never has there been such a demand for a fictional character to appear in his own movie (at least not since Boba Fett’s unceremonius death in Return of the Jedi). The only superheroes more popular than DP right now are Wolverine, Superman, and Batman; and they’ve always had huge fan followings. Deadpool, on the other hand, has seen an explosion in popularity within the last decade, eventhough he debuted in the pages of X-Force in 1991. Maybe it’s his off-color humor and tendency to “break the fourth wall” (an industry term meaning that DP will address the reader/viewer and is aware that he is in a comic book). Maybe it’s his lethal combination of big guns and deadly blades. Maybe it’s the pouches. Whatever it is, Fox is insane if they don’t capitalize on all this Deadpool love soon (then again, this is Fox we’re talking about).

So there you have it folks, I’ve gone full circle. I started this article out talking about Rob Liefeld, and I ended it with perhaps his greatest contribution to comics (and I did it on accident lol). These are the X-movies I want to see, but now I want to know what you guys want to see. Whether you love or hate my picks, I look forward to reading your comments (especially now that I’ve received both a death threat and a marriage proposal because of one of my articles, there’s really not much else you can do to me).