The new Deadpool & Wolverine trailer has raised suspicion about whether Charles Xavier, AKA Professor X, will have a role in the movie after fans spotted a small detail hidden in the shadows.
The footage has sparked speculation about returning X-Men characters, with people pausing on specific shots to identify some fan-favorite familiar faces. One that has come to light in the subsequent days after the trailer was released online is that of Professor X, as people think they have spotted a potential teaser for his return.
Fans flagged the presence of a wheelchair in two separate moments in the trailer, one being when Cassandra Nova, the evil twin sister of the X-Men leader, emerges from her Ant-Man corpse cave and the other when Nova goes toe-to-toe with Wolverine. In both instances, a wheelchair mysteriously appears in the background.
?the disrespect....??♀️??? pic.twitter.com/g1K222q0Pr
— Cryptic HD QUALITY (@Cryptic4KQual) April 22, 2024
Professor X’s wheelchair in the background ? https://t.co/WtiKpAxc6S
— ℳ??．ℳ????ℴ?? ? (@Wandazworldz) April 22, 2024
Some people are under the impression that Professor X could be in the wheelchair (particularly at the entrance of Nova's villainous base) but is obscured from view by Nova walking ahead of him, leaving the big reveal for when the movie hits theaters. Others believe it is a fakeout to mislead viewers into thinking he will appear.
"She'll probably come out in a silhouette, and the audience will be made to think that it's Professor. X. Then she'll get up and come into the light and you realize it's Cassandra," one person suggested on Reddit, as someone else put forward another idea: "She possibly killed a Charles variant and keeps his chair as a trophy."
there's a wheelchair behind Cassandra Nova when she walks out of Ant-Man's skull and there's absolutely going to be a joke where she wheels out in it and you see her bald silhouette and Deadpool goes "It's Professor X" or something and then she stands up https://t.co/xX13Gz2C31
— francis (@francis_lopata) April 22, 2024
Yeah, I think it's gonna be a whole "Oh, is that professor X?"
— Dyxco (@cbeaird52) April 22, 2024
"Which one?"
"NEITHER" shouts the villain stepping out of the wheelchair.
She probably comes out In professor x wheelchair insinuating his death and then stands up and starts walking to fake out the audience
— Chris?? (@YoungFlame01) April 22, 2024
So I guess she killed Xavier, and took his chair as a trophy?
— G I L L E S (@justeGilles) April 22, 2024
A shot of someone's bald head appeared in the first Deadpool & Wolverine trailer, which led to some speculation about a potential cameo from Professor X until people tied the mysterious figure to Emma Corrin's Cassandra Nova, a formidable X-Men villain who, of course, has a particular grudge against her twin brother.
Alongside Corrin on the cast is Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson/Deadpool and Hugh Jackman as James 'Logan' Howlett/Wolverine (wearing his iconic yellow and blue suit), with Stefan Kapičić as Colossus, Morena Baccarin as Vanessa, Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Shioli Kutsuna as Yukio, and more.
Deadpool & Wolverine will arrive in theaters on July 26 as part of Phase 5 of the MCU. It is the only MCU movie slated for release this year, though it looks to be setting up Avengers: Secret Wars.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on X/Twitter @AdeleAnkers.
