Marvel Studios Already Planning X-MEN ’97 Seasons 4 and 5, Confirms Brad Winderbaum
The future of X-Men ’97 just got a whole lot more exciting. During this year’s New York Comic Con, Marvel Television dropped some big news for fans of the animated mutant revival. Not only has X-Men ’97 Season 3 officially been greenlit ahead of Season 2’s release next summer, but it looks like Marvel Studios is already setting the stage for even more adventures.
In a new interview with Collider, Marvel Television boss Brad Winderbaum revealed that long-term plans for the show are already being discussed. He confirmed:
“There is definitely, more than possibly, more to come from X-Men ’97. We're talking about Seasons 4 and 5 now.”
That’s a pretty clear indication that Marvel sees X-Men ’97 as a cornerstone of its animated lineup. The series has been a massive hit with fans, successfully reviving the classic X-Men: The Animated Series while keeping the same energy and heart that made the original so iconic.
Of course, there’s been some drama behind the scenes. Former showrunner Beau DeMayo, who was fired earlier this year, suggested that Kevin Feige wasn’t thrilled about X-Men ’97 and resented it because i would potentially overshadow Marvel’s upcoming live-action X-Men reboot.
Whether those claims hold any truth is anyone’s guess, but given the success of the animated series, it seems unlikely Marvel would pull back now. Also, if Feige did want to pull it, he easily could because he has the power.
Winderbaum gave fans another update about the show’s progress, revealing that Season 3 is already deep into production.
“Season 3 is, I've almost seen animatics for the entire season, and it is incredible. I saw an episode the other day.”
With Marvel’s plan to release its TV shows annually, we can probably expect Season 3 sometime in 2027. As for the creative team, Winderbaum made it clear that the spirit of the original show remains alive and well.
“Same director, same producers, same cast, many of the same writers, and it's standing on the shoulders of giants. One thing that makes X-Men ’97 work so well is that everybody's rowing in exactly the same direction. Everyone that works on the show knows that original series inside and out.”
He went on to highlight the continued involvement of Eric and Julia Lewald and Larry Houston, the creators of the original X-Men: The Animated Series.
“We work very closely with Eric and Julia Lewald and Larry Houston. They're here all the time reviewing material and talking to the artists. The second season feels very much a worthy successor to the first season.”
When asked about DeMayo’s social media comments, Winderbaum chose to stay positive, saying:
“We've talked about this before. I'm grateful to Beau. We launched this series together. I think he did excellent work. Frankly, I don't really look at it or read any of it, so I don't really know.”
X-Men ’97 features a voice cast that includes Ray Chase, Jennifer Hale, Alison Sealy-Smith, Cal Dodd, J. P. Karliak, Lenore Zann, George Buza, A. J. LoCascio, Holly Chou, Isaac Robinson-Smith, Matthew Waterson, Ross Marquand, and Adrian Hough, with Neve Campbell expected to join as Polaris.
X-Men ’97 Season 2 premieres on Disney+ next summer.