As we prepare for “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” I’m reminded that this is the fifth X-Men movie that Magneto and Mystique are appearing in and I don’t know about the rest of you all, but I’m soooo tired of my X-Men movies having to feature Magneto and Mystique along with Professor Xavier’s team of mutants. Don’t get me wrong. Magneto? Awesome. Whether the Ian McKellan or Michael Fassbender version. Mystique? Rebecca Romijn or Jennifer Lawrence. Same deal. But the X-Men have a ton of great villains and potential storylines that we need to start working beyond just those old faithful adversaries. Sure we’ve seen Toad, Sabretooth, Lady Deathstrike (I refuse to acknowledge the “Juggernaut” seen in “X-Men: The Last Stand”) and even The Hellfire Club, but it’s time to start digging a bit deeper. Here’s the top 5 villains that we should definitely start getting around to seeing in future X-Men movies.
5. Mastermind (and The Hellfire Club)
Jason Wyngarde is the guy responsible for one of the most traumatic moments in X-Men history — the creation of Dark Phoenix — and with his powers of illusion, he would provide a very unusual challenge for the team. And while we got some version of The Hellfire Club, why not tie in his torment of the X-Men with his pitch for entry into The Hellfire Club by trying to get in with Selene, Pierce, Harry Leland and Emmanuel De Costa?
4. The Brood
An admittedly obvious rip-off of “Aliens,” but a heck of an adversary for our favorite band of muties. Since an “Aliens” crossover is not too likely (although 20th Century Fox also owns the “Aliens” license…) this is the next best thing. X-Men vs. aliens. How would that not make close to a billion dollars?? This alien race also ups the creepiness factor by possessing their victims. In a fun X-Men story featuring the Outback team, the Brood sought out mutants and possessed them in battling the X-Men so once the film’s first half is done, the threat can be intensified with mutant-enhanced Brood trying to kill the team.
3. Cameron Hodge and The Right
Cameron Hodge was a friend of Warren Worthington III, a.k.a. Angel, but became disgusted upon learning his friend was a filthy mutant. He slowly began rallying fellow anti-mutant followers dubbed The Right, who hunted mutants down with ghastly smiley-faced robots. The group became regular adversaries with X-Factor while Hodge attempted to destroy the team from within only to cross the line and kill Angel’s girlfriend, Candy Southern, which prompted Angel in his new incarnation of Archangel to decapitate Hodge. That wasn’t the end of Hodge though as his head was attached to a large cyborg and was the puppet master for the anti-mutant land Genosha, which kidnapped mutants and forced them to use their powers as slaves. Best part about Hodge? If done right, he can be a focal character in two very different X-Men movies.
2. The Marauders
The evil mirror image of The X-Men made a terrifying debut in the comics by massacring the X-Men allies, the Morlocks, and then decimating both the X-Men and X-Factor. A live-action movie of The Mutant Massacre could be pretty amazing and since most of it would be shot in tunnels it can be nice and dark just like Hollywood likes its X-Men movies! Everybody wins.
1. Mr. Sinister
With Apocalypse scheduled for “Age of Apocalypse,” next up easily has to be the other big X-Men villain. The mastermind behind The Mutant Massacre and Madelyne Pryor is all kinds of evil and he’s perfectly fine with manipulating any and everyone he needs to in order to accomplish his sinister agenda.
