Kodi Smit-McPhee Returning As Nightcrawler For Marvel?
Kodi Smit-McPhee has hinted that he'd like to return as Nightcrawler for the X-Men in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
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Kodi Smit-McPhee is having a great awards season of late. His turn in Netflix’s The Power of The Dog has already seen him land on one podium and there could be more on the way. He has a Golden Globe to his name and is nominated for Best-Supporting Actor for the upcoming Oscars. However, according to Variety, there is another thing on the actor’s mind, returning to the X-Men and Marvel to reprise his role as Nightcrawler.
The revelation that Marvel is playing on the mind of Kodi Smit-McPhee came when speaking to Variety on their Awards Circuit Podcast. The presenting team asked McPhee if he would be appearing as his X- Men character Nightcrawlerin Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness. Here is what the oscar-nominated star had to say:
“I just really am a believer in MCU and I’ve made it a thing to kind of hold off and…going into any other production companies doing superhero stuff because I just believe in MCU so much and I hope to be a part of that family one day. You know, we all know that they own the rights to Nightcrawler and stuff now so…hint, hint, nudge, nudge.”
It’s clear to see that featuring in the world of Marvel and X-Men has Kodi Smit- McPhee clamoring to come back for more. His initial turn as the character Nightcrawler came in Bryan Singer’s X-Men Apocolypse (2016), a film that featured many young recastings of popular X-Men characters that appeared in the original trilogy of films in the early 2000s. McPhee then reprised the role in X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019).
The possibility of Kodi Smit-McPhee appearing in the MCU along with other X-Men favorites is of course a distinct possibility. Namely, as McPhee alluded to in his quote, Marvel owns the rights to the character thanks to Disney’s much-documented acquisition of 20th Century Fox. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, the current phase of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe heavily incorporates the multiverse, a term coined to describe alternate timelines and realities that could possibly interconnect.
The Multiverse concept was a major plot point to Spiderman: No Way Home and of course is set to be a crucial part of Doctor Strange In the Multiverse of Madness. In the Superbowl trailer for the upcoming film starring McPhee’s The Power of The Dog co-star Benedict Cumberpatch, the story heavily focussed on the multiverse and appeared to introduce the voice of Patrick Stewart’s Professor Xavier.
Patrick Stewart has tried his best to deflect and deny his involvement in the upcoming Marvel mind-bender, but it seems pretty clear that Xavier is involved. If Xavier is involved, surely the rest of the X-Men will follow? It seems that Kodi Smit-McPhee is a fan of the idea and it would sure be a pleasure for fans to see his iteration of Nightcrawler teleporting his way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Spiderman: No Way Home showed just how powerful bringing back characters from other franchises can be, so it would be no surprise to see Kevin Feige bring the whole X-Men clan back into the fold. It is surely a matter of time.
Kodi Smit-McPhee is not the only X-Men actor to be quizzed on if they’re involved in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Not long ago, Ryan Reynolds was asked about his potential inclusion in the movie as the merc with a mouth Deadpool. He has reportedly denied his involvement, but as many Marvel fans will know, a denial may often mean the opposite. Will Deadpool, Kodi Smit-McPhee’s Nightcrawler, and the rest of the X-Men gang appear in the MCU? It is most likely not a matter of if, but when.
