6 Characters Who Could Potentially Replace Wolverine As The Face Of The X-Men Franchise

Next year, Logan will mark the end of Hugh Jackman's tenure as Wolverine. While it's entirely possible that 20th Century Fox will recast the character, it's going to be damn near impossible for anyone to follow in the Australian actor's footsteps after a seventeen year run as the iconic X-Men character (especially as he's a major box office draw and beloved by fans and critics alike). As a result, chances are Wolverine will be put on the shelf for at least a few years. During that time though, who should take over as the "face" of the X-Men franchise? Jennifer Lawrence appears to be ready to move on from Mystique, and as great as both James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender are as Professor X and Magneto, their popularity still doesn't rival Wolverine's. It's clearly up to someone else to take over then, and the list of potential candidates is surprisingly short. All of the heroes listed here have the potential to effectively take over from Jackman and Wolverine, and while they wouldn't exactly be the same, they'd all bring something very new and exciting to a franchise, which X-Men: Apocalypse seemingly proved is starting to struggle. 6) Sabretooth The last time we saw Sabretooth on the big screen was in the critically panned X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Before that, he was completely wasted in the first X-Men movie, and now that neither of those exist in the current continuity, there's really no reason why he couldn't be re-introduced. His current status quo in the comic books is a lot different than what it used to be, as Sabretooth is now more of an anti-hero and a member of the X-Men. While it would be a shame to see him making his presence felt on the big screen without Logan to bounce off, he still has a lot of potential. More feral and violent than his oldest foe, Sabretooth would shake up the dynamic of the X-Men in a huge way, and if he's handled correctly, the one-time villain could very well take centre stage in his own solo outing. Similar enough to Wolverine to at least somewhat satisfy fans of that character, he's also different enough that it wouldn't feel like we're basically being saddled with a cheap knock off of the real deal. That being said, it'd be ideal if he could cross paths with Wolverine at least once to make his role in the X-Men a little more relevant. Sadly though, that may be impossible now. 5) Cable The hunt for an actor to play Cable is currently ongoing (and may very well be what led to Tim Miller departing Deadpool 2), and assuming Fox finds the right man for the job, this is a character who could go on to have a major presence in the X-Men Universe. After fighting alongside - or against - the Merc with the Mouth in his sequel, it would make sense for Cable to assemble X-Force in that long overdue spinoff. That would obviously launch a new franchise should the first instalment succeed, and if Cable were to pop up in the X-Men movies too, he could become a key player. After all, he's the son of Scott Summers and hails from the future, so him interacting with Cyclops and Jean Grey at some point is a must. If Fox can get their sh*t together and really plan out his appearances in their upcoming releases, it could all culminate with some sort of epic crossover pitting the X-Men against a new foe with Cable as their leader. That has the potential to be truly epic, but with no Kevin Feige calling the shots, it may be too ambitious a plan for them. If it were to work out though, Cable has all the makings of a hero that fans and moviegoers can get behind. 4) Daken Another character who has acted as both a hero and villain, Daken could easily follow in Wolverine's footsteps, though it wouldn't have hurt for Fox to have him play a key role in Logan if they ultimately plan on using him in the X-Men Universe. The son of the clawed mutant, he too has a healing factor and some claws of his own, but his relationship with his father is...complicated. He's fought alongside his dad and tried to kill him and his friends on multiple occasions, but for a time, Daken was actually a new "Dark" Wolverine who ended up taking to the role surprisingly well. Without having explored their relationship, it's hard to say how well a movie focusing on Daken attempting to take over the mantle would work and if he's someone fans could get invested in. Should Fox find the right story though, the character has a lot of potential and would make for a very interesting new addition to this world (especially as we discover all the ways he differs from his father). His youth might also make him an ideal candidate to join the current generation of X-Men, but there are probably a few other characters who might be an easier sell for the studio. 3) Gambit After losing two directors and nearly its leading man, there's no denying that Gambit is in trouble. The movie was supposed to be released last month, but it doesn't even have a production start date as of right now, and many fans believe it will never actually happen. If it does (and it's actually good), Channing Tatum replacing Logan as the face of the X-Men franchise is not only likely, but quite possibly something Fox wants to make happen. After debuting, bringing him into the main series seems like the most logical approach, and from there, he could easily become a fan-favourite. It will all boil down to how well his introduction is handled and whether he's embraced by moviegoers, but Tatum has proven himself to be a great actor and a very likeable presence on the big screen, so it's hard to imagine him not being well received. Seeing as Gambit has never really stepped up as a leader in the comics, we don't really have anything to turn to for an idea how all of this might work, but the hero has enough charisma and an interesting enough power set to stand out and become a key player in the world of the X-Men who Fox can rely on to sell tickets. 2) Deadpool You'd think that Deadpool being R-Rated will keep him away from the world of the X-Men, but considering the fact that the Merc With the Mouth's first solo outing earned more than X-Men: Apocalypse, Fox must realize what an earner they have on their hands here. Ryan Reynolds has already talked about how the character could fit into a PG-13 setting and having him censored could become a running joke suitable for a character who frequently breaks the fourth wall, so there's clearly been at least some discussion of having Deadpool do more in this world. With a sequel on the way and an appearance in that eventual X-Force movie highly likely, all Fox needs to do is having him make some memorable cameo appearances in the next couple of X-Men movies and they'll have a brand new star on their hands (which they arguably already do without all that). Deadpool could be used in a similar way to Logan, and while he would mostly be used as comedic relief, that may not be a bad thing for a franchise which has started taking itself a little too seriously. The thought of Deadpool interacting with the X-Men is also massively exciting. 1) X-23 X-23 is going to be introduced in Logan next year, but that movie will seemingly only cover her childhood. Considering the fact that it's set in the future, an older X-23 appearing in X-Force seems likely, though Deadpool 2 is also a possibility (it's not like these movies adhere too closely to their own timeline after all). Either way, moviegoers want more female superheroes and X-23 shares many of the characteristics and powers of Wolverine, so her taking centre stage in future instalments of the X-Men franchise is surely a priority for the studio after Jackman's final outing. Assuming they find the right actress and do a good enough job with the way her story arc is handled, X-23 having her own solo series of movies seems highly likely, and seeing as she's currently serving as THE Wolverine in the comic books, her future may already have been decided upon. Sure, some might dismiss her as being a knock off of the real deal, but Laura Kinney is a great character with a ton of potential, so there's no reason to believe that she couldn't hold her own in any movie and ultimately gain the same level of popularity of the man she was cloned from.