8 Actors Who Were Sadly Wasted In X-Men Movies

2) Ben Foster

Ben Foster isn’t a household name, but he is an intense performer, with a gift for portraying psychologically-interesting characters (for instance, his turn as a serial killer in 3:10 to Yuma). Given that, he was fascinating choice to play Warren Worthington III AKA Angel, another founding X-Man, in The Last Stand.

Needless to say, just like Page, Foster had little to do in the role. He did have a minor arc, as Warren comes to terms with being a mutant and defies his father, but it isn’t a particularly taxing storyline for the actor to portray. It would have been interesting to see more from Warren in another movie, but he unfortunately, he was yet another casualty of the change in direction for the series.

1) James Marsden

Found at the top of the list of common fan grievances about the X-Men movies is the underuse of Cyclops. In the comics, Scott Summers is the long-standing leader of the team. Other characters might be more interesting, but he’s so staunchly brave and heroic that you have to like him.

In the films, however, Scott is merely the gooseberry in the love story of Logan and Jean. He doesn’t even get to lead the team, with that duty often being taken on by Wolverine, Storm or even Magneto and Mystique. James Marsden is a great actor when he’s given the right material (he’s particularly gifted at comedy), but he gets nothing to grapple with as Cyclops here.