It is now beyond obvious that the MCU is setting up the stage for the arrival of mutants. If the alternate universe’s Professor X’s appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness wasn’t enough, the way Ms. Marvel kept switching the source of Kamala’s powers just so it could say that a “mutation” in her DNA is allowing her to harness the powers of the bangle is proof enough. This majorly altered method of alluding to the presence of mutants is what is fueling our latest brainstorming session.
First, let’s get the preliminaries out of the way…
How MCU’s “unique” mutant twist could alter the status of existing superheroes
For a long time, Marvel fans have wondered how the MCU will usher in the mutants while explaining why they have been MIA for more than a decade. Going by how Kamala was supposedly labeled a mutant — especially with the theme song of the X-Men: The Animated Series playing in the background — the MCU is not only stating that mutants have always been here, it is introducing the origin of their powers in a way that is a lot different from how they acquire their abilities in the comic books.
In the comics, mutants are born with a specific “X-Gene” that gives them a unique set of powers, which some start exhibiting from a very young age or properly harness only when they reach adulthood. Their powers, just simmering below the surface, are almost always triggered by a traumatic event.
If we believe that Kamala is a mutant and MCU wasn’t just misdirecting us, the theory of how mutants get in touch with their powers changes a lot, especially now that it has been hinted that both Hulk and She-Hulk are mutants as well.
According to the MCU-specific theory, people born with a certain mutation in their genes get their special “skills” after being exposed to or by using an external trigger. There are a few exceptions, like the creation of the Blank Panther. Keeping how the MCU is currently describing how mutants work, the heart-shaped herb can be omitted as the “trigger” mentioned above. It is undoubtedly the holder of all powers it grants to whomsoever consumes it; everyone who has ever eaten it has gained superpowers without any exceptions. As per our argument here, the herb is not like Kamala’s bangle, which is custom-designed for only those who have existing mutations in their genes.
Remember how Kamala’s bangle works. Had her brother or anyone else in her family worn it, it would have done nothing for them since they don’t have the needed mutation in their DNA. Going by that logic and seeing how MCU is seemingly retconning characters’ status, we have whipped up a list of every plausible character who can be labeled as mutants in the near future.
Keep in mind that this brainchild borne of our wild speculations is strictly based on how characters have been depicted in the MCU and have no reliance on their comic book history.
Hulk and She-Hulk
For anyone wondering why we included Hulk on today’s list but excluded the likes of Captain America or Winter Soldier, it is because we took into account the fact that the super soldier serum works like the Wakandan’s heart-shaped herb. It affects and changes everyone it is administered to. It changed Johann Schmidt and many others into super soldiers, giving them enhanced physiology and intellect.
While the logic also applies to Hulk and She-Hulk, who have a different version of the serum with exposure to Gamma radiation instead of Vita Rays, their inclusion in this list is purely based on how the Disney Plus series, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, has described Jennifer attaining her newfound powers. Any other human being would have died after being exposed to Banner’s serum and radiation-charged blood (with the exception of Stan Lee’s cameo in 2008’s Incredible Hulk). As explained by the Smart Hulk, there is a reason why Jennifer didn’t:
“You and I, we share a rare combination of genetic factors that allows us to synthesize gamma radiation into something else.”
To put it simply, the serum combined with the radiation worked the way it does when it comes to him and Jennifer due to their unique genetic factors, something Banner further highlights when he is destroying his cousin’s blood samples as he claims “there’s only a millionth-percent chance that it makes another one of us.”
Spider-Man
The logic established above also applies to our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. While it is not shown, MCU’s Peter (Tom Holland) gets his powers after he is bitten by a radioactive spider. It is safe to say nobody could survive being bitten by a radioactive spider, but Peter ended up being the rare exception. Needless to say, there is definitely something special about him, and that unique thing could be his mutated genes that treated a deadly toxin very differently.
Wanda Maximoff
WandaVision has already retconned the origin story of Wanda’s powers. She didn’t get her powers from the Mind Stone, she already had them, and the stone amplified her abilities. Unlike the other characters on this list, Wanda is the only one who fits the definition of mutants in the comics as well as how the MCU seems to be setting them up.
So far, the focus has been on her magical abilities as the Scarlet Witch, but given how the advent of her powers has been switched despite not indicating anything special about her DNA, there’s nothing stopping the MCU from embracing her mutant roots from the comic books.
Monica Rambeau
Monica attained her powers — phasing, absorbing energy, etc — when she pushed through Wanda’s hex magic separating Westview from the rest of the world thus keeping the town in an altered reality in WandaVision. Monica was not the only one who came into contact with Wanda’s magic, but she is certainly the lone superhero born out of all the drama. After all, no one else in Westview developed superpowers.
While this anomaly was not explained, it can be deduced that when it came to everyone else, the hex was willingly maneuvered by Wanda to gobble them up. The rest of the time, it was there to keep others out by acting as a defensive wall. Monica pushed against a powerful magical shield to enter Westview, significantly altering her physical makeup in the process, thereby giving her powers.
It will only take the MCU a hot minute to ditch this logic. They can easily say one there is something rare about her DNA, which is why the hex magic affected her differently.
Captain Marvel
Carol Danvers attained her cosmic powers when she destroyed Mar-vell’s Light-Speed engine and was exposed to the Tesseract’s energy. The same Peter Parker and Hulk logic could apply here, too, since no one else besides Carol would have survived the blast. We have already seen how the power of the Space Stone stored within the Tesseract was used to create weapons of mass destruction, yet Danvers managed to absorb the energy.
There is also the recently revealed mysterious connection she shared with Kamala. In Ms. Marvel’s finale episode, Kamala’s bangle suddenly started glowing, and she disappeared while a visibly confused Captain Marvel took her place. Does the bangle connect the two, which is somehow connected to the Kree, or is it because they are both mutants?
Daredevil
Forget Spidey-sense, aka “Peter tingle,” Daredevil’s heightened senses, which go as far as being aware of the changes in air density and temperature, lend him an exceptional awareness that manifests itself as an “impressionistic painting” of his surroundings, thus allowing him to be hyperaware of any danger.
Why did the radioactive substance that blinded the young Matt superhumanly enhance his other four senses? While the loss of one sense does sharpen the remaining senses, it doesn’t amplify in the extraordinary ways Matt’s did. This makes the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen a likely candidate to join MCU’s mutant train.
America Chavez
Now, this one is a little tricky. In Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, we saw the first time America opened an interdimensional portal when a bee stung her and sent her emotions haywire.
We know that there is no super soldier serum, Infinity Stone, or even a fancy bangle in the mix here, but we have to take into account that America’s powers did need an external source — in this case, the bee’s sting — to be jogged into action. This more or less fits the MCU’s self-designed definition of a mutant.
It is still a bit early to make any solid deductions on whether this is the theory the MCU has crafted for introducing mutants. Marvel has a habit of sprinkling distracting crumbles of information only to come up with an entirely new plan of action when it’s time for the big reveal.
If the MCU plans to go with the mutants-have-always-been-here-on-Earth-616 narrative, further reinforced by its recent trend of fixating on its characters’ DNA, then be on the lookout for the above-mentioned characters joining the list of mutants who are on their way. If we are not wrong, one of them is already here.