Adam Driver will play Mister Sinister and Inde Navarette will go Rogue
in Marvel’s 'X-Men' reboot
[August 15, 2026]
By ANDREW DALTON
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Adam Driver will make a long-anticipated entrance
into the Marvel Cinematic Universe to play super villain Mister
Sinister, and “Obsession” breakout star Inde Navarette will play Rogue
in Disney 's forthcoming film reboot of “X-Men.”
Driver and Navarette were among the new cast members announced Friday
night at Disney's D23 convention by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige,
along with Driver's “Girls” castmate Christopher Abbott as Professor
Charles Xavier and Maya Boyd as Storm. The film is slated for release in
May 2028.
The announcements were the biggest news to emerge from Disney
Entertainment's D23 presentation that also brought updates on its
forthcoming “Star Wars” titles and a song-and-dance that went sideways
from the stars of “Frozen 3.”
Driver's name was often rumored and often dismissed as an “X-Men”
possibility. Many thought he'd be playing the antihero Magneto. The rest
of the cast appeared on stage at the Honda Center arena in Anaheim,
California, while Driver appeared on a big screen.
“Kevin and I had been talking for years about my joining the Marvel
Cinematic Universe, and I think we finally found the perfect film,”
Driver told the crowd of 12,000 via video. “So I’m very excited to be
playing the role of Maaagneto!” he said before pausing, taking it back
and saying, “even better, Nathaniel Millbury,” an alias for Mister
Sinister.
Also on stage were previously announced cast members Samara Weaving, who
is playing Emma Frost; Kit Connor, who is playing Scott “Cyclops”
Summers; and Sadie Sink, whose role as Jean Grey was revealed by her
appearance in this summer’s Marvel megahit “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
The castmates were as new to each other as they were to the fans.
“They’ve just met backstage for the very first time,” Feige said.
Navarette had also been heavily rumored to have a role after fast
becoming one of Hollywood's most sought-after actors for her striking
performance as a spellbound girlfriend in the indie horror hit
“Obsessed” earlier this year.
The “X-Men” joining the MCU became possible with Disney's 2019
acquisition of Fox's film studio.
Director Jake Schreier is heading the reboot. and two writers from
prestige TV — “Beef” creator Lee Sung Jin and “The Bear” co-showrunner
Joanna Calo — are working on the script.
Gosling cosplays as Kade Auberon in 'Star Wars' presentation.
Ryan Gosling and director Shawn Levy headlined the “Star Wars” part of
the night with a presentation on their film “Star Wars: Starfighter,”
which is getting a May, 2027 release.
Gosling's appearance on stage was preceded by clips of him as a child
cast member of “The Mickey Mouse Club.”
“I owe a lot to Disney," Gosling said. "Had they not looked far and wide
and come to my hometown I would not be here today. Now, 30 years later,
I'm back and it's changing my life again.”
Shawn Levy put on Gosling a leather jacket with his “Star Wars”
character Kade Auberon's skull-and-bones symbol.
Gosling described Auberon as “a guy from the wrong side of the galaxy,
whose fate is intertwined with the fastest starfighter ever built,”
before showing clips from the film.
Disney announced earlier this summer at its San Diego Comic-Con
presentation that Gosling will play the character Ghost Rider in the MCU,
first in a “Black Panther” sequel, then in a “Ghost Rider” film that
Levy will also direct. Both are set for release in 2028.
[to top of second column]
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Adam Driver poses for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of
the film 'Paper Tiger' at the 79th international film festival,
Cannes, southern France, Saturday, May 16, 2026. (Photo by Scott A
Garfitt/Invision/AP, File)
 “Star Wars: Ahsoka” star Rosario
Dawson also appeared to promote the Season 2 return of her Disney+
series, as did Hayden Christensen, who will return as a force-ghost
version of her mentor Anakin Skywalker.
More Marvel with classic stars Downey, Evans,
Atwell and Bettany
Marvel veterans also took the D23 stage as past and future
“Avengers” stars Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. and Hayley Atwell
introduced a new trailer for “Avengers: Doomsday,” to be released
Dec. 18.
The footage shows Downey, now playing Dr. Doom having shed his Iron
Man suit, beating back Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and his hammer, and
shows Evans, who is returning as Captain America, holding a baby.
And it shows Ian McKellan as a long-haired, haggard, struggling
version of Magneto.
Hugh Jackman appeared on the big screen to tell Feige he's willing
to appear in “Doomsday” as Wolverine. Whether he'll be in the movie
has led to heated fan speculation. His answer wasn't definitive, but
most bets are now switching to yes.
Fans also got a glimpse of the soon-to-drop Disney+ series “Visionquest.”
Paul Bettany, who returns to his Marvel role as Vision, and James
Spader, who returns to playing Ultron, showed a trailer with oddly
human and ordinary versions of their cybernetic characters. Bettany
said it’s been a pleasure to play multiple versions of Vision, who
has “rather inconveniently died several times.” But, he said, “I'm
told in the Marvel Universe that no one is ever really dead.”
“Frozen 3” stars serenade fans, sort of
Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel sang an eerie new arrangement of
“Frozen Heart” from their first film playing princess sisters Elsa
and Anna as they introduced the forthcoming “Frozen 3.”
Or they tried to, anyway. The segment was plagued with
malfunctioning audio, video, and a set of doors that failed to open.
They ad-libbed their way through it like pros.
“Should we go back and try it again?” Menzel asked at the song's
end.
Bell described for the crowd everything that was supposed to happen
and said, “You guys were gonna freak out.”
They found their way back to the script.
“Doesn't it kind of feel like the world of Frozen is a bit
different?” Bell said. Menzel added, “Maybe a little bit more
mysterious?”
“Yes, OK, we're back on track,” Bell said, to big laughs.
Their castmate Josh Gad followed with a rendition of “Oooh,
Samantha,” a love song his snowman character Olaf will sing in
“Frozen 3.”
The night's other big musical set pieces included songs and dance
from the cast of “The Greatest Showman,” the stage musical
adaptation of the 2017 Jackman film that is premiering on London's
West End next year.
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