Every X-Fan has their dream lineup of who should be on the mutant team. Sometimes the roster is the Giant-Size X-Men team, sometimes it’s the 2000 movie lineup. For many fans raised in the ’90s, the animated series roster is the pinnacle. Cyclops led, Wolverine brooded, Beast kept the team in tech, and Rogue could level a battlefield while making “sugah” sound like both a threat and a term of endearment. Those performances became inseparable from the characters in readers’ heads, which is one of the reasons every new X-Men casting announcement arrives with decades of expectations already attached. Marvel Studios finally unveiled the cast of its MCU reboot at D23, handing the beloved characters to a new generation of performers. Before the internet could finish its usual arguments over appearances, accents, and comic-book accuracy, however, one member of Marvel’s new roster received a welcome fit for a southern belle. The actor who defined their character for an entire generation stepped forward to personally welcome her successor to the X-Men.
Lenore Zann, the voice actress for Rogue on X-Men the Animated Series and its reboot X-Men ’97, posted a video on Instagram congratulating Obsession star Inde Navarrette on landing the role of Rogue in Marvel Studios’ upcoming X-Men movie. Speaking in Rogue’s now-familiar drawl, Zann introduced herself as “Rogue of the X-Men” before addressing her new live-action counterpart. “I can’t wait to meet you, Sugah,” Zann said, adding that she would soon be returning to North America and hoped they could connect. She ended the message by asking everyone to “spread some sugar around.” Her caption also promised hugs and high fives, and assurances the gloves will stay on.
Navarrette quickly responded in the comments, writing, “Hello! What an honour! Thank you for this kind message!” Zann answered in character, calling her “Sugah” and suggesting the two meet for coffee when she returns to Los Angeles. The exchange has gotten tens of thousands of likes as viewers celebrate the real-world Rogue multiversal crossover. Inde Navarrette may not have yet donned Rogue’s gloves or thrown her first punch, but the actress has already gotten a warm welcome into the chaotic Darkholme family.
Would a Rogue by Any Other Name Smell as Sweet
Zann first voiced Rogue in the original animated series in 1992, establishing the combination of swagger, vulnerability, and Southern charm that remains inseparable from the character for many viewers. She returned more than 30 years later for X-Men ’97 and is now also providing the voice for the Southern spitfire in the videogame Marvel Rivals. Considering the focus the animated revival’s second season has given Rogue, the new casting comes at a unique moment where fans are getting a new actress at the exact moment when audiences got their best reminder of how powerful and devoted the X-Man could be. Navarrette is inheriting more than a pair of gloves and white streak in her hair. She is taking on one of Marvel’s most emotionally complicated heroes.
Navarrette’s casting caps a remarkable breakout year for the ingenue. Her performance as Nikki in Curry Barker’s micro-budget horror sensation Obsession helped carry the film past $400 million worldwide and has generated some legitimate awards conversation for the actress. Just weeks before D23, Navarrette revealed she had met with X-Men director Jake Schreier and publicly said she thought playing Mystique would be “super cool”. Marvel has instead opted to cast her as the blue-skinned shapeshifter’s adopted daughter, giving the actress a central place on the team. She will join Sadie Sink’s Brand New Day-established Jean Grey, Kit Connor’s Cyclops, Maya Boyd’s Storm, Christopher Abbot’s Professor X, Samara Weaving’s Emma Frost, and Adam Driver’s Mister Sinister whenX-Men arrives on May 5, 2028.
The former Superman and Lois costar has the chops to make Rogue her own, but she couldn’t ask for a warmer welcome from the performer who helped define the character for a generation. Rogue’s powers usually make connecting with people dangerously complicated, yet Zann managed to pass the torch without removing her gloves. She even offered to buy Navarrette a coffee instead of a video game, which is a welcome respite from the completely normal internet discourse that has surrounded the actress. At least we know who she probably mains in Rivals.