The Marvel Cinematic Universe is headed for big things, and it all starts with Avengers: Doomsday later this year. After Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom brings down the Marvel Multiverse, Avengers: Secret Wars will adapt the famous Marvel Comics storylines that find the remnants of different realities pulled together into a Frankenstein-style mass called “Battleworld.” Once the cosmic battles are done, however, the MCU will begin a brand new phase within a rebooted reality, and one of the biggest differences will be the presence of the X-Men right alongside the Avengers.
The MCU X-Men reboot has been taking shape quickly, with Marvel Studios making a major first reveal of the cast during Disney’s D23 Expo. Right now, it’s looking like Adam Driver will play the villain Mister Sinister in Jake Schreier’s (Thunderbolts) X-Men movie, but fans know that you can’t have Sinister (aka “Nathaniel Mulberry”) without also introducing the villain who created him: Apocalypse.
Thanks to X-Men ’97 Season 2, Apocalypse has become a major breakout character within the modern Marvel fandom. The Fox X-Men movies tried (and failed) to adapt Apocalypse for live-action, with poor Oscar Isaac taking a major stumble before landing another role as Moon Knight in the MCU. However, the franchise needs to in the opposite direction with casting the next Apocalypse, by recasting an actor that the MCU has already used before.
Ronan Is The Perfect Casting Choice to Play the MCU Apocalypse
Actor Lee Pace made his MCU debut in the film Guardians of the Galaxy in 2014, playing the main villain, Ronan the Accuser. A religious fanatic of the Kree Empire, Ronan sought to purge those planets and races deemed unworthy, using the destructive might of the Power Infinity Stone. Pace reprised the role in Captain Marvel, playing a younger version of Ronan who is at odds with the central leadership of the Kree. Pace certainly made Ronan one of the standout villains of the Infinity Saga, and was the villain that the franchise needed (even if it wasn’t the one they expected) to make Guardians of the Galaxy a global hit. Now, he can do it again for the X-Men.
Make no mistake: this isn’t some empty fan-casting wish. Since his time working with Marvel Studios, Lee Pace has found his niche playing aristocratic leaders who live in the gray areas of morality. In fact, his casting in Guardians came right on the heels of his role as the Elven king, Thranduil, in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy; after Ronan and Thranduil, Pace was cast as Galactic Emperor Cleon in Apple TV’s adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation saga, which is still airing five years after it premiered. If live-action wasn’t enough, Lee Pace also delivered a scene-stealing voice role as Grand Regent Thragg in Amazon’s animated series Invincible; the villain became a breakout hit, as clips and memes of Thragg went viral throughout the spring season. That’s all to say: right now, Lee Pace is one of the best actors playing shady kings and rulers – and that is the epitome of who Apocalypse is.
As one of the first mutants in recorded existence, Apocalypse rose up from being a slave in the sands of Ancient Egypt and claimed the power of the Celestials that enhanced his mutant ability (molecular control of his body) and added cosmic power and technology to his arsenal. Apocalypse proclaimed himself a warlord and savior of mutantkind, and spent thousands of years in a cycle of regeneration, awakening in each new era of history to further his mission of mutant supremacy by “testing” all the strongest mutants around, always claiming four to be enhanced and conditioned into his “Horsemen.”
Apocalypse has a penchant for making grandiose philosophical speeches about “might makes right” and “survival of the fittest”; part of the issue with Oscar Isaac’s performance in X-Men: Apocalypse was the choice to play the villain as a soft-spoken creep, always lurking in the shadows. Lee Pace’s screen persona – not to mention his physical stature – is much more in line with a comic-accurate version of Apocalypse.
Pace has already done the existence blue body paint work to play Ronin – and that’s probably his best qualification for the role. He’s used to the makeup work, and since Ronan was slathered in blue (as well as Kree religious robes, head to toe), most viewers wouldn’t even recognize that Apocalypse and Ronan are the same person. After all the struggles Marvel Studios has had making new stars in the last few years, re-casting an alum like Lee Pace to play one of the most pivotal new villains in the MCU is an easy layup.
The X-Men reboot will be released in theaters on May 5, 2028.