Marvel Reportedly Courts an Unexpected Star for the ‘X-Men’ Reboot
The road to the MCU’s mutant era has been a long and winding one, and the pieces are slowly falling into place. Marvel Studios has an untitled ‘X-Men’ reboot set for May 5, 2028, directed by Jake Schreier. Writers Sonny Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo are reportedly working on a new draft of Michael Lesslie’s script.
As the cast fills out, fans have started paying attention to the supporting players as much as the headliners. Inde Navarrette has been cast as Rogue, and Peter Claffey is reportedly joining as Beast. Few supporting characters carry as much weight as Dr. Moira MacTaggert, who has been tied to the mutant cause for decades.
That brings us to the latest rumor. Cosmic Marvel on X is circulating a report that Renate Reinsve has met with Marvel Studios about playing Moira MacTaggert in the reboot, with the claim credited to scooper Caleb Williams of Knight Edge Media. Marvel has not confirmed any casting for the role.
Reinsve is a name that carries serious prestige. The Norwegian actress won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and earned a BAFTA nomination for her lead performance in ‘The Worst Person in the World’. She is also known to many viewers as the star of ‘Backrooms’.
What makes the report especially juicy is her history with superhero movies. She said in a December 2025 interview with Josh Horowitz that she didn’t want to join a Marvel movie. The same scooper noted that she reportedly said about 6 months ago that she never wants to join a Marvel film, so it’s far from certain that the meeting leads anywhere.
The timing is also interesting. Earlier this month, the same scooper claimed that Moira is expected to have only a tiny role in the film and that casting is underway. That makes the possible involvement of an actress of Reinsve’s caliber even more surprising, since the studio has leaned toward younger and lesser-known actors.
A smaller part might actually be the appeal. For most of her existence in comics, Moira was a human ally of the X-Men, which could let an actress known for personal stories avoid the heavy superhero action. There is plenty of room for a first appearance to plant seeds for later films.
Moira’s history is also worth remembering. She is a Scottish geneticist who debuted in ‘The Uncanny X-Men’ #96 in December 1975, created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Dave Cockrum. In the 2019 ‘House of X’ and ‘Powers of X’ miniseries, she was retroactively revealed to be a mutant who is reborn after dying while retaining memories of her past lives. One report suggests Moira could connect to the movie’s larger story, especially with Mister Sinister in the mix, though Marvel has shared no plot details.
Moviegoers have also met the character before. Rose Byrne played her in ‘X-Men: First Class’ and ‘X-Men: Apocalypse,’ while Olivia Williams played her in an uncredited cameo in ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’. In ‘First Class,’ the character was a CIA agent rather than a geneticist. A more comics-accurate version would be a notable shift for the franchise.
For now, this remains a rumor built on a single scooper’s claim, and meetings in Hollywood do not always become deals. Still, the idea of a Cannes-winning actress stepping into Marvel’s mutant world after saying she wasn’t interested is the kind of twist that gets fans talking. Whether Moira ends up being a quick cameo or the start of something bigger, all eyes will be on the next round of ‘X-Men’ casting news.
