Thus, it sounds like Marvel will continue to introduce mutants in this method. We’ll likely see more variations of the Fox and animated X-Men appearing in alternate universes. Channing Tatum and Ryan Reynolds have called for a Gambit movie after the success of Deadpool & Wolverine and Michael Fassbender recently mentioned that he would return to his role as Magneto, so it wouldn’t be too much of a shock to see those characters again.
However, the most interesting mutants might be those who appear in the mainline MCU (sigh… fine, Earth-616). Sabra aka Ruth Bat-Seraph will appear in Captain America: New World Order played by Shira Haas, but we’ll probably see more C- and D-listers join the universe.
It’s important that Marvel seed these minor mutants before big guns like Wolverine, Cyclops, and Storm precisely because of the X-Men’s central ethos. Unlike the Avengers or the Fantastic Four, the X-Men fight to save a world that hates and fears them. The mutant metaphor always stretched credulity, not just because it was an imperfect way to talk about oppressed groups, but also because it never really made sense that regular humans would love the Avengers, who count the Hulk and former criminals such as Quicksilver and Hawkeye as members, or the Fantastic Four and hate a mutant like Angel, who has the frightening ability to… fly with his wings and dodge things.
By introducing mutants slowly into a world that’s already filled with fantastic heroes who have caused massive amounts of distraction, Marvel has the opportunity to retain some of the central themes of the comic book characters.
If bringing the mutants to the MCU is, as Feige told the attendees, “one of those dreams come true,” then it’s good that he’s doing them right. Only when mutants are feared and hated can we finally get the X-Men.