X-Men ’97 showrunner Beau DeMayo confirmed the show fully embraced woke casting for the various voice actors in the show.
(L-R): Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith), Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio), Cyclops (voiced by Ray Chase), Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann), Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd), Bishop (voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith), Beast (voiced by George Buza) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.
In an exposé about the show Entertainment Weekly’s Nick Romano announced the cast for the series. Cal Dodd voices Wolverine, Alison Sealy-Smith voices Storm, George Buza brings to life Beast, Adrian Hugh plays Nightcrawler, Chris Britton plays Mister Sinister, and Lenore Zann returns to Rogue.
Newcomers include Ray Chase who voices Cyclops, Jennifer Hale voices Jean Grey, AJ LoCascio voices Gambit, Holly Chou plays Jubilee, JP Karliak voices Morph, Isaac Robinson-Smith plays Bishop, Matthew Waterson voices Magneto, Ross Marquand voices Professor X, Giu Augustini plays Sunspot, Gil Birmingham plays Forge, and Eric Bauza voices the Sentinels.
A number of the original voice cast are now playing newer characters. Catherine Disher who originally voiced Jean Gray is now playing Dr. Valerie Cooper, Chris Potter, who previously played Gambit, is now Cable, Lawrence Bayne, who played Cable is now X-Cutioner. Ron Rubin, who originally played Morph is now President Robert Edward Kelly. And original Jubilee actress Alyson Court is now playing Abscissa.
X-MEN ’97, exclusively on Disney+. © 2024 MARVEL.
According to Romano, DeMayo confirmed the recastings were done for “authentic representation.”
Romano wrote, “There are many reasons behind the recastings, DeMayo explains, that range from more authentic representation (Court recognizes that voicing an Asian character like Jubilee as a Canadian actress in the ’90s was a product of its time) to vocal intonations.”
Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd) and Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.
On top of this confirmation that the show embraced woke quota casting, Zann made it clear the show will embrace the sinful LGBTQ+ lifestyle and will do it through her character of Rogue and her powers that do not let her physically touch another person.
She informed Romano, “A lot of folks can relate to that, to her wanting to be loved, wanting to belong, wanting to be touched, and not being accepted for who they are. There’s a lot of LGBTQ folks who tell me that they really can relate to her because of the same reasons. Rogue really embodies that because she always seems to be struggling with accepting herself for who she is, warts and all.”
(L-R): Beast (voiced by George Buza), Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd), Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), Bishop (voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith), Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann), Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio), Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith), Cyclops (voiced by Ray Chase) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.
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None of this is really surprising, DeMayo confirmed the story of the entire series was being informed by his experience as a black, gay man last March.
During Marvel’s X-Men: 60 Uncanny Years Live Virtual Event, DeMayo revealed, “Came up with a pitch, pitched it to Kevin Feige and, you know, him and Brad [Winderbaum] could not have been more supportive and also just encouraging to make sure we got it right.”
“I think one of my favorite parts was like they were truly interested in like what my experience as a black gay man was and how it was going to inform the story we were telling. And that to them was like that is how we’re going to make this authentic,” he continued.
Beau DeMayo via Cool YouTube Guy YouTube
READ: Rumor: Marvel’s Initial Idea For X-Men Is To “Focus More On The Female Members Of The Team”
The showrunner then explained, “Because really what you’re talking about with X-Men — I don’t care what your religion, your nationality, your sex, your gender — you walk into a room full of people and you’ve gone, ‘Oh my gosh there is no one in here like me,’ and I think that is ultimately what X-Men is trying to get at.”
He went on, “And so then I went into the desert for about two weeks, came up with the entire first season, and then came back, and, you know, we got Eric [Lewald], Julia [Lewald], and Larry [Houston] to come aboard and be like, ‘Am I screwing this up?’ Such amazing, creative partners, parents I call them. Just moral and creative support.”
“And then we’ve just assembled a great team of really amazing directors, and artists, and storyboard artists, and writers to just get this right and really drill down to what I think the X-Men’s always going to be about which is just, you know, we talk a lot about the dream is social acceptance and it’s social justice,” he said.
DeMayo elaborated, “It is, but I think that can sometimes make certain people feel alienated and for me it’s always going to come down to, I think, the X-Men and what we’re going to be trying to do with this series is talking about the power of empathy, and how it can kind of heal these wounds that turn people against each other.”
“That things like racism and bigotry don’t just exist,” he asserted. “There’s a reason behind it that empathy can kind of help us connect and build those bridges where we can actually say, ‘Hey, we are all different.’ But we have these little things that can still connect us.”
Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.
During a Q&A portion one person explained how the original X-Men: The Animated Series was meaningful to them. DeMayo responded, “That is like the key point of X-Men right there. Like my parents are white. I was adopted as an orphan and I think that right there that power of resemblance and I think so many people grow up not having it and mistaking the physical for resemblance and connection.”
“And so I get you and that’s what we’re gonna be talking to,” he added.
Beau DeMayo via Cool YouTube Guy YouTube
What do you make of DeMayo confirming that the show made casting choices based on wokeness?
I would make casting choices, based on voice and personality, regardless of skin color and sex life.
You Istaphobe!
“Sinful lifestyle”. I feel so stupid. I cautiously watched your YouTube channel because I think the Left and Disney have BOTH gone too far and need reigned in. I agree with pretty much everything I saw on your channel for the last 2 months. As I kept watching your content, I could almost hear my liberal friends in the background, whispering, “Don’t get hooked, don’t be fooled….” and sure enough. “Sinful lifestyle.” I went two months without encountering bigotry in your channels, and this gave you guys credibility. I listened to you. I learned things from you. But the dialogue stops with open, obvious hate like “sinful lifestyle”. WDPRO didn’t say “sinful” when he read the article on his YouTube channel tonight. Maybe he’s not a homophobe and only That Park Place is? Or maybe you all are. Like my woke nuts liberal friends always warn me. I am a man without a party. A gay man. It sucks.