With Marvel bringing back a surprising number of actors from Fox’s X-Men franchise for Avengers: Doomsday, fans have been celebrating the return of some of the most iconic mutants ever put on screen. But there’s one major name missing from the lineup, and even she seems a little puzzled by it.
Famke Janssen, who played Jean Grey and the Phoenix across multiple X-Men films, recently shared her thoughts on not being invited back for Marvel’s upcoming crossover event. During a conversation with Nerdtropolis at Spacecon 2026, Janssen didn’t hold back when asked about her absence from the film.
“I am so bad at keeping secrets that I always say to everyone I’m the worst actor in the world. It’s all on my face. You right away will read it,” Janssen said. “I think they made a mistake, but hey, who am I? I’m just a little me who thinks that.”
It’s kind of weird that they didn’t bring her back considering how many of her former castmates are making the jump back into Marvel’s multiverse adventure.
So far, Marvel has confirmed the returns of Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Cyclops, Kelsey Grammer as Beast, Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, and Rebecca Romijn as Mystique.
Janssen first stepped into the role of Jean Grey in 2000’s X-Men and became one of the franchise’s central figures. She returned for X2: X-Men United in 2003 and played a major role in X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006, which fully embraced the Phoenix storyline.
She later made appearances in The Wolverine and X-Men: Days of Future Past, cementing her place as one of the defining actors of Fox’s mutant universe.
For years, fans have wondered if Marvel Studios would find a way to bring her version of Jean Grey into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, particularly now that the multiverse allows virtually any legacy character to return.
The interest clearly hasn’t gone away. Janssen previously revealed that questions about Jean Grey continue to follow her everywhere she goes.
“It’s interesting,” Janssen said. “I didn’t realize that was such a big part. Every interview I do, that will come up, and of everything I say, that is going to be the only thing that’s gonna be printed.”
She continued: “I should be flattered, I suppose, that this character has resonated with people,” she added. “It’s been so long, but it’s nice that people are still talking about her. I’m sure every single time there’s a new movie that they’re doing, like [is it] Doomsday? … it’ll come up again.”
With Avengers: Doomsday shaping up to be a massive celebration of Marvel history, fans are naturally asking why Jean Grey isn’t joining her fellow mutants. After all, she was one of the most important characters in Fox’s X-Men saga, and the Phoenix remains one of Marvel’s most powerful and beloved heroes.
Of course, Marvel is known for keeping secrets and surprises under lock and key, so there’s always the possibility that not every appearance has been revealed. But based on everything currently announced, Janssen isn’t part of the film’s roster.
Whether Marvel truly missed an opportunity or is saving Jean Grey for something bigger down the road remains to be seen.
