Hunger Games star ‘in talks’ to play canonically gay X-Men icon in MCU reboot
Ben Wang (Getty Images)
Ben Wang is reportedly in talks to play Bobby Drake, aka Iceman, in Marvel Studios’ upcoming X-Men reboot.
Deadline reports that Wang has “entered talks” for the role, though no casting has been confirmed as of yet.
The publication reports Gabriel LaBelle, Jackson Kelly and Rhenzy Feliz are among other names who have tested for the role.
Who is Iceman in X-Men?
Iceman – Bobby Drake – is one of the original X-Men, the superhero team from the Marvel comic book series created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The character first appeared in The X-Men #1 in September 1963.
Iceman’s mutant power is cryokinesis, the ability to generate and control ice and cold. The character was previously played on screen in the 2000s X-Men films by Shawn Ashmore.
In an April 2015 issue of All-New X-Men, it was revealed that Iceman was gay, after telepath Jean Grey read his mind.
In the Marvel comics, Iceman has dated a number of female characters, including Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat, and Polaris. He has also had romantic relationships with male characters, including Romeo and Christian Frost.
In the original X-Men live-action movies, which were produced and released long before his coming out in the comics, Iceman was not pictured as gay, and Bobby Drake was in a relationship with Rogue.
It is not clear how Iceman will be written in the reboot, however director Jake Schreier said comic writers Chris Claremont and Jonathan Hickman had inspired him.
Claremont wrote on Uncanny X-Men between 1975 and 1991, while Hickman worked on X-Men related titles between 2019 and 2021.
Marvel Studios’ X-Men is currently slated for release in cinemas on 5 May 2028. Schreier is directing from a script by Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo, with Kevin Feige producing.
Who is Ben Wang?
Ben Wang is an American actor who broke out with a leading role in Disney+’s American Born Chinese. He has since built a profile through studio and franchise projects aimed at teen and young adult audiences, with a public image tied to youthful, earnest leads.
He plays Wyatt Callow in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which premieres later this month.
If the deal goes through, Wang would join an ensemble that includes Christopher Abbott as Professor X (Charles Xavier), Adam Driver as Mr Sinister, Kit Connor as Cyclops, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, Inde Navarrette as Rogue, Maya Boyd as Storm, Asa Germann as Angel and Sadie Sink as Jean Grey.
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