Rob Liefeld has revealed that Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige denied the X-Force movie, one that already had a script written by Drew Goddard and featured Stryfe as the villain.
The reveal comes as X-Men ’97 Season 2 is now streaming on Disney+, where the first three episodes see Cable put together the X-Force team.
So fans are finally getting X-Force, just not the version they almost had on the big screen.
What Did Rob Liefeld Say About The X-Force Movie?
Responding to a fan on X who said, “We need an xforce movie!” Liefeld didn’t hold back on who killed it.
“Sadly, it was denied by Feige. But you got The Marvels and whatever Cap 4 was!!!” replied Liefeld.
Another fan asked if the project was really that far along: “Are you serious? we almost had live action deadpool Wolverine suits?”
“Yes. Written by Drew Goddard. With Stryfe,” said Liefeld.
When asked if Fox held the X-Force rights at the time, Liefeld confirmed the studio did and that Goddard was attached to both write and direct.
“Had Drew Goddard writing & directing X-Force. I spoke with him about it, he so psyched,” he said.
The X-Force Movie Fox Almost Made
To back up Liefeld’s claims, it’s confirmed the project was real and it was moving.
Back in September 2017, Deadline reported Fox set Drew Goddard to write and direct X-Force, described as Deadpool and Cable leading a black ops force of mutant warriors far more ruthless than the X-Men. Ryan Reynolds, Simon Kinberg, and Lauren Shuler Donner were producing.
Deadpool 2 even did the setup work, introducing Josh Brolin’s Cable and Zazie Beetz’s Domino in 2018.
Then Disney closed its acquisition of Fox in 2019, Kevin Feige took control of everything mutant, and X-Force disappeared. Now, per Liefeld, we know it wasn’t shelved by circumstance. It was denied by Feige.
What did Marvel make instead? Liefeld answered that one himself: The Marvels, the biggest box office bomb in MCU history, and “whatever Cap 4 was.” Of course, that would be Captain America: Brave New World, another bomb from Feige in 2025 along with Thunderbolts and Fantastic Four.
Feige Passed On X-Force While Deadpool & Wolverine Made $1.3 Billion
Here is what makes the decision look even worse.
Deadpool & Wolverine, built on Liefeld’s creations, grossed $1.338 billion worldwide and became the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time, with a $211 million domestic opening that also set the R-rated record.
It remains the only MCU movie to cross a billion dollars since 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, which is actually from Sony, so really since Avengers: Endgame in 2019. The audience for Deadpool, Cable, and X-Force is obviously there. Feige just chose not to serve it.
Liefeld also took aim at Feige’s overall track record in another reply: “Feige has had 6 years of terrible moves. Doomsday is too [big] to fail. It’s all he has right now. The stories that will come out about this guy will be epic…”
That tweet came in response to a fan who pointed out, “The same Feige who thought having Wolverine in Deadpool 3 was a bad idea and told Hugh Jackman he shouldn’t return? That Feige?”
The Liefeld vs. Feige Feud Continues
None of this comes out of nowhere.
Liefeld has been open about his falling out with Feige and Marvel, as Liefeld previously slammed Feige for his treatment of comic book creators, revealing he and his family were snubbed from the Deadpool & Wolverine afterparty and that his e-mails to Marvel about creator credit went unanswered.
“Kevin Feige does not treat comic book creators well. That is my personal experience,” Liefeld said at the time, before calling out Marvel and Feige even further.
X-Men ’97 Season 2 Gives Fans X-Force (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning for X-Men ’97 Season 2.
The timing of Liefeld’s reveal is no accident. The first three episodes of X-Men ’97 Season 2 see Cable assemble the X-Force team, and Episode 2 even swaps the opening intro to feature X-Force as the title. It’s an awesome moment for longtime fans of Liefeld’s creations.
Liefeld himself reacted to the Episode 2 intro with a simple “YES!!!” when a fan told him he must have loved it as much as fans “screaming out of sheer awesome.”
The animated series is delivering exactly what the movie side denied, as X-Men ’97 Season 2 is light years better than Season 1, with the first three episodes earning a perfect 10/10 in my review. Great story, great characters, huge action, and now X-Force.
So the X-Force movie written by Drew Goddard with Stryfe is gone, denied by Kevin Feige. What fans got instead was The Marvels. At least the ’97 team knows what to do with these characters.
X-Men ’97 Season 2 is now streaming on Disney+.
