This Professor X-Magneto fan-casting just got approved by Giancarlo Esposito
Giancarlo Esposito from Guy Ritchie's Netflix series The Gentlemen greenlights a favourite X-Men fan-casting, but there's a catch.
Giancarlo Esposito is no stranger to action movie franchises. Plus, his contributions to the superhero series The Boys don't hurt when weighing the possibility of him possibly taking over an X-Men fan-casting. Social media speculations and discussions are the promised fantasy land of all missed opportunities and whatnot for dream-casting hits and trials. One of these popular fan-castings on X (formerly Twitter) once suggested The Gentlemen star helming Professor X's monumental seat in the X-Men universe, with Denzel Washington by his side as Magneto.
Fans now get to hear the issue addressed from the horse's mouth. Amon Warmann mentioned the case in point in his latest Fade to Black podcast episode while interviewing Esposito about his latest Netflix venture.
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Giancarlo Esposito on the Professor X-Magento X-Men Fan-Casting:
On being asked how he would play Professor X's role if it were to be brought up some time down the line, Esposito didn't shy away from admitting that he'd given it a “cursory glance.” Also, acknowledging that it “would be great to play Professor X,” the seasoned actor seemed all game to the idea, but only in a different incarnation because the “physical idea of being in a wheelchair every single doesn't appeal” to him.
The Breaking Bad actor isn't too keen on sitting “that much” but didn't merely employ the comment to deflect from the vision. Instead, he boasted about his interest in the Marvel lore, recalling that Professor X didn't always use a wheelchair in the comics. Though accepting that it was all part of his character development, the Hollywood star confessed to giving it a “little bit” of thought but not fully diving into any commitments. At this point, Warmann picked up an old tweet from memory that wistfully thought of him as Professor X and Denzel Washington as Magneto. And Esposito couldn't deny the duo's collaborative power either; he happily agreed, “It would be great.”
Fan reactions to the Marvel fan-casting:
While some considered this senior switcheroo technically illogical, others were all in for Washington putting on Magneto's helmet. Some common, though niche, discussions around X-Men's inspirations reminded fans of Stan Lee's old confessions about how these characters' treatment “was a good metaphor for what was happening with the Civil Rights Movement in the country at that time.”
Professor X is primarily seen as a human-mutant extension of Dr Martin Luther King Jr, whilst Magneto's unbending nature of activism for mutant-kind heavily mirrors Malcolm X's philosophies. What takes the cake is the fine easter egg that Denzel Washington has previously played the human rights activist in the 1992 eponymously titled biopic. On the other hand, Esposito also faced these fantasies in 2023. Even then, he didn't entirely give in to the idea, nor did he divest from fan's “biggest ask” to step into Charles Xavier's shoes.