Marvel Studios’ casting for the iconic X-Men villain, Magneto, needs to take into account his important heritage and backstory from Marvel Comics.

Marvel Studios can break a 24-year-long live-action trend when casting Magneto, Marvel Comics’ most iconic X-Men villain, in the MCU. Marvel Studios has confirmed that the MCU’s X-Men reboot is in development, so some of Marvel Comics’ most vibrant and exciting characters will soon be reinvented, after many of them made their live-action debuts in 20th Century Fox’s X-Men franchise. Currently, no casting choices have been announced for any of the MCU’s X-Men team, so the future faces of Professor X, Wolverine, Storm and Cyclops, among others, are still unclear, and this also goes for the team’s most formidable adversaries.

Introduced to Marvel Comics in 1963’s The X-Men #1, Erik Lehnsherr, a.k.a. Magneto, is a powerful mutant with the ability to control magnetic metals. Magneto is perhaps the X-Men’s longest-lasting villain, though he has also allied himself with his old friend, Professor X, and his team on many occasions. Aside from being one of Marvel Comics’ most powerful mutants, Magneto is also culturally significant, with his philosophical battles with Professor X and often-violent battles for mutant civil rights comprising some of Marvel Comics’ most memorable moments. To this end, Magneto’s important heritage and backstory must be retained in the MCU.

Magneto Has Never Been Played By A Jewish Actor In Live-Action

Magneto made his live-action debut in 2000’s X-Men, portrayed by acclaimed English actor Ian McKellen. From 2011’s X-Men: First Class onward, Irish actor Michael Fassbender played the younger iteration of Magneto in 20th Century Fox’s revised X-Men timeline, with the pair sharing the screen for the first and only time in 2014’s X-Men: Days of Future Past. In Marvel Comics, Erik Lehnsherr’s Jewish heritage is important to his motivations and development, and while this narrative was retained for Fox’s franchise, neither McKellen nor Fassbender are Jewish, so Marvel Studios could take more care in representing this heritage in the MCU.

Magneto’s Jewish Backstory Is Very Important In Marvel Comics

In Marvel Comics, Erik Lehnsherr – then Eisenhardt – is revealed to have been born in the 1920s to a German Jewish family. Lehnsherr suffered discrimination during the Nazi rise to power and the passing of the Nuremberg Laws in 1935. Lehnsherr and his family were caught trying to flee to Poland, and sent to the Warsaw Ghetto, and while they attempted another escape, they were again captured, and Lehnsherr’s entire family was executed before his eyes. The manifestation of Lehnsherr’s mutant abilities saved his life, but he was sent to Auschwitz, eventually escaping during the October 7, 1944, revolt.

Lehnsherr’s experiences during the Holocaust informed his hatred for humanity, as he’d seen firsthand what humans are capable of for fear of that which is different. This brings him in direct opposition to Professor X, who believes mutants and humans can live side-by-side, but Lehnsherr would prefer humanity be eradicated to ensure mutant survival. Magneto strives to create a haven where mutants can live peacefully, and forms the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants to further his cause. Magneto’s backstory as a Jew and a Holocaust survivor is crucial to his entire story, so Marvel Studios would be wrong to change it.

Ben Grimm Has Been Cast With A Jewish Actor In The MCU’s The Fantastic Four

Luckily, Marvel Studios’ recent casting for the MCU’s upcoming The Fantastic Four reboot suggests that more care will be taken to cast a Jewish actor in the role of Magneto, and retain the villain’s significant backstory. Ben Grimm’s Thing is one of Marvel Comics’ most recognizable Jewish characters, and throughout the casting process, speculation suggested Marvel Studios stressed that Grimm needed to be cast with a Jewish actor. Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who previously portrayed David Lieberman’s Micro in The Punisher, fits the bill perfectly, and his casting raises hopes that Magneto’s casting choice will be given the same amount of care.

Ebon Moss-Bachrach will be joined by Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby and Joseph Quinn as the titular team in Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four .

There has been some discussion about how Magneto can be a Holocaust survivor and still be young enough to have a lengthy career in the MCU, since the franchise is currently set in 2025 or 2026. However, Namor’s introduction as a mutant in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever could provide the answer, as Namor’s mutation grants him an elongated lifespan. The same ability could be granted to several powerful mutants with important backstories cemented during significant events in human history, allowing Magneto to retain his emotional and tragic origin story as a Holocaust survivor.