7 Marvel Franchises That Need A Reboot Like X-Men After Avengers: Secret Wars

Published Sep 7, 2026, 1:20 PM EDT Shawn S. Lealos is an entertainment writer who is a voting member of the Oklahoma Film Critics Circle. He has written for Screen Rant, CBR, ComicBook, The Direct, The Sportster, Chud, 411mania, Renegade Cinema, Yahoo Movies, and many more. Shawn has a bachelor's degree in professional writing and a minor in film studies from the University of Oklahoma. He also has won numerous awards, including several Columbia Gold Circle Awards and an SPJ honor. He also wrote Dollar Deal: The Story of the Stephen King Dollar Baby Filmmakers, the first official book about the Dollar Baby film program. Shawn is also currently writing his first fiction novel under a pen name, based in the fantasy genre. To learn more, visit his website at shawnlealos.net. The Marvel Cinematic Universe will be rebooting the X-Men franchise following Avengers: Secret Wars. While Kevin Feige is not calling this a reboot, the storylines from the comic book this movie is based on did a slight reboot to portions of the Marvel Universe, and there is a chance that things could look very different coming out of that 2027 MCU release. Marvel already announced an aged-up Black Panther, as T'Challa's son will take over his dad's former role. However, there are also former Marvel TV shows and movies that could use a fresh coat of paint once the dust settles from Avengers: Secret Wars. What is known right now is that the X-Men are coming, Ghost Rider is getting a reboot with Ryan Gosling taking on the role, and Black Panther is coming with David Jonsson playing T'Challa's successor. Everything else is up for speculation, but there are some ideas floating around out there. For one thing, there is still talk of a possible Young Avengers/Champions/West Coast Avengers team with the young heroes already introduced in the MCU, including Kamala Khan, Ironheart, Kate Bishop, Wiccan, and more. There is also talk of a Midnight Sons movie, and Ghost Rider could lead into that. However, there are several former properties that could use a reboot similar to what the X-Men are getting in the next MCU phase. Helstrom Helstrom didn't get a lot of attention when Hulu released it in 2020, and that is likely a big reason Marvel decided not to continue with its plans for a dark universe on that streaming service. However, the show was much better than people might remember, almost a version of Constantine for the Marvel Universe. It is based on the Marvel Comics character of Daimon Helstrom, the Son of Satan, and his sister Ana (Satana in the comics). The series had Helstrom working as an exorcist while hiding his true powers and identity. There was also a big mystery around a serial killer that Daimon and Ana fear might be their father, a figure who in the comics is Satan himself. The problem is that this wasn't a good adaptation of the comic character, although it was a solid horror series. Having Midnight Sons possibly coming could pave the road for a Helstrom reboot in the MCU. Cloak & Dagger Cloak & Dagger was an interesting Marvel series because almost no one saw it. Unlike most Marvel shows that aired on major platforms like ABC, Disney+, or Hulu, Cloak & Dagger aired on Freeform. It takes the story from the comics, with teenage runaways Tyrone Johnson (Aubrey Joseph) and Tandy Bowen (Olivia Holt) meeting and gaining the powers of light and darkness. These characters debuted initially in the pages of Spider-Man comics, and they are still major players today, even taking part in the 2026 Marvel crossover series Queen in Black. The Freeform series was presented more as a young adult series, which makes sense based on the heroes' ages, but it could also work well in an MCU reboot, bringing them into Spider-Man's world, the Disney+ street-level shows, or even the X-Men, as they have been teased as mutants before. The New Mutants The last mutant movie that Fox made before Disney's takeover was The New Mutants. Released in 2020, this was supposed to both introduce the next generation of mutant heroes and finally open the door for Mister Sinister to make his way into the world as the next big bad of that universe. Neither of those things happened because Marvel planned to start over with the mutant stories, and The New Mutants received terrible reviews. The New Mutants wasn't a terrible movie, although it was a bad adaptation of the comic book team itself. The cast was mostly solid, with Anya Taylor-Joy entertaining as Magik, Charlie Heaton solid as Cannonball, and Maisie Williams perfect as Wolfsbane. The film, as a teenage horror story, worked. As for the introduction of the New Mutants, it just didn't work on any level, story-wise. The MCU needs the New Mutants, and they should be rebooted after Avengers: Secret Wars. Runaways Runaways is a Hulu Marvel series that aired from 2017 to 2019, running for three seasons and 33 total episodes. Based on the comic of the same name, the show follows six kids who learn their parents belong to a supervillain group called the Pride after walking in on a ritual sacrifice meant to revive Jonah, an alien being. The kids then run away and make their own plans to stop their parents. However, one of the kids has other plans. The series was a popular young adult series on Hulu, but there is always a chance to bring it back to the MCU in a slight reboot. The MCU could even keep the cast and just have the Runaways like they are in the comics, or even split some of them off on their own. Nico Minoru has appeared in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and Molly Hayes has been popular among the mutant comics, so there is a place for them in the MCU. Inhumans After the success of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Marvel's Agent Carter, Marvel tried to create another show that could tie into both Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the MCU, but it ended up as a critical failure. Marvel's Inhumans premiered in 2017, even getting its first two episodes shown on IMAX screens as promo material. However, the box office was tepid, and the TV show was highly criticized. It was a hard sell, with Marvel's Inhumans presenting the heroes as royalty and the villains as the people held down and fighting for their place. Marvel realized it had dropped the ball and canceled the show after one season, although there were already random Inhumans in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Anson Mount did reprise his role in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and the Inhumans would be a nice addition back to the MCU on a smaller scale. Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy franchise is one of the most popular in MCU history. With three movies, a holiday special on Disney+, and appearances in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Thor: Love and Thunder, the team was more successful than anyone would have thought. They were based on an obscure Marvel property that only readers knew about, but James Gunn made them the most entertaining thing in the MCU. The Guardians of the Galaxy need to be part of the upcoming cosmic slate of MCU movies, with Nova in development. A new Guardians team was set up at the end of the last franchise, with Rocket now leading a young roster that includes Adam Warlock and Phyla-Vell. Star-Lord could return and meet Nova, but the MCU needs a rebooted lineup of the Guardians after Avengers: Secret Wars. Blade It is sad to know that Mahershala Ali was going to play Blade in the MCU, but the company took so long to do anything that he finally stepped away from the role. Wesley Snipes played Blade in the 1990s and early 2000s, and he returned to the role in Deadpool & Wolverine in a surprise appearance that was highly praised. However, Snipes is a little old for Blade now, and this character needs to be in the MCU. With Ghost Rider arriving in 2028 with Ryan Gosling and a Midnight Sons movie rumored, it is time for Blade to make his MCU debut. Regardless of who plays him, Blade needs either a solo movie, as Ghost Rider is getting, or a key role in the Midnight Sons when that team arrives. Marvel has teased Blade for too long, and he needs to return after Avengers: Secret Wars.