While promoting his new Hulu comedy Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, James Marsden got candid about stepping back into one of his most iconic roles—Cyclops—in Avengers: Doomsday, and how the experience feels completely different this time around.
Looking back on the original X-Men, Marsden didn’t hold back about just how overwhelming that moment was early in his career.
“If I had to go back and relive one moment, it would probably be the first X-Men,” he shared. “It was such a monumental time for me. I had never done anything on that scale before.”
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At the time, he was the youngest on set and still finding his footing in Hollywood. “I was shaking in my boots,” Marsden admitted. “I was the least known—pretty green and just trying to keep up.”
Despite the nerves, there was a feeling on set that something special was happening.
“It felt electric,” he said. “Like we were making something really groundbreaking.”
Now, years later, that journey comes full circle as he reprises Cyclops—this time in a comic-accurate suit and with a completely new perspective.
“I was a little worried if I’d even fit into the suit,” he joked. “It’s been over 20 years. But putting on that blue, comic-accurate suit—it was surreal.”
Marsden described the experience as both nostalgic and unexpectedly emotional.
“It felt like a reunion,” he said. “Bringing these worlds together was wild, but it was also really joyful. It felt celebratory.”
And unlike his earlier days, Marsden now approaches the role with a new level of confidence.
“Back then, I was just a kid—pretty fresh,” he explained. “Now I feel like… okay, I’ve got this.”
Alongside revisiting the past, Marsden is also leaning into something completely different with Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice—a chaotic, time-bending comedy that’s packed with surprising Easter eggs. The film even features subtle nods to franchises like Sonic the Hedgehog and Blade, adding an extra layer of fun for fans paying close attention.
