The X-Men are some of Marvel's most popular characters and have been reminding audiences why over the last couple of years. Ever since the X-Men were allowed back into the spotlight after an extended period of being shunted off to the side due to rights issues in the real world, the future is bright for mutants.
With the first mutant already confirmed in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and more certainly on the way, the Dawn of X may, at long last, truly be upon us. But the X-Men's allure extends well beyond the silver and TV screens. In fact, one possible real-world application of their popularity could be the key to the future of Disney Parks -- and could even finally give Disney Parks its answer to a chief rival.
The 2019 Disney/Fox acquisition was a paradigm shift for the film industry as a whole, resulting in Disney gaining control over numerous projects and properties -- including much of the remaining Marvel Universe. This included the X-Men, arguably one of the superhero genre's most important and viable franchises. The X-Men are full of characters who could carry their own film series; they help flesh out the rest of the ever-expanding MCU with a new fresh group of characters, and their inherent messaging is synonymous with the general tone of Disney properties.
But the single biggest perk that Disney gains by controlling the X-Men is having access to use their characters and concepts for its theme parks. Often heralded as one of the most important pieces of Disney as a company, the Disney Parks make a staggering amount of money -- according to WDW News Today, the Disney Parks made $6.7 billion in the Q2 of 2022 alone. Disney productions that can have an impact at the Disney Parks, therefore, come with a greater level of importance to the company -- and that's exactly what the X-Men's corner of the Marvel Universe offers because an X-Men-centric addition to Disney Parks might be the ultimate evolution of the franchise's potential as a moneymaker for the company.
The X-Men's primary base of operations has shifted over the years depending on the era and direction of the series, but the primary home for the team has long been the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters. An academy and second home for mutants of all shapes and sizes, it's proven to be one of the most enduring settings in the Marvel Universe. It's also effortlessly a new potential counterpoint to one of the Disney Parks' greatest American-based rivals: Hogwarts, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter sections of the Universal Studios Parks in California, Florida and Japan. Patterned after the magical school from the Harry Potter franchise, these settings have been huge financial successes for the parks and have helped maintain Universal Studio's status as one of the biggest modern rivals to the Disney Parks.
Now though, with the X-Men as one option to escalate in the park (similar to Galaxy's Edge, a Star Wars-inspired section of Disney World and Disneyland), Disney could actually take lessons from what Universal Studios has done with Harry Potter and expand upon it. Guests could travel the grounds of the Xavier Institute similar to Hogwarts, with plenty of opportunities to interact with Easter eggs or buy merchandise. Younger fans could even enroll in the Xavier Institute, similar to how children can get robes and wands from Universal Studios.
It's essentially a combination of the already-popular Avengers Campus section of the Disney Parks and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a way for fans of all ages to not only explore the world of the X-Men but to interact directly with it and become a part of it. In theory, an X-Men expansion of the Disney Parks could be an ideal way to capitalize on the X-Men and their popularity -- and further seed Marvel characters into the Disney experience.