Disney+ is currently developing a new animated project starring Marvel’s mutants in X-Men ’97, and its writer has spoken about how the ’90s animated series influenced his life.
In an exclusive interview on TheDirectscreenwriter Beau DeMayo, responsible for the Marvel Studios animated project, X-Men ’97 , was able to talk about the influence of the mutant animated series in the 90s, and many other fans around the world.
The writer began by making it clear that “grew up with the X-Men: The Animated Series”and how it helped him make sense of the unique circumstances of his life:
“I grew up with the series, I watched it. I was adopted, I think that’s what brought me to the series. My parents are white, my sister is from Korea, they were also adopted, and I was gay, I grew up in the south… everyone has a sad history, but X-Men was my way of making sense of it, this strange family where no one looked like me, we were not blood, but we were supposed to be family».
The series also tied his passion for storytelling together and even helped him form an understanding of what racism was:
“And then I think just watching that cartoon every weekend, it kind of tied my passion for storytelling together, definitely, and really helped me understand myself. I was drawn to comics, and then when I realized I was gay, and when I even just understood what racism was: I was growing up with white people accepting black people, so I never really understood racism as one thing until I got older. It was like a late development. I’ll tell you, the X-Men comics were probably my lifeline in understanding how to navigate the world.”.
DeMayo went on to say, “Anyone who feels different, we all have a Magneto inside of us, and we all have a Charles Xavier. We all have a part of us that wants to burn it all down, and there’s a part of us that wants to find compromise and build it. And those comics really helped me understand what my identity was in a way that a lot of the kids and students at Xavier’s school do. The first script I wrote, literally no nonsense, was when I was seventeen. Terrible script, terrible format, but it was X-Men fan fiction. It was terrible. But now it’s surreal to lead this revival, in a tremendous way. It’s just a dream come true, as a cliché. how it sounds”.
He also revealed that the group of mutants is very close to the heart of Marvel Studios:
“…X-Men, in particular, is something that is very close to the hearts of Marvel Studios, now that it is back at the studio. That has been different. It’s like the X-Men mean a lot to them. There is a weight and a responsibility there…”
Hearing DeMayo talk about why the iconic group of mutants means so much to him, it’s clear why Marvel chose him for the project, and it certainly sounds like the return of the ’90s mutants is in good hands.
Rumor has it that X-Men ’97 could premiere in 2023 on Disney+ and will feature ten episodes in its first season. If you are not yet a subscriber to the streaming service, you can sign up at this link.