X-Males: The On-Display screen Deaths of Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Ranked

Professor Charles Xavier is again! The third teaser for Avengers: Doomsday exhibits Patrick Stewart in his Professor X digs as soon as once more, sitting within the Xavier Mansion alongside his previous frenemy Magneto, as soon as once more portrayed by Ian McKellan. Whereas the teaser boasts the return of the solid of the 2000s X-Males motion pictures, together with James Marsden as Cyclops in blue and yellow spandex, that return is available in a film in regards to the finish of the Marvel Multiverse. Which implies that Professor X is probably going not lengthy for this world.

Xavier’s demise received’t come as a shock, and never simply due to Doomsday‘s apocalyptic stakes. In any case, not solely have we seen Professor X die on display screen a number of occasions earlier than, however we’ve seen Professor X as performed by Patrick Stewart come to an finish in three totally different motion pictures. (Sure, simply three motion pictures; the previous modifications proper earlier than he will get cooked by a Sentinel inX-Males: Days of Future Previous, in order that doesn’t rely). So earlier than we get to observe Stewart’s newest tackle Xavier’s closing moments, let’s rank his earlier three dying rattles.

3. Explosive Retribution in X-Males: The Final Stand (2006)

Though he began out as a totally benevolent determine within the Sixties, by the comics of the early Nineteen Eighties, Charles Xavier had develop into a extra morally ambiguous character. More often than not, he’s a kindhearted trainer who goals of peace between people and mutants. However he’s not above manipulation, threats, and outright villainy (see: X-Males: Lethal Genesis).

Through the manufacturing of the third film X-Males: The Final Stand, the franchise was coping with its personal unhealthy guys, going from Bryan Singer for Brett Ratner as director. Whether or not its on account of a change of individual in cost or a foul script or the shortcoming of a film to correctly adapt the Darkish Phoenix Saga, The Final Stand failed at all the pieces, together with exploring Xavier’s toes of clay. The film reveals that Xavier knew about Jean Gray’s unimaginable potential and, fearing that she couldn’t management it, put a psychological block on her. When her dying and resurrection removes the block, Jean proves Xavier proper instantly by killing each Cyclops and Professor X.

On paper, it makes tragic sense to have Xavier die by the very risk he hoped to keep away from. In execution, Xavier’s execution falls flat. Jean’s Phoenix powers principally manifest in a number of wind, which raise Xavier into the air. After which there’s the completely absurd resolution to have Xavier flash a contented smile at Logan proper earlier than he dies, as a result of that is an X-Males film from the 2000s and all the pieces needs to be about Wolverine.

Anyway, Xavier explodes and dies. Not less than till the post-credit scene, wherein Charles apparently has taken over the physique of a coma affected person to go to his previous squeeze Moria MacTaggert, which is fairly villainous conduct.

2. A Head-Turner in Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity (2022)

Talking of heroes who develop into villains: Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity! As an alternative of the Darkish Phoenix Saga, the Physician Unusual sequel adapts a unique Marvel Comedian co-created by John Byrne wherein a lady will get an excessive amount of energy and subsequently is evil. This time, it’s Wanda Maximoff, who apparently disregarded all the pieces Monica Rambeau instructed her about not being evil on the finish of WandaVision and embraced the Darkhold. Utilizing the Darkhold to journey the Multiverse and discover her children, Wanda poses a risk to all realities, which will get the eye of not simply Physician Stephen Unusual, but additionally the Illuminati of Earth-838, together with Charles Xavier.

Whereas the Illuminati’s powerhouses equivalent to Black Bolt and Captain Marvel threaten power if Wanda doesn’t stand down, Xavier tries a extra sympathetic method. He enters Wanda’s thoughts to search out her true self inside, the first rate mom that’s Wanda of Earth-838 and who’s held hostage by the corrupted Wanda of Earth-616. His methodology proves unsuccessful. Whereas nonetheless making an attempt to contact 838 Wanda, the corporeal 616 Wanda jumps out of purple smoke and snaps the neck of Charles.

There are numerous causes to hate this scene, particularly in case you beloved WandaVision and resent the way in which Multiverse of Insanity by means of that growth out the window. However there’s one actually, actually good cause to like the scene, and that’s Sam Raimi. Raimi shoots Wanda’s Illuminati rampage like one among his Evil Lifeless movies, full the identical gleeful, Three Stooges-inspired horror that make these motion pictures so great.

Xavier’s dying in Physician Unusual 2 performs like a slapstick gag, completely devoid of dignity however stuffed with irreverent enjoyable.

1. Dying With Dignity in Logan (2017)

Nothing can diminish the facility of Stewart’s work in Logan, not Sam Raimi’s irreverence, not Deadpool desecrating Logan’s literal corpse, not even the constraints of the superhero style. For that cause, Xavier’s sluggish and transferring decline in that film stays his greatest dying, in any medium.

Director James Mangold and his co-writers Scott Frank and Michael Inexperienced strip out a lot of the edgelord nonsense that marred Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s Outdated Man Logan comedian e-book to emphasise the pathos inside. Whereas Wolverine has it unhealthy, together with his adamantium skeleton poisoning him as his therapeutic issue fades, Xavier has it worse. The professor is within the throes of dementia like some other individual, however he nonetheless has his unimaginable psychic talents, making him successfully a strolling psy-bomb.

Patrick Stewart provides one among his greatest performances because the dying Xavier, believably enjoying not simply the anger and resentment he feels when his dying mind leaves him confused, but additionally the disappointment of his actions and the hope he has in Logan, his one surviving pupil.

Stewart conveys all of the complexity of his character in Xavier’s closing scene, an extended confession and declaration of peace after he wakes from one final good night time’s sleep. It’s so transferring that we virtually forgive for Mangold for ending the monologue with a superhero twist, because it’s revealed that the person to whom he’s been confessing shouldn’t be Logan however an evil clone.

The clone kills Xavier, X-23 assaults and we get a giant battle scene as a result of that is, in spite of everything, a superhero film. However the precise confession and dying is so transferring that nothing can destroy it—not a clone battle, not a Deadpool 3, and definitely not Avengers: Doomsday.

Avengers: Doomsday will kill Professor X once more on December 18, 2026.

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