Noah Hawley, the creator and showrunner of Fox’s mind-melting Legion TV series, has spoken about the lack of Professor X in this X-Men-adjacent show. Fans of the comics will know that Dan Stevens’ David Haller is the son of Charles Xavier, the founder of the X-Men, who is portrayed on film by Patrick Stewart and James McAvoy.
There have been nods to Professor X in the show – a bald head in the pilot episode, an iconic wheelchair making a cameo, a chalkboard demonstration of David’s father battling the Shadow King, and a line from Days Of Future Past in the season 2 trailers – but, as of yet, no actual appearance from the iconic headteacher/superhero.
“It’s not a rights issue or a legal issue, it’s more about corporate synergy,” Hawley has clarified, speaking about the absence of Charles Xavier, in a brand new interview. “There are a lot of people with opinions and strategies for franchise development. But I think we’ll be victorious in the end because our hearts are pure.”
Hawley, at this stage, isn’t even sure which version of Xavier – McAvoy, Stewart, or perhaps someone new – would appear in the show: “We move around a lot in time with the show. I haven’t really settled on which version we’ll see,” Hawley explained.
Dan Stevens, meanwhile, revealed that he’s “always putting words in Patrick’s ear to come on the show. I think it would be great if David met his true father”.
As it stands, nothing is confirmed. We’ll keep our ears to the ground and let you know if we hear anything.