Forget Spider-Man 4’s Black Cat, I Think This X-Men Role Is A Much Better Fit For Sydney Sweeney

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Despite Sydney Sweeney being fan-cast as Black Cat in the MCU, I think she's a far better match for one iconic femme fatale in Marvel Studios' upcoming X-Men reboot. Sydney Sweeney, best known for her roles in Euphoria, The Handmaid's Tale and Anyone But You, has been a popular MCU fan-cast for quite some time. Sweeney's Marvel debut in the laughable Madame Web only made theories of her recasting even more prevalent, but while I'd love her to join the MCU, I have a different opinion on which Marvel Comics character she should play.
The most popular fan-cast theory suggests that Sydney Sweeney would be perfect for Felicia Hardy's Black Cat in the upcoming Spider-Man 4. I wouldn't be mad about this choice, as I think Sweeney and Tom Holland would have fantastic chemistry on-screen, and it would be great to see a love-interest other than MJ in the MCU. However, I don't think Black Cat is a big enough character for Sydney Sweeney, but I know exactly who she should play instead, and this could see her debut as a pivotal and complex character in another huge MCU franchise.

Related 10 MCU Roles Perfect For Sydney Sweeney After Madame Web’s Failure Sydney Sweeney portrayed Julia Cornwall"s Spider-Woman in Sony"s Madame Web, but the film"s poor performance could see her recast in the MCU proper.
I Want Sydney Sweeney To Be The MCU’s Emma Frost, Not Black Cat Emma Frost Is One Of Marvel's Most Notable Mutant Characters

As good a fan-cast as Black Cat is for Sydney Sweeney, I think she'd make a much better Emma Frost in the MCU. Emma Frost is one of Marvel's most powerful, notable and recognizable figures, so would be a fantastic addition to the upcoming mutant-centric storylines that I expect will kick off after Avengers: Secret Wars. Emma Frost has had three live-action adaptations, but none hit the mark. I can vividly picture Sydney Sweeney in this role, however, and portraying such an iconic character would be a brilliant way for her to get redemption after Madame Web.
Emma Frost made her first appearance in Marvel Comics in 1980's The Uncanny X-Men #129, and has been a regular fixture of Marvel's mutant storylines since then.
20th Century Fox Never Got Emma Frost Right Emma Frost Has Been Depicted By Finola Hughes, Tahyna MacManus & January Jones Close Emma Frost has had three previous live-action adaptations, two under the 20th Century Fox banner. The first saw soap opera star Finola Hughes play Emma Frost's White Queen in the 1996 movie, Generation X. This project, which has since become something of a cult classic, failed to capture the imagination of its audience, providing a lackluster story for a rag-tag team of mutants led by Frost. Fox fared better with the character, but still missed the mark several times, which I've been very disappointed to see.
Emma Frost's Notable Appearance
Year
Actor
X-Men: The Animated Series
1994
Cynthia Dale
Generation X
1996
Finola Hughes
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
2009
Tahyna MacManus
X-Men: First Class
2011
January Jones
X-Men '97
2024
Martha Marion
I shouldn't be surprised that the version of Emma Frost from 2009's reviled X-Men Origins: Wolverine was a miss. In fact, X-Men franchise filmmaker Bryan Singer later suggested this version wasn't Emma Frost at all, with Tahyna MacManus' (née Tozzi) "Emma" just being a mutant with similar abilities, which I think is a tragic insult. January Jones did a far better job in 2011's X-Men: First Class, but she still managed to strip away all of Emma Frost's personality, creating a pretty boring character instead. I reckon Sydney Sweeney could fix these problems.
Why Sydney Sweeney Would Be Perfect For Emma Frost In The MCU Sydney Sweeney Has Proven Herself To Be An Incredible Actor

Sydney Sweeney has gone from strength to strength since her breakthrough role of Cassie Howard in Euphoria. This heavy-hitting series showed off Sweeney's remarkable acting talents, as she delivered drama, intensity and vulnerability throughout, and these qualities would translate perfectly into Emma Frost. More recently, Sweeney has branched out into comedy, and continues to produce dramatic performances, and with each new role, I can picture Emma Frost more and more clearly.
Sydney Sweeney's role of Julia Cornwall in Sony's Madame Web movie was met with controversy, but not due to Sweeney's own performance. Cornwall was adapted from the more steadfast Julia Carpenter from Marvel Comics, who I would have preferred to see adapted more faithfully.
Not only does Sydney Sweeney certainly have the acting talent to portray Emma Frost, the complex and layered villain-turned-hero, but Sweeney also looks strikingly like the mutant from Marvel Comics. Blonde hair and a striking sense of fashion are qualities shared by Emma Frost and Sydney Sweeney, and the latter is also young enough, at 27-years-old, to play Frost for many years to come. This makes me hopeful that Emma Frost could be developed gradually, exploring her full transformation from villain to X-Men leader for the first time in live-action.
Sydney Sweeney’s Emma Frost Could Be Central To The MCU’s X-Men Stories Emma Frost's Marvel Stories Were Barely Explored At All In Fox's X-Men Franchise

Emma Frost is one of my favorite mutant characters from Marvel Comics, so I've been severely disappointed that she's never had a good live-action adaptation. Fox completely underutilized Frost, making her nothing but a boring villain or a meaningless side character. This is not who Emma Frost should be. While Frost started her Marvel Comics journey as the villainous White Queen of the Hellfire Club and the leader of the Hellions, she found herself teaming up with the X-Men several times, and eventually joined the team after Cassandra Nova's genocide on Genosha.

Related 12 Most Important X-Men For The MCU To Introduce, Ranked The MCU"s X-Men are coming, and Marvel Studios could introduce any of the mutant characters from Marvel Comics, but some are more crucial than others.
Not just a heroic member of the X-Men, Emma Frost eventually even became a leader of the iconic mutant superhero team. This evolution was never seen in Fox's X-Men franchise, but I think Marvel Studios has the perfect opportunity to rectify this massive mistake in the MCU's upcoming X-Men reboot. Sydney Sweeney is notable enough to take on a role as massive as Emma Frost, and young enough to play the formidable villain-turned-hero for many years to come, which makes me very excited.

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Not Yet Rated ActionSuperhero Marvel's X-Men is the tentative title for the future debut of the legendary Marvel mutant superhero team in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Studio(s) Marvel Studios Distributor(s) Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Writers Michael Lesslie Upcoming MCU Movies