James McAvoy Calls ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Great While Reflecting on the Mashup Era

Few superhero movies have loomed as large over the genre as ‘Avengers: Infinity War’. Released April 27, 2018, it gathered nearly every hero in the MCU into one story about stopping Thanos from collecting all six Infinity Stones. It became the first superhero film to gross over $2 billion worldwide.

The Russo brothers directed, and critics largely praised Josh Brolin’s Thanos, the directors’ handling of the sprawling cast, and the film’s dark tone. It also broke records with a $250 million domestic opening and a $630 million global debut. Years later, its shadow still falls across the crossover-heavy blockbusters that followed.

That is part of why a comment from an actor outside the MCU has people talking. James McAvoy, who spent years as Professor X in Fox’s ‘X-Men’ films, has weighed in on the movie that defined Marvel’s team-up era.

During a conversation on Josh Horowitz’s ‘Happy Sad Confused’ podcast, McAvoy offered a short and simple verdict on the Marvel blockbuster, saying “Infinity War is great.” The remark came as he reflected on the age of cross-franchise team-ups and where it all began.

That same discussion saw him look back at ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’, which he said arrived early in the era of casts and timelines being mashed together. ComicBook.com noted that the film was a pioneer of the crossover movies that followed, citing ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ and ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’. McAvoy also admitted he initially doubted that film’s direction before changing his mind.

The compliment carries extra weight because of McAvoy’s own history with Marvel. He played Charles Xavier in ‘X-Men: First Class’ in 2011, then returned for ‘Days of Future Past’, ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’, ‘Deadpool 2’ and ‘Dark Phoenix’, his last outing in 2019. In other words, he lived through the studio-era divide that ‘Infinity War’ helped define.

He has been candid about that chapter before. In an interview with GQ, he said he doesn’t see his Marvel work as just money gigs and that ‘Days of Future Past’ is one of the better films he has made. He also said he hasn’t received a call from Kevin Feige about returning, but isn’t morally opposed to the idea.

The timing is notable, because the MCU is now bringing the Fox X-Men into its own universe. Marvel has confirmed Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Cyclops, Kelsey Grammer as Beast and Rebecca Romijn as Mystique for ‘Avengers: Doomsday’. Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler and Channing Tatum’s Gambit are also on the cast list.

McAvoy is not among the confirmed names. Marvel insider Alex Perez said he heavily doubts the ‘First Class’ cast will return and that nothing has been mentioned on that front, though that remains an unverified rumor. The Russo brothers are directing ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, which is scheduled for Dec. 18.

That gives McAvoy’s praise a neat full-circle quality. The directors of ‘Infinity War’ are back for another giant ensemble story, and it’s drawing on the same sort of crossover thinking that McAvoy says the ‘X-Men’ films were already toying with.

Rotten Tomatoes’ critics consensus says the film ably juggles a dizzying array of MCU heroes and mostly realizes its gargantuan ambitions. Not every critic was on board, though, and some found the spectacle noisy and bloated. That split is part of why the movie still sparks debate years later.

Its sequel, ‘Avengers: Endgame’, followed in April 2019 and closed out the Infinity Saga. Since then, the idea of reuniting actors and universes has become commonplace, with ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ both built on it.

McAvoy’s brief comment is hardly a headline-grabbing review, but it’s a fun reminder that the people who helped start the trend are still paying attention to where it went. For fans who would love to see Xavier’s younger self cross over one day, even a short compliment feels like a promising sign.

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