Preparations are gathering pace for Alan Cumming's triumphant return to the X-Men franchise and his eagerly anticipated debut within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The charismatic host of The Traitors is among a stellar ensemble cast joining Marvel's Avengers: Doomsday, where he will once again don the role of Kurt Wagner, alias Nightcrawler. With the film gearing up for a cinematic splash in May 2026, Cumming has revealed that he has already undergone makeup trials, showcasing the remarkable strides made in SFX makeup technology since he last portrayed the blue-skinned mutant two decades ago.
"I've already undergone a few makeup tests," Cumming shared during a Friday appearance on Today with Jenna & Friends. "It previously took around four and a half to five hours, but now it's a mere 90 minutes." Cumming elaborated that during his earlier stint as Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United in 2003, "all the tattoos" adorning his character's skin "were meticulously hand-painted as they hadn't been finalized before filming commenced." However, for his upcoming role in Doomsday, the process has been streamlined. "Now, they're applied using these small adhesive stickers," he said of Nightcrawler's distinctive tattoos, "It's truly revolutionary."
The two-time Emmy Award winner also expressed his astonishment at returning to the X-Men franchise as "a 60-year-old superhero," noting that it had been "23 years since I last played a superhero." Cumming highlighted that the film was currently in the pre-production stage and that everyone he had encountered on the project "seemed delightfully wonderful."
"[Avengers: Doomsday] will start shooting very soon," Cumming added with excitement. "It's going to be absolutely bonkers."
The latest Avengers film promises to be a grand convergence of actors from the MCU's past, present, and future, all compressed into one epic flick. On March 26, Marvel confirmed a lengthy list of Doomsday's cast, including MCU stalwarts like Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Anthony Mackie (Captain America), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Letitia Wright (Black Panther), Simu Liu (Shang-Chi), Danny Ramirez (The Falcon), and Winston Duke (M'Baku), along with Robert Downey Jr. in his fresh avatar as Doctor Doom.
Notably, Doomsday marks the first Avengers film to feature the X-Men in such a prominent capacity. Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), James Marsden (Cyclops), and Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), all veterans of the seminal 2000 X-Men film, join the ensemble alongside Cumming (Nightcrawler) from X2: X-Men United and Kelsey Grammer (Beast) from X-Men: The Last Stand (2006).
