Deadline reports Marvel Studios has chosen Kit Connor to play Scott Summers, better known as Cyclops, in its upcoming X-Men movie.
The trade says director Jake Schreier and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige met with several candidates before selecting Connor. Marvel and Connor's representatives did not comment on the casting.
Cyclops leads Marvel's original X-Men
Scott Summers was part of the first X-Men team introduced by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1963. His eyes release powerful concussive energy, forcing him to use a ruby-quartz visor to control the blasts. He frequently leads the team in the field.
James Marsden played Cyclops in the first X-Men film series, and Tye Sheridan played a younger Scott in the later prequel movies. Connor's reported role belongs to Marvel Studios' new version of the team, so those earlier films do not establish how Schreier will approach the character.
Marvel's new X-Men movie is taking shape
Schreier, who directed Thunderbolts*, is developing the movie with writers Lee Sung Jin and Joanna Calo. Deadline previously reported that Samara Weaving is in line to play Emma Frost.
Connor stars as Nick Nelson in Netflix's Heartstopper Forever. His recent film credits include Alex Garland's Warfare, and he is also part of Garland's upcoming Elden Ring adaptation.
Sources: Deadline's original casting report, Marvel's Cyclops character history and Netflix's official Heartstopper Forever page.
Image: Samuel Dore / Netflix.