James Marsden found himself in the hot seat Monday night when he returned to Jimmy Kimmel Live!
He was confronted about a very memorable fib.
Back in January 2025, Marsden had downplayed speculation that he would reprise his role as Cyclops after footage from the X -Men films appeared in the Deadpool & Wolverine credits.
When pressed by Kimmel at the time, he flatly said, “Ah, no.”
But just weeks later, Marvel confirmed Marsden’s comeback in Avengers: Doomsday, alongside several former costars.
“I felt a sense of confusion, and betrayal,” the host teased, replaying Marsden’s “very, very shifty” denial in slow motion.
Marsden didn’t dodge this time.
“I’m not a very good liar,” he admitted, before clarifying, “I was being coy… I learned that with these movies, you can’t say anything.”
Now, he insisted, “I’m here to tell the truth.”
Marsden recalled that there had been “hints” and “chat about it for years,” but he didn’t believe the return was real until the deal was finalized.
And when it came time to suit up again as Scott Summers, Marsden confessed to some nerves.
“Of course — would I fit in it? What did it look like?” he said.
But fans can rest easy, “I can tell everyone now,” Avengers: Doomsday will feature “the original costume from the comics, which is pretty cool.”
The December 2026 release will mark Marsden’s first time back in Cyclops’ visor since X Men: The Last Stand in 2006, a comeback nearly two decades in the making.
