9-1-1’s Anirudh Pisharody is ready to take on the role of Nightcrawler for Marvel Studio’s upcoming X-Men reboot, and fans are rallying behind him.
The cast of Marvel’s X-Men flick is still being fleshed out, leaving ample room for speculation as to who will be joining the already-confirmed list of stars. A few were confirmed at D23 this year, with Inde Navarrette revealed as Rogue, Maya Boyd as Storm, Christopher Abbott as Professor X, and Adam Driver as Mister Sinister.
There are a few notable mutants who have yet to be revealed as part of the film, one of whom is Nightcrawler. While Alan Cumming reprising the role in Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel’s X-Men movie is expected to be a reboot of the franchise, meaning that a different, younger actor could be stepping into the role moving forward.
Enter Anirudh Pisharody. He’s an Indian-American actor best known for his performances in Never Have I Ever and 9-1-1, with other notable roles in Big Sky, The Goldbergs, Last Man Standing, and Unit 234.
On August 23, Pisharody responded to a fan’s tweet showing a side-by-side of the actor and panels of Nightcrawler from the X-Men comics. “Anirudh would devour as Nightcrawler,” they wrote.
“So, so down,” Pisharody responded in a quote tweet, tagging Marvel Studios alongside the scheming devil face emoji.
so so down @MarvelStudios 😈 https://t.co/OAPM6lvOYP
— Anirudh Pisharody (@AnirudhPish) August 23, 2026
Fans are flooding the comments section to vouch for him, with multiple users tagging Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige on several different platforms to make sure he’s aware of just how eager they are to see him in the role. (Still others are holding out hope that he’ll take the role of Prince Naveen in Disney’s upcoming live action Princess and the Frog remake.)
“Yes, make your move!” one excited fan wrote.
“I would be down if you could master a German accent,” another remarked.
“Role assigned to you already,” another wrote. “Remember me when it happens…”
Pisharody isn’t the only notable name vying for a role in Marvel’s X-Men movie; in a similar story, Reacher star Agnez Mo also responded to fan calls for Feige to cast her as Psylocke on social media.
“Thanks! I’m just gonna put it out to the universe… Psylocke,” she wrote, tagging the Marvel and Marvel Studios accounts.
Other names already confirmed for Marvel’s X-Men include Samara Weaving as Emma Frost (one of the most accurate castings we’ve seen thus far, to be frank), and Kit Connor as Cyclops.
Thanks! I’m just gonna put it out to the universe… Psylocke. @MarvelStudios @Marvel 💜
(Although @BoinkBuzz that’s my AI pic tho 😫) https://t.co/Lb5oCFEnhk
— AGNEZ MO (@agnezmo) August 23, 2026
With Avengers: Doomsday looming on the horizon, it’s expected that more will be revealed about the new generation of X-Men in the coming months. For more on the project, you can check out what Sadie Sink had to say about her ‘mysterious’ role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day and how she feels now that her big secret is out in the open.
Image Credits: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images, Marvel
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.
