Summary
Fox’sX-Menmovies brought Marvel’s mutants to life on the big screen, and they each featured excellent and memorable quotes. From the very beginning ofFox’sX-Menmovie timeline, the franchise sought to capture the essence of Marvel’s iconic mutant heroes and villains. As with any movie franchise, theX-Menmovies had their share of ups and downs, but each of their portrayals of the characters had some degree of merit.
Each ofFox’sX-Menmoviesfeatured an expansive ensemble cast, bringing many Marvel characters to life in each adaptation. In every entry into the franchise, at least one of their respective characters was able to stand out with a particularly memorable quote that captured the spirit of either them as an individual or the overall themes of Marvel’s X-Men stories. With that in mind, here is the best quote from eachX-Menmovie.
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Thecast of 2000’sX-Menfeatured many memorable takes on iconic characters, but few were as well-received as Ian McKellen’s Magneto. The film introduces the complex conflict between Magneto’s Brotherhood of Mutants and Professor X’s X-Men, with the latter setting out to thwart Magneto’s plan to convert all of the world’s leaders into mutants. The film’s conclusion sees Magneto stopped and imprisoned, with one of the film’s final moments showing Charles Xavier visiting his former friend.
The exchange between Magneto and Professor X is packed with quotable lines, but the most chilling of all is Magneto’s assertion that “the war is still coming, Charles. And I intend to fight it by any means necessary.”It’s a line that perfectly captures Magneto’s entire motivation, succinctly outlining the issue that leads to the two characters’ opposing stances across the entire franchise.
Of all of the elements ofX2that make it one of the best movies in Fox’s franchise, Pyro is perhaps the most underrated one of them. Introduced as one of the movie’s new additions to the team, Pyro is a hard-headed and arrogant young mutant with the ability to manipulate fire. His friendship with Iceman and Rogue sees him escape with them after William Stryker’s attack on the Xavier Institute.
After being cornered by Stryker’s forces at the Drakes' house, Pyro steps up to get on the offensive, declaring: “You know all those dangerous mutants you hear about on the news? I’m the worst one.”The line marks Pyro’s abandonment of Xavier’s philosophy and the beginning of his villain turn, culminating in him joining Magneto later in the film. It’s an important line for the character, and demonstrates how easily young mutants can become radicalized.
Long before he was announced to be appearing as part ofDeadpool & Wolverine’s cast,Hugh Jackman was an iconic part of Fox’s originalX-Mentrilogy. ThoughX-Men: The Last Standhas always been considered the worst of the original three-film arc, Wolverine was given an excellent line at the most emotional moment in the entire movie. It comes as Jean Grey is unable to fight against the Phoenix Force, and the powerful entity inside her is building to destroy all life on Earth.
Painfully approaching thanks to his regenerative healing factor, the Phoenix asks him if he’d really die for a world that hates him, and he replies: “No, not for them. For you.” Then, he delivers a final “I love you” before killing the woman he loves and saving the world.It’s perhaps the only moment inThe Last Standthat feels genuinely emotional, marking it as the best quote from the film.
Much like its predecessor,X-Men Origins: Wolverineis not considered one of Fox’s better offerings in theX-Menfranchise. However, it does chronicle a number of important developments in Wolverine’s story, including his romance with Kayla Silverfox and its heartbreaking ending. After believing her to be dead, a grieving Logan explains: “My whole life I thought I was an animal. Then she came along.”
Logan’s assessment of his relationship is heartbreaking, particularly as the relationship (and Kayla’s death) is all revealed to have been nothing more than manipulation. The way that Logan sees Kayla is especially touching because of the way he had been treated previously, and upsetting as nothing appears to change afterward. It’s not just those aspects that make the quote memorable, though, asJackman’s performance is powerful and layered, perfectly capturing the essence of the character.
X-Men: First Classreintroduced key figures from Marvel’s pantheon of mutants in a 1960s-set prequel chronicling the early days of Professor X and Magneto. The film focused on the actions of its villain, Sebastian Shaw, and his contributions to Magneto’s origin story, experimenting on him during WWII by forcing him to use his powers to move a coin. The film’s best quote comes during its climax, when Magneto finally comes face to face with Shaw once again.
Using the same coin from all those years before, Magneto uses the same line that Shaw would utter to him during his inhumane experiments. Magneto coldly tells Shaw: “This is what’s going to happen. I’m going to count to three, and then I’m going to move the coin.” He then uses his powers to drive the coin through Shaw’s skull, killing him.It’s a triumphant moment that also cements the dark path of vengeance that Magneto is embarking upon, making it an excellent quote.
2013’sThe Wolverineadapted a beloved comic book arc into live-action, with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine heading to Japan to reconnect with a figure from his past. After uncovering a plot to transfer his healing ability, Logan is forced to fight without the use of one of his most important assets. The film features a number of great quotes, but by far the best comes during the film’s climactic battle.
While fighting with Shingen Yashida, Logan is repeatedly stabbed and wounded. The villain continues to fight against the hero, only to eventually become incredulous at his ability to keep fighting. In disbelief, Shingen utters the line: “what kind of monster are you?”, perfectly capturing just what an unstoppable force Logan can be.It’s a line that speaks to the mutant’s willpower and his frightening presence from his enemies’ point of view, shoring up some of the movie’s core themes.
X-Men: Days of Future Pastcombined the two separate timelines of Fox’sX-Menfranchise by having Wolverine travel from a dark future in order to prevent the subjugation of mutants by Bolivar Trask’s Sentinels. The movie’s climax saw Magneto take control of the Sentinels and set out to attack the President of the United States. In a show of force, Magneto uses his abilities to lift an entire stadium while controlling the Sentinels, declaring his intentions to the world.
In a rousing and frightening speech, Magneto outlines how poorly humanity has treated mutants. He then goes on to directly address his own kind, saying: “To my mutant brothers and sisters out there, I say this: No more hiding. No more suffering.”It comes across as a declaration of war that seems all but certain to ignite a mutant rebellion, expertly delivered by Michael Fassbender, making it a perfect Magneto moment.
The manycharacters inX-Men: Apocalypseface off against the titular villain in epic fashion, and in spite of the movie’s shortcomings, there are a number of great quotes contained within the movie. After defeating Apocalypse and saving the Earth, the X-Men of Fox’s earlier timeline outline their differing stances on other issues facing the world’s mutants. A late exchange between James McAvoy’s Professor X and Michael Fassbender’s Magneto serves up by far the best quote of the movie.
Professor X declares to Magneto that he “feels a great swell of pity for the poor soul that comes to my school looking for trouble.”The line perfectly mirrors one from 2000’sX-Menspoken by Patrick Stewart’s Professor X to Ian McKellen’s Magneto, drawing an excellent parallel between the two timelines. The throwback is a great and unexpected link to the franchise’s other iteration of its heroes.
Loganis widely considered one of the best superhero movies ever made, loosely adapting the beloved Old Man Logan storyline of the comics. The movie follows a version of Logan who has all but lost his healing factor, and who discovers his DNA has been used to create a child. While helping her escape to find freedom, he is fatally wounded, prompting an emotional ending for the iconic hero. His death scene is incredibly powerful, and his last line is one of the movie’s best quotes.
As Logan dies, he simply says: “So this is what it feels like.”The line captures Logan’s quiet curiosity about the one thing that he had been surrounded by all his life.Having seen countless friends and loved ones die, his final words being an acknowledgment that he too will finally experience death is a subtly powerful and poignant end for the character.
Dark Phoenixis far from the most popular movie in Fox’s franchise – in fact, many consider it by far the worst. Its adaptation of the story of the same name might have been lacking in some ways, but the film still features some excellent quotes. Perhaps the most memorable comes after Mystique’s death, when an enraged Hank McCoy is directing his anger at Charles Xavier.
In the heat of the moment, McCoy tells Xavier: “This whole time, we’ve been trying to protect these kids from the world, when really, we should’ve been protecting them from you.” It’s a cutting remark that captures Beast’s upset over Mystique’s death and Xavier’s part in it.The human drama of the moment is exceptionally communicated by the line, and it also represents the growing disputes between different members of the X-Men.
