‘Legion’ May Add Professor X, And Dan Stevens Still Wants Patrick Stewart To Play Him

If you haven’t been watching FX’s Legion, you’re missing out on a crazy fun show. We just learned about a new castmember for season 2 from Legion‘s Comic-Con panel on Thursday, but that’s not the only potential new castmember they teased. They also had to field the obligatory questions about David Heller’s (Dan Stevens) biological father, Professor X.

Although the show has never specified if David is Professor X’s son on the show as he is in the comics, they did establish that David was adopted and his father was trying to protect him from a powerful mutant the family was fighting. Then, in “Chapter 7”, the show heavily hinted at Professor X’s involvement with a vision David had in a scene where he’s having a conversation in a classroom with his own subconscious, who has a different accent than him (did we mention this show is delightfully bonkers).

When asked during Legion‘s Comic-Con panel about bringing Professor X to the series, showrunner Noah Hawley responded sarcastically, “I hadn’t thought of that. That could be good, right” Executive producer Jeph Loeb replied, “Sure.” Hawley went on to say they “are working on it” and he recounted a scene from the comics that piqued his interest:

“I remember when Professor X had that battle with the Shadow King. They’re just sitting in the restaurant, and no one would know they’re battling on this other astral plane. When the Shadow King loses, his head just falls down on the table. […] It always felt like this really interesting thing we could build into.” (Via)

When asked which version of Professor X would appear, Hawley answered it would depend on the actor they cast, “And when we reach that part of the story, is it funnier if he’s older or younger than his dad”

Stevens already has someone in mind to play his dad: Patrick Stewart. He brought that up with Stewart on The Late Late Show back in March, and referenced that exchange during the Comic-Con panel. “I like to call [Stewart] pops. I was on a talk show with him and he said he was up for it.” Stevens also turned to Jeph Loeb and said, “He seemed very into the idea, Jeph.”

Stevens and Hawley also addressed the Professor X question in a separate interview with Entertainment Tonight on Thursday. Stevens again mentioned the conversation he had with Patrick Stewart, saying “[Stewart] did seem interested. He seemed very unaware of the show.” He went on, “I mentioned that he was my dad, and he seemed pleasantly surprised.” Meanwhile, Hawley said they do want to delve into the identity of David’s family in season 2. “I think we want to address that. It’s normal when you learn you’re adopted to want to know who your real family is.” If Patrick Stewart were our dad, we’d want to know, too, if only to taunt people with “My dad can beat up your dad on the astral plane.”