The X-Men movies don’t have one flawless chronology. The franchise jumps between eras several times, goes back into the past, and after X-Men: Days of Future Past it effectively splits into two timelines. That’s why release order is the better route for a first watch, while the chronological one is worth saving for when you want to untangle how the characters connect.
This guide covers the main Fox series, the standalone Wolverine films, Deadpool, The New Mutants and Deadpool & Wolverine. The animated series X-Men ’97 is kept separate: it continues the classic cartoon rather than the events of the movie franchise. The coming mutant reboot in the MCU has nowhere to sit in a viewing order yet: until a standalone film is out, it will be a new branch rather than a continuation of the old sequence.
What order to watch the X-Men movies in for the first time
This order keeps the logic of how the franchise introduced viewers to the world of mutants. The spin-offs arrive once you already know who Logan is and why Xavier and Magneto matter to the story.
- X-Men
- X2
- X-Men: The Last Stand
- X-Men Origins: Wolverine
- X-Men: First Class
- The Wolverine
- X-Men: Days of Future Past
- Deadpool
- X-Men: Apocalypse
- Logan
- Deadpool 2
- Dark Phoenix
- The New Mutants
- Deadpool & Wolverine
Every film: what to know before you watch
| Film | Role in the series | When to watch |
|---|---|---|
| X-Men | Introduces Xavier’s school, Logan and the conflict with Magneto. | Start here. |
| X2 | Continues the main story and opens up Logan’s past. | Right after the first film. |
| X-Men: The Last Stand | Closes out the first trilogy. | After X2. |
| X-Men Origins: Wolverine | A prequel about Logan’s origins. | After the first trilogy. |
| X-Men: First Class | A young Xavier and Magneto, a separate look at how the team began. | After X-Men Origins: Wolverine, or first if you go chronologically. |
| The Wolverine | Directly tied to the emotional fallout of the first trilogy. | After X-Men: The Last Stand. |
| X-Men: Days of Future Past | Brings the older and younger casts together and changes the timeline. | The pivotal film of the franchise. |
| X-Men: Apocalypse | Continues the rewritten timeline of the younger heroes. | After X-Men: Days of Future Past. |
| Dark Phoenix | The finale for Fox’s younger cast. | After X-Men: Apocalypse. |
| Deadpool and Deadpool 2 | Standalone comedy spin-offs with characters from the mutant world. | After you know the main series. |
| Logan | A bleak story about Logan’s future; better not to watch it too early. | After the main Wolverine films. |
| The New Mutants | A small-scale horror film in a neighboring corner of the franchise. | Fine to leave for last. |
| Deadpool & Wolverine | A multiverse story that plays with the Fox legacy. | After Deadpool 2 and preferably Logan. |
The X-Men chronology: two timelines
Trying to line every film up on a single calendar quickly runs into contradictions. X-Men: Days of Future Past sends Logan’s consciousness into the past and rewrites everything that follows. It’s easier to treat the franchise as two timelines: the original one and the rewritten one.
Logan’s past
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
The early chapters of Logan’s life happen before the main team comes together, but the film is made for viewers who already know that team.
The 1960s
X-Men: First Class
Xavier and Magneto put together the first team.
Original timeline
X-Men → X2 → X-Men: The Last Stand → The Wolverine
The events of the first trilogy and its direct follow-up.
Branching point
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Logan changes the past, and the old future stops being the only option.
Rewritten timeline
X-Men: Apocalypse → Dark Phoenix
The stories of the younger versions of the team after the past was changed.
Separate branches
Deadpool, The New Mutants, Logan, Deadpool & Wolverine
These films connect to the legacy of the series but don’t add up to one strict sequence.
What to watch in chronological order if you’ve already seen the series
The chronological route isn’t perfect, but it does show how Xavier, Magneto, Mystique and the school for mutants evolve. Start with X-Men: First Class, then watch the past storyline of X-Men: Days of Future Past, followed by X-Men: Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix. After that you can move on to the original trilogy and The Wolverine. Leave Logan as the closing drama about the character, and treat Deadpool as a route of its own: it deliberately jokes about the continuity of the series, so it doesn’t need a strict place on the timeline.
Where Deadpool & Wolverine fits in this order
Deadpool & Wolverine isn’t meant to be taken as the next chapter after Logan. The film uses the multiverse, brings back familiar faces and leans on what the audience remembers from the various Fox eras. To enjoy it, it’s enough to have seen Deadpool, Deadpool 2 and at least the main films with Hugh Jackman. Logan adds emotional context, but its ending shouldn’t be applied literally to every version of the character.
Do you need to watch X-Men ’97
X-Men ’97 is a continuation of the 1990s X-Men animated series, not a new chapter of the live-action Fox films. It’s worth watching on its own, ideally after the original cartoon. The second season continues the team’s own story and doesn’t change the order of the live-action films.
How the X-Men and the MCU are connected
Mutant characters already appear in Marvel Studios stories through the multiverse, but a standalone X-Men film in the MCU will be a new entry point. Until the final title, the cast and the story’s place in the overall timeline are announced, there is no point in adding the future project to an existing viewing order. The old Fox films remain a series of their own, not a required prologue to the coming reboot.
If you want to keep going with the Marvel movie universes
After the mutants, you can move on to our Marvel movie order, and for other big franchises, to our Batman and Star Wars chronologies. Each of them has its own reboots and branches, so it’s better to pick a route for a first watch than to try to assemble a perfect timeline right away.
FAQ
Where should you start watching the X-Men movies?
For a first watch, start with X-Men and then follow the release order. That way the characters and the plot twists come through more clearly.
Do you need to watch Logan before Deadpool & Wolverine?
It helps, but it isn’t required. Logan gives you emotional context, though Deadpool & Wolverine works with several versions of the character through the multiverse.
Is X-Men ’97 part of the movie chronology?
No. It’s a continuation of the 1990s animated series and a separate branch from the live-action Fox films.
Why do the X-Men movies contradict each other?
The franchise was developed by different teams and uses a time-travel plot that changes the course of events after X-Men: Days of Future Past.
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