Legendary X-Men actor Ian McKellen suggests that fans have long mispronounced Magneto’s name. Magneto is part of the greater X-Men world, where mutants with the X-gene gain extraordinary powers and abilities. McKellen has played Magneto within the X-Men film series for years starting in 2000. While he appeared in The Wolverine and X-Men: Days of Future Past, it was his performance in the original X-Men trilogy that fans remember most fondly.
Although McKellen’s embittered Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto, has incredible powers, he is also burdened with a terrible past. Erik is a Holocaust survivor, who possesses the mutant ability to both manipulate metal and create magnetic fields. He was once good friends with Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) when they were much younger. However, Magneto believes in mutant superiority over humans, whereas Xavier feels that co-existence is possible. This disagreement led to a break in their friendship, with Magneto certain that a genetic war is all but inevitable.
McKellen took to Twitter to imply that fans have been mispronouncing Magneto’s name. McKellen included a link to a CBR Magneto article and asks why everyone pronounces the mutant’s name as “Magneeto” rather than “Magnet-o?” You can check out McKellen’s lighthearted, cheeky tweet on his iconic character below:
Magneto is easily one of the most recognizable X-Men characters out there. Magneto has not only appeared in multiple X-Men films, but in a myriad of X-Men focused television shows, video games, and comic books as well. In addition, their sharp disagreements over the co-existence of humans and mutants led to the end of the friendship. As a result, Michael Fassbender recently portrayed a younger Magneto in the X-Men prequel trilogy. While McKellen’s portrayal is certainly memorable, Fassbender’s Magneto arguably gave McKellen a run for his money. Either way, though, McKellen’s tweet is right — the character has continuously been addressed as “Magneeto” throughout his various appearances, rather than “Magnet-o.”
Considering the Fox/Disney deal just closed, the X-Men will be returning home to Marvel, where they will eventually join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As such, while McKellen did an incredible job portraying the twisted, tortured Erik Lehnsherr, it’s unlikely he will return as Magneto in future X-Men films. This has led fans to start speculating that other actors, such as Giancarlo Esposito, Ralph Fiennes, and Charles Dance, might be stellar options to portray Magneto in the MCU. However, while McKellen may not play a part in any forthcoming X-Men projects, it’s evident this his interpretation of the famed mutant helped cement Magneto as one of the greatest X-Men stars of all time.
Source: Ian McKellen/Twitter