Top 10 Best X-Men Movie Moments

“X-Men: First Class” (2011)
After the nascent X-Men stop the Cuban Missile Crisis from ballooning into World War III, the American and Russian militaries stand down and decide to fire their missiles at the mutants on the beach after seeing the potential threat they present, proving Erik/Magneto right about humanity’s fear. He stops the missiles and then reverses them, being unmoved by Charles' pleas to spare the humans. Moira then fires her gun to try to stop him, but Erik deflects the bullets and one hits Charles in the spine, leading to his eventual paralysis. The scene has plenty of action and catalyzes the rivalry between Professor X and Magneto that lasts decades.

“Deadpool” (2016)
Okay, we might be cheating with this one, but we couldn’t pick just one part of Deadpool’s highway shenanigans. While searching for the man who disfigured him and gave him powers, Deadpool attacks an armed convoy on a highway, leading to a fight in an SUV, a gunfight where he counts down his remaining bullets, a confrontation with his prey and with the X-Men… well, two X-Men. All the scenes individually are hilarious and brutally violent, but combined: they’re the highlight of an already spectacular film.

“X2: X-Men United” (2003)
While on the run from government agents, Bobby, a.k.a. Iceman, sits down with his parents and brother and reveals to them that he’s a mutant. His parents’ reactions, while comedic, do have a certain sense of realism to them. The scene has allegories to a gay person coming out of the closet. The “X-Men” comics were born out of the Civil Rights Movement, with mutants being stand-ins for black individuals being oppressed, while this scene nicely gives parallels to a new generation and demographic of misunderstood and marginalized people. [“Have you tried not being a mutant?”]

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” (2014)
In the climax of “Days of Future Past,” Magneto gives a speech about mutant supremacy and humans fearing what is different while he holds the president and his cabinet hostage on live television. The speech is interspersed with action set in the future, which sees the robotic Sentinels killing the future X-Men after their takeover of the planet, demonstrating that, contrary to Magneto’s aspirations, he’ll end up causing the destruction of both sides. The fantastic battle scene, along with the heartbreaking deaths of the future mutants and the powerful speech by Magneto, make this one of the most memorable final battles in any “X-Men” film.

“X-Men: First Class” (2011)
In a confrontation with the film’s villain, Shaw, Erik gets Charles to take control of Shaw's mind, immobilizing him. Erik then tells him that while he agrees with Shaw's ideals, and that he can even look past the torture he put him through at Auschwitz to bring out his powers – he can’t forgive Shaw for killing his mother. He then exacts his long awaited revenge by using the coin Shaw forced him to move with his mind to murder him, sending it through his brain and causing Charles the same pain through their connection. The scene is menacing, horrifying, and satisfying all at once, while being masterfully shot to boot.

“X-Men” (2000)
The final scene of the first “X-Men” film, this moment sees Magneto imprisoned in a plastic prison playing chess with Professor X. The two discuss the possibility of the government turning on mutants as Erik fears and the possibility that they could take away everything Charles has worked for. Erik displays his pessimism with humanity and Charles reiterates his hope for a better future, even for his frenemy. While this moment may not be the beginning of the duo’s ideological differences, it perfectly encapsulates their friendship, as well as their conflict with one another, and it’s one that’s called back to several times during the franchise.

“X2: X-Men United” (2003)
In another moment set in Magneto’s metal-starved jail, we see the supervillain prisoner served by a boorish guard who was injected earlier with iron by Mystique. Magneto gruesomely pulls the metal out of the guard’s body, killing him and forming three small metal balls that he proceeds to use to destroy and escape his plastic prison. The scene is beautifully shot, epically scored, and really brings home how fantastic and threatening a villain Magneto is. There are plenty of scenes showing Magneto moving large metal objects, but this moment proves that he can do a lot with very little.

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” (2014)
While helping Wolverine and Professor X break Magneto out of the Pentagon using his super speed, Quicksilver gets the group out of tight jam during their escape. Confronted by a dozen guards in a kitchen, Quicksilver takes them all out; moving so fast that everyone appears to be moving in slow motion. The visuals are jaw- dropping and hilarious, and the choice to play the song “Time in a Bottle” was absolutely perfect. Although the Quicksilver scene that featured him rescuing everyone at Xavier’s school in “X-Men: Apocalypse” was also spectacular, we ultimately had to go with the first one, due to its greater impact.

“X2: X-Men United” (2003)
After being brainwashed, Kurt Wagner, better known as Nightcrawler, visits the White House with the intent of frightening or killing the President of the United States. Using his teleportation abilities, the blue, devilish mutant tears through the secret service faster than you can say, “bamf!” The choreography is acrobatic, the camera work is creative and kinetic, and the fact that it’s all set to Mozart’s Requiem in D Minor lends the sequence a grandiose weight unlike anything else in the franchise. It may not quite be our favorite moment overall, but it’s definitely our favorite action scene.

Before we get to our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
Wolverine vs. Yakuza on Bullet Train
“The Wolverine” (2013)

Magneto Lifts the Golden Gate Bridge
“X-Men: The Last Stand” (2006)

Wolverine vs. Lady Deathstrike
“X2: X-Men United” (2003)

“Logan” (2017)
Though there were many spectacular moments from Wolverine’s swan song, like his last berserker-like rage, in the end we couldn’t pick anything other than this moment for our list. Logan lies dying after his regeneration ability has been exhausted. He urges his cloned daughter, Laura, not to be the weapon they fashioned her into, like he was, as she tearfully calls him Daddy. His last words appear to be a reflection on how he now finally knows what dying feels like. The whole scene, as well as Laura’s X-themed funeral tribute to him, had us all shedding tears for the character we’ve come to love over nearly 20 years on-screen.