‘The Hunger Games’ star Ben Wang in the running for role in ‘X-Men’ reboot? Actor tipped to play Iceman

The upcoming Marvel’s ‘X-Men’ project seems to be going ahead with full force as the team behind the film is getting ready to add to the ensemble cast. One of the rising stars who is being considered for one of the main roles is none other than Ben Wang. The actor who rose to fame with ‘Karate Kid’ and will next appear on the big screen in ‘Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping’ is reportedly being considered to play the Iceman.

Ben Wang may join the ‘X-Men’ franchise

Deadline reported that Ben Wang has joined the long list of names that the production team for the upcoming MCU film has been considering. According to the report, along with Wang, Gabriel LaBelle, Jackson Kelly, and Rhenzy Feliz also tested for the role of Iceman.LaBelle has worked in ‘Snack Shack’, ‘The Fablemans’, and ‘American Gigolo’, while Kelly starred in ‘The Body’ and ‘The Pitt’. Lastly, Feliz rose to fame starring in Marvel’s ‘The Runaways’, as well as ‘The Penguin’ and ‘Encanto’.

Who is Ben Wang?

Ben Wang is a Chinese-American actor who was born on September 21, 1997, in Beijing. He immigrated to the US at a young age, grew up in rural Minnesota, and later studied musical theatre at New York University (NYU). He made his acting debut with his role as Eli Brown in the TV series ‘MacGyver’ in 2021. Since then he has starred as Bo in the OTT film ‘Chang Can Dunk’ (2023) and has also starred as Jin Wang in the sitcom ‘American Born Chinese’ (2023).He also starred as Jacob Zheng in the ‘Mean Girls’ reboot, starred as Li Fong alongside Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio in ‘Karate Kid: Legends’ (2025), and will next appear as Wyatt Callow in ‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping,’ which is slated for release on November 20.If Wang lands the role, he will be taking over the mantle from actor Shawn Ashmore, who originally played Iceman (Bobby Drake) in the live-action X-Men film series. He debuted in the role in ‘X-Men’ (2000) and reprised his part in ‘X2: X-Men United’ (2003), ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ (2006), and ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’ (2014).

Who all have been confirmed to join the upcoming ‘X-Men’ project?

While the casting is still underway, Marvel has confirmed Christopher Abbott as Charles Xavier / Professor X, Kit Connor as Scott Summers / Cyclops, Sadie Sink as Jean Grey, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, Inde Navarrette as Anna Marie / Rogue, Maya Boyd as Ororo Monroe / Storm, Asa Germann as Warren Worthington III / Angel, and lastly, Adam Driver as the main villain, Nathaniel Milbury / Mister Sinister.