Alan Cumming reveals X2 cast stayed in touch after being 'bonded in trauma'

Alan Cumming has revealed that the cast of X2 stayed in touch after filming, explaining that they were "bonded in trauma".

The Scottish actor has divulged that he has remained close with several of his co-stars from the 2003 film, the second instalment in the original X-Men series.

In a new interview with People, Cumming reflected on reconnecting with his X-Men castmates while working on the upcoming film Avengers: Doomsday, in which he reprises his role as Nightcrawler.

"The ones that I did reunite with, I've seen them since," he said.

The actor went on to explain that he did not get to see many of his co-stars on set this time around due to changes in the way films are now shot.

"I also didn't reunite with that many because we did it all sort of separately; it was a bit of a modern way of doing things," he shared. "I'm very chummy with Ian (McKellen), I've seen Rebecca (Romijn) over the years. Patrick (Stewart), I've seen quite a lot. Jimmy (Marsden), I've seen a lot of them actually."

The Traitors host continued, "It's one of those films where I think we all were so traumatised we were bonded in trauma, so we stayed in touch."

It was first announced in March 2026 that Cumming would reprise his role as Nightcrawler in the upcoming Avengers instalment.

The film, marking the actors first appearance as the character in more than two decades, is set to be released in cinemas in December 2026.