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Still from X2 (2003)
Film 2 of 7 · by Jordan Okafor

X2: X-Men United (2003)

X2: X-Men United (listed as X2 on TMDB) is the 2003 superhero sequel directed by Bryan Singer and the second film in the main X-Men saga, released in US theaters on May 2, 2003. Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry and Brian Cox lead the cast, the film runs 133 minutes, and it earned about $408 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo, on a $110 million budget. As of November 2026 it streams on Disney Plus in the US, UK and Australia.

Image: TMDB
X2 (2003) theatrical poster
US release
May 2, 2003
Runtime
2h 13m
Rating
PG-13 / 12A / M
Director
Bryan Singer
Budget
$110 million
Worldwide
$408 million

What Is X2: X-Men United About?

X2 is about a military colonel, William Stryker, who uses an attack on the US President to turn public fear of mutants into a raid on Professor Xavier's school. It sits second in the release order, directly after X-Men (2000), so the school, the team and the political fight over mutant rights are already in place when it opens.

The story begins when Nightcrawler, a teleporting mutant, attacks the President inside the White House, and the public backlash against mutants grows. Stryker uses that anger to win approval to investigate Xavier's school for gifted students.

Wolverine is away at the time, searching for clues about his own past, so he is not at the mansion when Stryker's soldiers storm it and take students prisoner. He returns to find the school wrecked, leads a handful of surviving students to safety and then teams up with the other X-Men.

Who Is in the X2 Cast?

X-Men cast

More of the cast: Ty Olsson (Mitchell Laurio), Kurt Max Runte (Chief of Staff Abrahams), Aaron Pearl (Stryker Soldier), Bryan Singer (Prison Security Officer (uncredited)), Michael Reid MacKay (Jason 143), Dylan Kussman (Stryker Soldier Wilkins), Bruce Davison (Senator Kelly), Daniel Cudmore (Piotr Rasputin / Colossus), Michasha Armstrong (Plastic Prison Guard).

X2 Stills

  • Still from X2 (2003)
    X2 (2003), still 1
  • Still from X2 (2003)
    X2 (2003), still 2
  • Still from X2 (2003)
    X2 (2003), still 3
  • Still from X2 (2003)
    X2 (2003), still 4
  • Still from X2 (2003)
    X2 (2003), still 5

Release Dates

MarketDateSource
USMay 2, 2003reportedboxofficemojo.com
UKMay 1, 2003reportedboxofficemojo.com
AUApril 30, 2003reportedboxofficemojo.com

Where to Watch X2

MarketSubscriptionRent or buy
USDisney PlusAmazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
UKDisney PlusApple TV Store, Rakuten TV, Amazon Video, Sky Store, YouTube
AUDisney PlusApple TV Store, Amazon Video, YouTube, Fetch TV

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, checked 2026-11-03.

Who Directed X2 and Who Was Behind the Camera?

DirectorBryan Singer
WritersMichael Dougherty, Dan Harris, David Hayter, Zak Penn, Bryan Singer
ProducersLauren Shuler Donner, Ralph Winter
MusicJohn Ottman
CinematographyNewton Thomas Sigel

Box Office

Budget$110 million
Domestic (US and Canada)$215 million
International$193 million
Worldwide$408 million
Worldwide, in September 2026 dollars$747 million

X-Men box office for every film.

X2 Soundtrack and Score: Who Composed It?

John Ottman composed the score for X2 (2003), and the score album, "X2", was released by Trauma Records on May 6, 2003. The album runs to 16 tracks, which makes it a full length presentation of Ottman's music for the film.

The release is a score album, so it centers on the original music written to accompany Bryan Singer's sequel rather than on a collection of pop and rock tracks. For anyone who wants the score on its own, away from the mansion raid, the Alkali Lake finale and the rest of the ensemble story, "X2" is the release to look for. Ottman is the only composer credited for the film's music.

The film also features one song:

  • "Center of the Sun" by Conjure One

No source credits "Center of the Sun" as a song written for the film. It is the only song credited alongside Ottman's score, and it sits beside the score album rather than inside it, since the album is a score release.

If you are comparing how the music changes from film to film, the X-Men soundtrack page covers the composers and albums across the saga.

X2 album cover

X2

Score album · Trauma Records · May 6, 2003 · 16 tracks

Cover art via Deezer

Full tracklist

  1. 1Suite from X2 · John Ottman7:11
  2. 2Storm's Perfect Storm · John Ottman2:18
  3. 3Finding Faith · John Ottman1:31
  4. 4Sneaky Mystique · John Ottman3:31
  5. 5Cerebro · John Ottman1:28
  6. 6Mansion Attack · John Ottman7:34
  7. 7Rogue Earns Her Wings · John Ottman1:36
  8. 8It's Time · John Ottman3:40
  9. 9Magneto's Old Tricks · John Ottman4:59
  10. 10I'm In · John Ottman4:12
  11. 11If You Really Knew · John Ottman3:22
  12. 12Playing With Fire · John Ottman2:45
  13. 13Death Strikes Deathstryke · John Ottman4:52
  14. 14Getting Out Alive · John Ottman3:59
  15. 15Goodbye · John Ottman5:28
  16. 16We're Here to Stay · John Ottman1:50

Songs in X2

  • Center of the Sun · Conjure One Licensed song

Sources: musicbrainz.org, themoviedb.org, en.wikipedia.org

X-Men soundtrack

X2 Plot SummarySpoilers

X2 follows Colonel Stryker's raid on Xavier's school and the X-Men's fight to stop him, and it splits into three movements: the raid, the escape and the assault on Stryker's hidden base.

Wolverine has been searching for answers about his past at an abandoned military site in Alberta, and he comes back to find the school under attack. Stryker's forces capture Xavier and Cyclops and take several students, while Wolverine escapes with Rogue, Iceman and Pyro. The group visits Iceman's family in Boston, where the police turn on them, and they are rescued by Storm and Jean Grey in the X-Jet. Fighter jets then shoot the X-Jet down, and Magneto saves the team, having already escaped with Mystique's help.

Magneto explains that Stryker plans to use a second Cerebro, powered by his mutant son, to kill mutants, and that Stryker also gave Wolverine his metal skeleton. The mutants form an uneasy alliance, and Nightcrawler, who was manipulated by Stryker, joins them. Mystique, disguised as Wolverine, helps the group into Stryker's hidden base inside a dam at Alkali Lake. Jean frees Cyclops from mind control, Wolverine defeats Stryker's deadly assistant Yuriko, and Storm breaks the hold on Xavier by creating a snowstorm in the Cerebro chamber.

Magneto and Mystique slip away, and Stryker is left behind when the damaged dam bursts. The X-Jet loses power as the flood closes in, so Jean leaves the cabin to hold back the water and let the jet take off, and she is lost. The X-Men then report to the President, Xavier calls for humans and mutants to live together, and the team mourns Jean.

When and Where Did X2 Premiere?

X2 premiered in London on April 24, 2003, at the Odeon West End, according to Associated Press captions published by CBS News. That is eight days before the US theatrical release on May 2, 2003.

Box Office Mojo lists the UK opening as May 1, 2003 and the Australian opening as April 30, 2003, so the film reached British and Australian audiences a day or two ahead of the US. The film is rated PG-13 in the US, 12A in the UK and M in Australia. For the full release picture across the saga, see the X-Men movies in order guide.

X2 Ending Explained: What Happens to Jean Grey?Spoilers

In X2, Jean Grey dies saving the team, and the fiery bird shape rising from the flooded lake in the final image hints that her Phoenix power lives on. Stryker is killed when the damaged dam bursts, and the X-Jet loses power as the flood closes in, so Jean leaves the cabin to hold back the water and let the jet take off. In Washington, the X-Men hand the President Stryker's files, Xavier speaks about peace between humans and mutants, and the survivors remember Jean back at the school.

Why does the bird matter? It plants an image of Jean's Phoenix power and leaves the sequels to build on it, and I think that is the smart choice. X-Men: The Last Stand brings Jean back as Jean Grey / Phoenix with huge and unstable power, and Dark Phoenix (2019, directed by Simon Kinberg) retells the story with Sophie Turner, this time after Jean absorbs a cosmic energy force during a space shuttle rescue. In my opinion, X2's version is the more economical one, because it earns the tragedy first and only then hints at the consequences.

Two other threads are left open. Magneto and Mystique slip away while Stryker's base falls apart, which sets up Magneto gathering a Brotherhood in The Last Stand. And Wolverine learns that Stryker gave him his metal skeleton, but his past is still far from answered. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) returns to that history with Danny Huston as Stryker.

It could be argued that X2 is the best entry in the original trilogy, since it out-grossed X-Men (2000) worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. That is my reading, and you can see where it lands against the rest of the saga in our X-Men movies ranked list.

Where Was X2 Filmed?

X2 was filmed in British Columbia and Alberta, with most of the shoot in Vancouver. Filming began in Victoria, where Hatley House at Royal Roads University stood in for Xavier's mansion.

The main shoot took place at Vancouver Film Studios and Mammoth Studios, which offered larger stages and nearby snow for the third act, and Stryker's base was built there. The Plaza of Nations in Vancouver served as the glass walled science museum. The last six days were shot near Kananaskis, Alberta, in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, at a clearing used as Alkali Lake about 6,000 feet up.

X2 Trivia

A handful of production details explain why X2 looks bigger than X-Men (2000).

  • Stryker's base took up more than half of Mammoth Studios' 113,000 square foot stage, which the production built as the largest sound stage in North America.
  • Production designer Guy Hendrix Dyas enlarged the X-Jet from about 60 feet to 85 feet.
  • Rebecca Romijn's Mystique makeup was cut from about eight hours to roughly five, according to the production notes.
  • John Ottman both composed the score and edited the film.
  • The Vancouver stages were chosen partly because they were larger and because snow was nearby for the third act.
  • The film grossed $407.7 million worldwide, ahead of X-Men (2000), according to Box Office Mojo.

For the next chapter, continue to X-Men: The Last Stand, or see where this film lands in the X-Men box office table.

Facts

FAQs

Are X2 and X-Men United the same?

Yes, X2 and X-Men United are the same film. X2: X-Men United is the 2003 sequel directed by Bryan Singer, listed as X2 on TMDB. It is the second X-Men movie, following X-Men (2000) and coming before X-Men: The Last Stand in the main saga.

Where can I watch X2: X-Men United?

As of November 3, 2026, X2: X-Men United streams on Disney Plus in the US, UK and Australia, according to JustWatch data on TMDB. It can also be rented in the US on Amazon Video, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. In the UK it can be rented from Apple TV, Rakuten TV, Amazon Video, Sky Store and YouTube. In Australia it can be bought from Apple TV, Amazon Video, YouTube and Fetch TV. Availability changes, so check before you plan a viewing. The where to watch X-Men page covers the whole saga.

Is X2: X-Men United good?

It could be argued that X2: X-Men United is the stronger of the first two X-Men films, since it is bigger in every measurable way: a 133 minute runtime, a $110 million budget and a large ensemble. It grossed about $408 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo, well ahead of X-Men (2000). That is a matter of taste, and our own verdicts live on the X-Men reviews page.

Is X-Men or X2 better?

That is a matter of taste, but the numbers favor the sequel. X2 ran 29 minutes longer than X-Men (2000) and earned $407.7 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo, ahead of the first film. Both were directed by Bryan Singer. See X-Men movies ranked for our full order.

What is X2 rated?

X2 is rated PG-13 in the US, 12A in the UK and M in Australia, according to TMDB.

What happened to Jean Grey in X2?

Spoiler warning. Jean Grey dies at the end of X2. As the flooding dam closes in on the X-Jet, she leaves the cabin to hold back the water so the jet can take off, and she is lost. The final image shows a fiery bird shape rising from the lake, hinting that her Phoenix power survives. She returns in X-Men: The Last Stand.