Before Black Panther, David Jonsson Shared a Connection With a Famous X-Men Star in Another Franchise
When Marvel announced that David Jonsson would play the next Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it was exciting. However, there are still fans who are wondering who this young actor is, even though he has appeared in some great movies and TV shows over his short career. Jonsson, 32, remains best known for his role in the HBO television series Industry, but he has also appeared in three notable movies, with more surely on the way. In 2025, he starred in the fantastic Stephen King adaptation of The Long Walk. In 2023, he appeared in the critically acclaimed Rye Lane. He also shares a connection with a famous X-Men star in the horror franchise Alien.
In 2024, Jonsson starred in the movie Alien: Romulus as the character Andy. In this role, Jonsson’s character is an android reprogrammed by the father of the lead character, Rain Carradine (Cailee Spaeny), to serve as her surrogate father figure.
David Jonsson Follows Michael Fassbender as an Alien Android Character
The Alien franchise is mostly about the creatures known as xenomorphs and their deadly attacks on humans. Ever since the original Alien movie, there has also been a sci-fi slant with the androids living among humans. While they were meant to help assist humans, they were also often built with ulterior motives. In the original Alien movie, Ian Holm plays Ash, the ship’s science officer, who is revealed to be an android. He was sent with the crew to ensure they brought back a sample from the xenomorphs, making him a secondary antagonist in the film.
This led to several other androids in later movies, including Bishop (Lance Henriksen), Call (Winona Ryder), and David/Walter (Michael Fassbender). That last android is the connection that places Jonsson alongside the mutants from past Marvel movies. Of course, Fassbender played Magneto in the X-Men prequel movies, starting with X-Men: First Class and concluding with Dark Phoenix.
The differences between Jonsson’s android and the one Fassbender played come down to how they were programmed. David was an original android model that debuted in Prometheus, built by Sir Peter Weyland, the founder and CEO of Weyland Corp. David was fascinated by Dr. Elizabeth Shaw’s dream, and his interest in the Engineer’s power led to his decapitation and later to Shaw’s death. Eventually, when Walter and his crew landed on a planet and found David, it turned out David had committed genocide and created the Neomorphs. It was a shocking heel turn for the android.
On the other hand, Jonsson’s Andy was not a villain or an antagonist. He was supposed to serve as Rain’s surrogate father, but instead became a younger brother since he was damaged. They then developed a close bond that carried over into the horrific events of Alien: Romulus. The two characters are nothing alike, but the fact that Jonsson and Fassbender both played androids in one of the greatest sci-fi horror franchises of all time will always connect them as Jonsson starts his MCU journey, even if Fassbender’s has come to an end.
David Jonsson Almost Had a Second MCU Connection Through Alien: Romulus
Both David Jonsson and his Alien: Romulus co-star, Cailee Spaeny (Rain), were on board to return to the Alien franchise if a sequel to that movie were made. However, that might be out of the question now. With Jonsson joining the MCU as Black Panther, he is unlikely to be available for many other major franchises in the near future. This also almost proved to be true for Spaeny, who went on to appear in the Knives Out movie Wake Up Dead Man in 2025. Spaeny came close to joining Jonsson in the MCU.
There were strong rumors that Spaeny was a frontrunner for the role of Rogue in the rebooted MCU X-Men franchise. However, that never happened because Inde Navarrette signed on to play Rogue instead, as announced at D23. This is huge for Naverrette, who enjoyed her breakout in Obsession. That doesn’t mean Spaeny won’t eventually find a role in the MCU. It just means that Navettette is the hotter star right now. Other casting announcements included Kit Connor as Cyclops, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, Christopher Abbott as Professor X, Maya Boyd as Storm, and Adam Driver as Mister Sinister. Along with the new X-Men cast, Jonsson plays one of the biggest new characters who carry on in the MCU after Avengers: Secret Wars resets the Marvel Universe.
