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Quote1 It's not their pain you're afraid of. It's yours, Charles. And as frightening as it may be, their pain will make you stronger. If you allow yourself to feel it, embrace it. It will make you more powerful than you ever imagined. It's the greatest gift we have. To bear their pain without breaking and it's born from the most human power. Hope. Quote2
Professor Xavier[src]

History

Early Life[]

Charles Xavier is a mutant with the ability to read minds and project his own thoughts into the minds of others.

Charles Xavier (Earth-10005) from X-Men First Class (film) 0002

Young Charles Xavier

As a child, Charles met a shape-shifting girl named Raven, who had broken into his family's mansion and was scrounging for food. Overjoyed to meet someone else "different" like him, he invited her to live with his family.

A natural genius, Charles completed high school at sixteen. He attended Oxford University accompanied by Raven. He earned Phds in Genetics, Biophysics, and Psychology.

Meeting Erik Lehnsherr[]

After completing his thesis on genetic mutation, he was approached by Agent Moira MacTaggert of the CIA for his help in stopping a mutant named Sebastian Shaw, who was working with the Soviet Union. MacTaggert introduced him and Raven to the CIA, where they proved to her chief that mutants existed and Shaw was a threat. The chief refused to employ the help of the mutants, but a "Man in Black" offered to sponsor them.

Charles accompanied MacTaggert, MIB and a US Coast Guard assault team to arrest Shaw on his yacht. During the attack, Charles' telepathy was blocked by Emma Frost. They also encountered Erik Lehnsherr, who was launching his own solo attack on Shaw at the time. When Shaw escaped in a submarine, Xavier prevented Lehnsherr from killing himself in an attempt to stop it and brought him to the CIA's secret "Division X" facility.

Forming The X-Men[]

There they met young scientist Hank McCoy, a mutant with prehensile feet and enhanced intelligence, whom Xavier identified as a mutant. He then used a mutant-locating device designed by McCoy called Cerebro to find and recruit mutants for training to stop Shaw. Refusing CIA help, he and Lehnsherr traveled the world discovering various mutants: exotic dancer Angel Salvadore; taxi driver Armando Muñoz; Army prisoner Alexander Summers; and the young Sean Cassidy. They also approached Canadian mercenary James Howlett, but he immediately rebuffed them.

Lehnsherr and Xavier tried once again to find and capture Shaw, who was supposed to be meeting with a Soviet general. They discovered that Frost had attended the meeting in his place, and Xavier and Lehnsherr captured her instead. Interrogating her led to the revelation that Shaw intended to spark a third world war to wipe out humanity, leaving mutants as the dominant species. Meanwhile, the other Hellfire Club mutants attacked Division X, turning Angel to their cause and killing Armando in the process. With the facility destroyed, Xavier relocated the mutants to train at his family mansion. During their stay there, Xavier applied his telepathy to help Lehnsherr reach new heights of his magnetic ability.

Cuban Missile Crisis[]

Xavier's new team was soon called to action during the Cuban Missile Crisis when Shaw engineered a stand-off between amassed United States and Soviet naval forces. A Soviet freighter had been forcibly commandeered by the Hellfire Club who were attempting to run the American blockade. Xavier took mental control of a Soviet officer and had the man destroy the freighter, thus averting a nuclear catastrophe. Lehnsherr pulled Shaw's submarine from the water. The submarine and the X-Jet both crashed shortly after, bringing both teams into direct conflict with each other. Lehnsherr found and killed Shaw.

Xavier found his attention turned to the new threat of the two naval fleets with crews who were rapidly becoming fearful of the mutants. The ships launched a combined missile strike against the mutants, which Lehnsherr quickly turned back on them. Xavier kept Lehnsherr from destroying the ships, but when MacTaggert fired a gun at Lehnsherr, a deflected bullet hit Xavier in the spine, crippling him from ever walking again. A remorseful Erik left with Mystique, Angel, and Shaw's enforcers Riptide and Azazel.[2]

Professor X[]

Charles Xavier (Earth-10005) from X-Men (film) 0001

Mutant leader

Later, a wheelchair-bound Xavier returned to the mansion where MacTaggert promised never to reveal his location. They kissed, whereupon Xavier wiped her memory of the events. He soon after founded Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters and ran from his family's Westchester mansion, which had been converted into a base of operations at which he trained mutants for his personal strike force known as the X-Men. The base included subterranean medical labs, a training facility called "The Danger Room," an aircraft hanger, and Cerebro. However, the Vietnam War and the subsequent loss of many of his students in the conflict left Xavier feeling bitter, prompting him to rely for a time on a serum that would restore his ability to walk at the cost of preventing him from using his powers. He and Hank- the last surviving member of the original team still loyal to him- remained at the school for a time in self-imposed isolation, but they eventually moved past it and re-established the school under undisclosed circumstances.

William Stryker sent his son Jason to Xavier's school in hopes of ridding his mutation, regarding it as a disease that he believed needed be cured. Xavier had no interest or belief in 'curing' mutants, which angered Stryker. Later, Xavier helped liberate the mutant children held prisoner by Stryker at Three Mile Island. He took them in an flew off in his helicopter with Scott Summers and the sister of Kayla Silverfox. Summers would go on to lead the X-Men.[4]

After finding Jean Grey during a brief reunion with Magneto, Xavier began controlling her with mind blocks because he believed her class 5 powers were too much for her to handle.[5]

Battles With The Brotherhood[]

Xavier helped Wolverine try to put together his past. Mystique infiltrated the school and sabotaged Cerebro. When Xavier used Cerebro he fell into a coma. Despite his absence Wolverine and the X-Men prevented Magneto from mutating the leaders at the World Summit on Liberty Island. He later fully recovered from the coma.

Later, Xavier visited Magneto in his plastic prison cell, and the two played chess. Magneto warned his friend that he would continue his fight, to which Xavier promised that he and the X-Men would always be there to stop him.[1]

Mutants United[]

Stryker captured Xavier and had Jason trick Xavier into using Cerebro II, a reproduction of Cerebro, to kill all mutants. Magneto, wearing a helmet designed to shield against telepathic attacks, was able to reach Xavier while the X-Men were incapacitated by the psychic assault, but then had Jason make Xavier use Cerebro II to kill ordinary humans. At his direction, Mystique impersonated Stryker and instructed Jason of a change in plans, which Jason then communicated to the brainwashed Xavier. Magneto and Mystique escaped, and soon thereafter Storm and Nightcrawler entered Cerebro II and disrupted Jason's illusion, allowing Xavier to break from his control before any humans and mutants could be killed. They took the weakened Professor to safety, and Jean later used him to telekinetically talk to Scott in her final moments.[6]

The Phoenix[]

Quote1 Don't let it control you. Quote2

With Cyclops becoming depressed over Jean's death, Xavier made Storm his successor to headmaster, despite her surprise. Like most other X-Men, he was neutral to the idea of the Mutant Cure. Wolverine and Storm later found Jean Grey alive, with her mind blocks removed. Xavier immediately kept her in a coma so he could put them back, but a horrified Wolverine released Jean; she subsequently knocked him unconscious and escaped.

Xavier, Storm, and Wolverine went to Jean in her house, only to run into Magneto and the Brotherhood, who wanted to recruit Jean. The old frenemies argued for control over Jean's fate. When Jean Grey learned of Xavier's mind blocks from Magneto, she and the Professor telekinetically fought and she destroyed his body.

Xavier was buried on the campus grounds, with Scott to his right and Jean to Scott's right.

However, to escape death, Xavier transferred his mind to the body of his brain-dead twin brother, P. Xavier, who was under the care of Dr. Moira MacTaggert at Muir Island.[5]

Return[]

Shortly after returning from Japan, Logan is greeted by a restored Charles Xavier and repowered Magneto, who inform him that a darkness is coming that could destroy their kind and that he is needed. Wolverine asked how it was possible that he came back, and he said that he merely used his gifts.[7]

Across Time[]

In 2023, Earth was under peril from the mutant-hunting Sentinels, each capable of rapidly adapting to mutant powers and determined to eliminate all mutants and control humanity to prevent further mutation. Learning that Kitty Pryde had mastered the ability to project someone's consciousness into the past, Xavier proposed that he be sent back to 1973 to prevent Raven assassinating Bolivar Trask, which had been identified as the catalyst for their current circumstances. However, the strain of sending Xavier back that far would have been too much for his body to handle, resulting in Logan being projected back in his place. When Logan was attempting to convince the young Xavier of this newly forming history to overcome his issues, the young Xavier was able to communicate with his future self by using Logan as a 'bridge', the older Xavier encouraging his past self to have faith once again. A while later the sentinels attacked, killing the entire team despite their efforts as they fought to buy time for Kitty and Logan to complete the changes to history. As a Sentinel fired at them, Logan was returned to the present, him 'waking up' making his changes to history fixed and creating a new history.[8]

Attributes

Powers

  • Telepathy: Charles' mutant ability allows him to read and control the minds of others. He is shown in movies as early is X-Men First Class to easily be able to pick up thoughts of others as well as project his own. He goes on to demonstrate the ability to what appears to be freezing time, most likely freezing thought process. He showed that he was capable of creating illusions when he assisted the CIA in infiltrating a USSR retreat. Charles also seemed to have mastered the ability to take control of someone's mind as in the First Class film he used this multiple times. He seemingly is even capable of transferring his mind to another body. He is one of the most powerful telepaths on the planet although he was outmatched by Jean Grey's "Phoenix" persona.
    • Telepathic Illusions: Charles has the ability to create realistic telepathic illusions and cause people to experience events which are not actually occurring.
    • Telepathic Cloak: Charles can mask his presence from being detected by others. His abilities can at times go undetected or be counteracted by other more powerful telepaths depending on their level of skill in using their own psi abilities. He can extend these defenses to others around him as well.
    • Mind Link: Charles has the ability to develop a mental link with any person which remains as a connection to that individual.
    • Telepathic Camouflage: Charles has the ability to mask himself, and other peoples' presence from those around him. Also he can telepathically disguise himself, making his appearance to those around him quite different.
    • Mind Blast: Charles has the ability to place large amounts of information in another's mind.
    • Mind Control: Charles has the ability to control the minds of others upon mere concentration. This power can allow him to completely shut down several people's minds, making it appear as if time has stopped.
    • Mind Possession: Charles has the ability to possess the mind of another, and use that being's body as his own.
    • Mind Alteration: Charles has the ability to alter the minds of others by force of will.
    • Mental Amnesia: Charles has the ability to cause loss of particular memories or total amnesia in another person or group of people.
    • Psionic Shield: Charles has the ability to erect a psychic shield for protection of himself and of other minds, so that he can prevent the free access to the conscious and subconscious mind of anyone.
    • Psionic Blasts: Charles can project psionic force bolts which have no physical effects but which can affect a victim's mind so as to cause the victim pain or unconsciousness and can even kill an adversary.
    • Astral Projection: Charles has the ability to Astral Travel and communicate with others astrally through his own will, or through contact with the thoughts and memories of others. In the astral realm, he can use his powers to create "ectoplasmic" objects. He cannot engage in long range astral projection on the earthly plane.
    • Mental Detection: Charles can sense the presence of another superhuman mutant within a small but as yet undefined radius of himself by perceiving the distinctive mental radiations emitted by such a being.
    • Mind Transferal: Charles is able to transfer both his mind and powers into other host bodies if his own physical body could be somehow killed.
    • Absorb Information: Charles has ability to quickly process and store information, by mental transference.

Weaknesses

  • William Stryker developed a "neural inhibitor" headset that prevented Xavier from using his telepathy; thereby making him vulnerable to the illusions of his son Jason.

Additional Attributes

  • Paraplegic: Professor X has been normally unable to walk due to spinal damage, suffered when one of the bullets Magneto bounced off using his magnetic powers hit his spine, crippling him.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

  • Wheelchair, Cerebro

Transportation

  • Blackbird

Notes

Trivia

  • In the beginning of X-Men: The Last Stand, Xavier was teaching a class about mutant ethics and used a case study of Moira's with the very same patient on whether or not it was ethical to put the mind of a dead psychic into the body of a comatose patient, who according to movie-makers was Xavier's twin brother, whose psyche was erased due to growing Professor X's powers during the prenatal state. In the comic books, Xavier had a twin sister, yet during screenplay writing the idea of a sister was changed to a brother, for obvious reasons.
  • In X-Men: First Class, Xavier loses the use of his legs when Magneto deflects a bullet from hitting him, which consequently hit Xavier's spine. In the comics, Xavier becomes crippled when the alien known as Lucifer traps him beneath a block of steel. In the comics, he additionally begins to lose his hair as a result of his mutation, and was completely bald by the time he finishes high school.
  • In X-Men Origins: Wolverine and a flashback in The Last Stand, Professor X can be seen standing and without hair. In X-Men: First Class, however, he is shown to be crippled while he still has a full head of hair and not long after he formed the X-Men. For more information on the continuity issues present in X-Men: First Class, see here.
  • James McAvoy shaved his hair in preparation for his role as Xavier in X-Men: First Class. Unfortunately, when he first met up with the crew, he was informed Xavier was going to sport long hair in the movie. Because of this, McAvoy had to go through 15 hours of hair extensions for the movie.[9]

See Also

Links and References

References

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