Cassandra Nova Xavier is a

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

, most commonly in association with the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...

. Created by writer

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, Humanism, humanist philosophy and counterculture, countercultural leanings. Morrison has writt ...

and artist

Frank Quitely Vincent Patrick Deighan (born January 18, 1968), better known by the pen name Frank Quitely, is a Scottish people, Scottish comic book artist. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with Grant Morrison on titles such as ''New X-Men (20 ...

, the character first appeared in '' New X-Men'' #114 (July 2001). She is a mummudrai, a

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

life form born bodiless on the astral plane. Cassandra is the older twin sister of X-Men founder, the

telepath Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

Professor X Professor X (Prof. Charles Francis Xavier) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 ( ...

(Charles Xavier).'' X Lives of Wolverine'' #1 (January 2022) While in the womb together, Charles recognized her evil presence and killed her, resulting in her stillbirth. The mummudrai that became Cassandra became telepathically entangled with Xavier, granting Cassandra some psionic powers herself, including the ability to exit the womb and create a body, with which she sought revenge on Xavier. As Xavier's ideological dark shadow who is bent on destruction and

genocide Genocide is violence that targets individuals because of their membership of a group and aims at the destruction of a people. Raphael Lemkin, who first coined the term, defined genocide as "the destruction of a nation or of an ethnic group" by ...

, Nova is most infamous for being responsible for the massacre of 16 million

mutants In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It i ...

within the mutant homeland

Genosha Genosha ( ) is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in the Marvel Universe and a prominent location in the X-Men comics. The fictional nation served as an allegory fo ...

. In 2009, Cassandra Nova was ranked as

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

's 50th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time, the only villain introduced in the 21st century to make the list. The character made her live-action debut in the

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...

(MCU) film ''

Deadpool & Wolverine ''Deadpool & Wolverine'' is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed ...

'' (2024), portrayed by

Emma Corrin Emma-Louise Corrin (born 13 December 1995) is an English actor. They portrayed Diana, Princess of Wales in the fourth season of the Netflix historical drama ''The Crown'' (2020), for which they won a Golden Globe and were nominated for a Prim ...

Fictional character biography

Cassandra Nova is a mummudrai, a parasitic entity from the astral plane who initially lacks a body and forms one from

Charles Xavier Professor X (Prof. Charles Francis Xavier) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 ( ...

's DNA, effectively making her his twin sister. During the two's

gestation Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during pregn ...

, Nova attempts to kill Xavier, but he seemingly destroys her, causing her physical body to be

stillborn Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can often result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. T ...

. Nova survives as a mass of cells that clings to a sewer wall for decades, rebuilding her body and swearing revenge on Xavier.'' New X-Men'' #126 (July 2002)''New X-Men'' #125 (June 2002) After regenerating her body, Nova manipulates Donald Trask,

Bolivar Trask Bolivar Trask is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a military scientist whose company Trask Industries is well known as the creator of the Sentinels. He is also the father of Larry Trask and Madam ...

's nephew, to utilize the

Wild Sentinels T-Ray Taegukgi Taegukgi (Tae-Won) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character, created by Jed MacKay and Alessandro Vitti, first appeared in ''Taskmaster'' (vol. 3) #3 (February 2021). Taegukgi ...

to destroy

, killing 16 million mutants. Nova duplicates Trask's DNA to gain control of the Wild Sentinels before killing him. Nova is captured by

Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; , ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguished. In Hesiod's ''Th ...

and

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

and taken to the

X-Mansion X-Mansion and Xavier Institute are the common names for a mansion and research institute appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The mansion is depicted as the private estate of Charles Francis Xavier and serves as the ba ...

, where she escapes and defeats most of the X-Men easily. Nova uses Cerebra (an enhanced version of

Cerebro Cerebro (; Spanish language, Spanish for "brain", from Latin ) is a fictional device appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The device is used by the X-Men (in particular, their leader, Professor X, Professor Charles Xavier ...

) and switch minds with Xavier. Xavier is trapped in Nova's body and unable to warn the X-Men before Nova shoots him.''New X-Men'' #116 (September 2001) Nova contacts the

Shi'ar The Shi'ar ( ) are a fictional species of aliens appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Shi'ar Empire (or Imperium) is a vast collection of alien species, cultures, and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Em ...

and manipulates them into battling the X-Men until they show the truth to the

Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the emperor and/or empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial force ...

. Angered at Nova's treachery and realizing the danger she poses, the Imperial Guard battle Nova, who defeats them and heads to the X-Mansion. She plans on using Cerebra to eliminate all mutants, but

Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey-Summers is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''Uncanny X-Men, The X-Men'' #1 ...

stops Nova and forces her out of Xavier's body. Nova's essence is tricked into entering the body of Stuff, a shapeshifting member of the Imperial Guard. There, she is locked in a self-repeating program. Nova appears to return to her original form in ''

Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were Limited series (comics), limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004 in comics, 2004, with its first run writt ...

'', alongside Sebastian Shaw of the

Hellfire Club Hellfire Club was a term used to describe several exclusive Club (organization), clubs for high-society Rake (character), rakes established in Great Britain and Ireland in the 18th Century. The name most commonly refers to Francis Dashwood, 11t ...

. However, it is revealed that she is an illusion created by Emma Frost, who is acting out post-hypnotic suggestions implanted by Nova.''

'' (vol. 3) #18 (December 2006) Nova's influence causes Frost to create manifestations of Nova, Shaw, Frost's younger self, and

Negasonic Teenage Warhead Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Eloise Olivia "Ellie" Phimister) is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely, the character first appeared in ''New X-Men (2001 series), Ne ...

, a student of Frost who was killed in Genosha. Frost and the imaginary Hellfire Club attack the X-Men, only to be defeated by Cyclops and the Xavier Institute students. Nova escapes from the X-Men's clutches by using her psychic powers to possess the bodies of others. She also creates microscopic

Sentinel Sentinel may refer to: Places Mountains * Mount Sentinel, a mountain next to the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana * Sentinel Buttress, a volcanic crag on James Ross Island, Antarctica * Sentinel Dome, a naturally occurring granit ...

technology that transforms humans into Sentinel-like forms. With the help from the

Avengers Avenger(s) or The Avenger(s) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes **Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes of "The Infinity Sag ...

and the

Atlanteans As an adjective, Atlantean (or Atlantian) means "of or pertaining to Atlas or Atlantis". Atlantean may also refer to: * Atlantean figures, a type of ancient artifacts * ''Atlantean'' (documentary series), a trilogy of TV films discussing the or ...

, the X-Men mass-produce

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

's helmets to free Nova's brainwashed victims. During the

Krakoan Age The Krakoan Age was a series of ''X-Men'' storylines published by Marvel Comics from 2019 to 2024. The Krakoan Age began with the Jonathan Hickman limited series ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X'' (July – October 2019) and it consists of fo ...

, Nova moves to the mutant nation of

Krakoa Krakoa is a fictional living island appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It first appeared in '' Giant-Size X-Men'' #1 and was created by Len Wein and Dave Cockrum. While often depicted as an antagonist, Krakoa later fe ...

, having been given a second chance per the island's laws. She resides in a hidden section of Krakoa, away from the Quiet Council's influence.

Powers and abilities

Cassandra Nova is able to access the full spectrum of latent mutant functions in

's genome, granting herself vast psionic powers. These powers include telepathy, telekinesis, and intangibility. Nova has all the powers of the "average" mummudrai as well, including possession and genetic alteration.

Other versions

Here Comes Tomorrow

An alternate universe variant of Cassandra Nova from Earth-15104 appears in ''

Here Comes Tomorrow ''New X-Men'' is an American comic book ongoing series, written by Grant Morrison and featuring the mutant superhero team, the X-Men. It was a retitling of the then-ongoing second volume of the main ''X-Men'' series, and shares the series' number ...

''. This version is the headmistress of the Xavier Institute and a member of the X-Men.

X-Men: The End

An alternate universe variant of Cassandra Nova from Earth-41001 appears in '' X-Men: The End''. This version gained control of the

Phoenix Force The Phoenix Force is a fictional entity appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum, the Phoenix Force is famous for its central role in ''The Dark Phoenix Saga'' storyline, and is in ...

and became known as the Phoenix.

The Great White Owl

An alternate universe variant of Cassandra Nova from an unidentified universe appears in ''

Uncanny X-Force ''Uncanny X-Force'' was a comic book ongoing series published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Rick Remender and artist Jerome Opeña, the first volume of the series continued the story of Wolverine (character), Wolverine and his X-Force team f ...

''. This version survived four thousand years into the future and nearly conquered Earth as the Great White Owl after destroying the veil that separated the main universe from that of the mummundrai.

X-Men '92

An alternate universe variant of Cassandra Nova from Earth-15730 appears in '' X-Men '92''. This version is a female clone of Charles Xavier created by

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597–587 BCE) but persisting in Christianity and Islam. In apocalypse, a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a ...

In other media

Cassandra Nova Cassandra Nova Xavier is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely, the character first appeared in '' New ...

appears in ''

'', portrayed by

. This version was banished by the

Time Variance Authority The Time Variance Authority (TVA) is a fictional organization appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is depicted as a group of timeline monitors tasked with preventing the existence of certain timelines that are deemed to ...

(TVA) to the

Void Void may refer to: Science, engineering, and technology * Void (astronomy), the spaces between galaxy filaments that contain no galaxies * Void (composites), a pore that remains unoccupied in a composite material * Void, synonym for vacuum, a s ...

and became its self-styled ruler, forcing other exiled individuals to serve her or be fed to

Alioth Alioth , also called Epsilon Ursae Majoris, is a star in the northern constellation of Ursa Major. The designation is Latinised from ε Ursae Majoris and abbreviated Epsilon UMa or ε UMa. Despite being designated "ε"&nb ...

. * Cassandra Nova, based on her ''Deadpool & Wolverine'' incarnation, appears as an unlockable playable character in ''

Marvel Future Fight ''Marvel: Future Fight'' is a 2015 action role-playing game developed and published by Netmarble. Gameplay Players assemble a team of iconic Marvel heroes and villains to engage in thrilling battles. The gameplay revolves around completing mi ...

''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nova, Cassandra Characters created by Frank Quitely Characters created by Grant Morrison Comics characters introduced in 2001 Fictional characters who can turn intangible Fictional characters with body or mind control abilities Fictional characters with fire or heat abilities Fictional hypnotists Fictional impostors Fictional mass murderers Fictional parasite characters Marvel Comics characters with accelerated healing Marvel Comics female supervillains Marvel Comics mutants Marvel Comics psychics Marvel Comics telekinetics Marvel Comics telepaths Twin characters in comics