Voice actor Cal Dodd is just as excited as the fans for the return of the X-Men to the small screen.

Back at the tail end of 2021 on Disney+ Day, the streaming series announced that it would be reviving the beloved X-Men cartoon that aired in the mid-1990s on Fox, re-branded with the name X-Men ’97, a nod to when the original series ended in 1997. Set to debut this fall on Disney+ to coincide with the X-Men‘s 60th anniversary, the cartoon is expected to be a continuation of where that show left off, as per the official synopsis:

Storm and Wolverine try to continue the X-Men. Magneto comes in and wants to step up for Charles Xavier. Sinister comes in to try to end the X-Men once and for all.

Dodd is set to resume his role as the X-Man known as Wolverine, a performance that made him a fan-favorite during the show’s original run. I caught up with Mr. Dodd recently at last month’s Lexington Comic and Toy Con in Lexington, Kentucky, where he met and spoke with eager fans who grew up with him as their Wolverine. When asked about his excitement in returning to his iconic role, his enthusiasm was unbounded.

Cal Dodd

 

“I’m beside myself,” Dodd said. “And as I was talking to you about earlier, I was in the studio on Thursday doing some recording for the new series. And I tell ya, I saw some of the animation. It is stupendous. It just made me–I can’t wait for you guys to see it. It is stunning, the animation.”

Art from X-MEN ’97

 

Dodd then spoke specifically about the emotions that resuming his role as the Canadian brawler-turned-hero stirred and what Wolverine means to him. “The characters—most of us are back. I missed Wolverine so much. He was with me from ’92 to ’97. And then I didn’t see or hear from him again.”

“It was like cutting my left arm off,” he explained. “He just disappeared out of my life, which is really weird. The fans brought this thing back. And thanks to Disney, they rebooted this thing. It’s like my brother’s back. It’s like having my arm put back on.”

Cal Dodd and his brother Wolverine will both be back this fall when X-Men ’97 debuts on Disney+.