After a long search, New Mutants has finally found its Danielle Moonstar (aka Mirage) in newcomer Blu Hunt. Ever since New Mutants was announced as an X-Men property at Fox, the studio and director Josh Boone have made it clear that they wanted the casting to be as authentic as possible. Part of what made the original New Mutants comic of the '80s so thrilling was seeing young heroes from diverse backgrounds tackle threats and their personal lives. With the film adaptation comes the opportunity to give a broad range of young fans around the world the chance to see themselves as heroes.

So far on the New Mutants casting front, we've seen Split star Anya Taylor-Joy and Maisie Williams of Game of Thrones come aboard as Magik and Wolfsbane. We've even saw a sketch of how the two actors might look in the film. This week, word also broke that Stranger Things star Charlie Heaton would be the film's Cannonball, and Henry Zaga of 13 Reasons Why will play his best friend Sunspot. With four of the five roles now locked in, the final character in need of a performer was the Native American telepath known as Mirage, and now she too has arrived.

THR is reporting that Fox has cast relative unknown Blu Hunt in the role of Danielle Moonstar. The part-Native actor fits the promised bill, though she has the smallest body of work behind her of the film's main cast members. So far, she only has 6 TV credits to her name, three of which come from a recurring role on The Originals. Still, Boone and company must have seen something special in her, as they likely cast a wide net when looking for who would play the character.

In the comics, Mirage uses her telepathic abilities to extract the fears of her foes and turn them into the illusions of her namesake. Like the other four mutants, she's a founding member of the team and one of the few American Indian heroes in mainstream comics. Along with the inclusion of thunderbird on FOX's TV show The Gifted, she'll also become one of the few Native performers in live-action superhero media.

This isn't the first time we've heard Hunt's name in connection to the part, either. Last week, she and True O'Brien (Queen Sugar) were both said to be in contention for the role. In the end, Hunt was chosen, keeping the characters roots true to the comics. Now that the core cast has been fleshed out, we'll likely begin learning who the other players will be, including the villain.

The film is set to draw on the 'Demon Bear' arc from the comics, with the titular beast serving as the main antagonist and placing Moonstar at the center of the horror-themed film. We've also heard that Rosario Dawson is making the jump from the MCU to the FoX-Men universe, as she is said to be playing Dr. Cecelia Reyes. With filming beginning next month, expect to hear a lot more about New Mutants soon.

NEXT: X-23 Unlikely to Join New Mutants or X-Men Movies

Source: THR

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