X-Men director Bryan Singer has announced that both Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Patrick Stewart will be returning to the franchise for Days of Future Past, the sequel he is helming to X-Men: First Class.

“I’d like to officially welcome back James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and Nicholas Hoult to X-Men: Days Of Future Past,” he tweeted yesterday. “Thrilled to announce Sir Ian Mckellen and Sir Patrick Stewart are joining the cast… More to come…” Since he added hashtags for Magneto and Professor X, it seems clear that they will be reprising their roles as the older versions of Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy’s characters.

The original comicbook story on which the movie is based is partly set in an alternate future, so it seems probable that the pair will return for those scenes, rather than “age up” the current stars.