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Biography

Magneto (/mæɡˈniːtoʊ/; birth name: Max Eisenhardt; alias: Erik Lehnsherr[needs IPA] and Magnus) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The X-Men #1 (cover-dated September 1963) as an adversary of the X-Men. Magneto is a powerful mutant, one of a fictional subspecies of humanity born with superhuman abilities, who has the ability to generate and control magnetic fields. Magneto regards mutants as evolutionarily superior to humans and rejects the possibility of peaceful human-mutant coexistence; he initially aimed to conquer the world to enable mutants, whom he refers to as Homo superior, to replace humans as the dominant species. Writers have since fleshed out his origins and motivations, revealing him to be a Holocaust survivor whose extreme methods and cynical philosophy derive from his determination to protect mutants from suffering a similar fate at the hands of a world that fears and persecutes them. He is a friend of Professor X, the leader of the X-Men, but their different philosophies sometimes cause a rift in their friendship. Magneto's role in comics has progressed from supervillain to antihero to superhero, having served as an occasional ally and member of the X-Men, even leading the New Mutants for a time as headmaster of the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters. Writer Chris Claremont, who originated Magneto's backstory, modeled the character on then-Israeli opposition leader Menachem Begin,[12] with later commentators comparing the character with the American civil rights leader Malcolm X[13][14] and Jewish Defense League founder Meir Kahane.[15][16] Ian McKellen has portrayed Magneto in various films since X-Men in 2000, while Michael Fassbender has portrayed a younger version of the character in the prequel films since X-Men: First Class in 2011. Both actors portrayed their respective incarnations in X-Men: Days of Future Past.