With a seven-decade comic career, there have been several Ghost Riders, but which is the best? It’s time to rank the Spirits of Vengeance.
When it comes to Ghost Rider, most fans think of a skeleton with his head on fire rocking a chopper with fiery wheels. The thing is, he’s a much older character than you might first suspect. In fact, the “Ghost Rider” moniker has been active since the 1940s. While the skeleton biker may be the most iconic, there has been a wide variety of Ghost Riders throughout the years, and the Spirit of Vengeance has ridden more than just motorcycles.
On that note, let’s rank the best Ghost Riders straight from the comics based on their MCU potential. Who knows? Thanks to the Multiverse, we may see more than one on the big and small screens.
10. The Calico Kid (spoiler: that’s not the name of his cat)
Debuting in 1949’s Tim Holt #11, the original Ghost Rider was a far cry from the Spirit of Vengeance we’ve come to know and love. Actually, he wasn’t the Spirit of Vengeance at all. This version was the cowboy Rex Fury, aka the Calico Kid, who would go on to star in Western horror comics for Magazine Enterprises. In 1950, the cowboy Ghost Rider was given his own series, and the legend was truly born.
Outside of a cleverly placed Easter egg, I don’t imagine we will see Rex in live action. Still, it’s a fun bit of Ghost Rider history.
9. Ghost Rider in the sky…on a monster spider
What could be better than Ghost Rider in a sword and sorcery battle mowing down enemies atop his giant spider? Nothing. Will we see him in the MCU? Not likely, but it’s fun to think about.
This idea came about after Marvel Comics brought Conan the Barbarian back to the House of Ideas in recent years. Everyone’s favorite fantasy barbarian was soon put into the Marvel-616 universe, and he joined the Savage Avengers. That’s when Conan was paired with the likes of Venom, Wolverine, the Punisher, Elektra, Brother Voodoo, and Ghost Rider. Conan recognized the Spirit of Vengeance, having witnessed a previous iteration riding a monstrous spider into battle in the Hyborian Age.
Without Conan in the MCU, it’s hard to imagine any of his Marvel additions making it into a movie or show, but seeing a spider-riding Ghost Rider would be magical.
8. Stone Age Ghost Rider and his ghostly mammoth
Before Ghost Rider saddled up his spider, he did exactly what any of us would do given the opportunity: ride a wooly mammoth.
Chronologically, this is one of the more recent additions to the Ghost Rider mythos, created in 2017 for Marvel Legacy. He was part of Odin’s Avengers 1,000,000 B.C., a group that featured Stone Age versions of several characters, including Phoenix/Jean Grey, Black Panther, Iron Fist, and the original Sorcerer Supreme, Agamotto.
Where did Stone Age Ghost Rider come from, anyway? I’m glad you asked. He was the only survivor when his tribe was massacred by the Wendigo. The boy followed the monster’s trail, and he came across a magic snake that bonded him to the Spirit of Vengeance. Then he climbed atop a mammoth, and the legend was born.
Thanks to Thor’s connection to the Phoenix, there’s two avenues for the Stone Age Ghost Rider to appear in the MCU. During the 1,000,000 B.C. story, Odin had a romance with the ancient Phoenix host, thus making the Phoenix Force Thor’s actual mother, something that could be explored in an MCU flashback. The simpler path is What If…? and the Avengers of 1,000,000 B.C. would make for a fun episode.
7. Ghost Rider of 2099
Kenshiro “Zero” Cochrane is probably the least remembered Ghost Rider, even more forgettable than Rex Fury. He was part of the Marvel 2099 line and its oh-so-1990s futuristic costume designs. While Spider-Man 2099 earned legions of fans and will be in the upcoming animated movie Across the Spider-Verse, Zero is rarely mentioned.
The most unique aspect of Ghost Rider 2099 was that he was a robot. Zero was a hacker before he was killed. Just before his death, Zero uploaded his mind into cyberspace where the sentient artificial intelligence program, Ghostworks, gave him an opportunity: download his consciousness into the Terminator-esque robot, the Cybertek 101, that happened to look like the Spirit of Vengeance with a cyberpunk makeover. From there, he did what any good Ghost Rider does — dispense unrelenting justice as he sees fit.
After the 2099 Easter egg in Loki along with the aforementioned Across the Spider-Verse, there’s whispers of a futuristic Marvel Universe coming to life. That would be the only way we could see the techno Ghost Rider onscreen anytime soon.
6. The Phantom Rider
Well after Magazine Enterprises went out of business, the rights to the name “Ghost Rider” became available, and Marvel pounced on the opportunity. In 1967, they created their very own Ghost Rider, who was pretty much a copy of Rex Fury’s Ghost Rider.
Wearing a cowboy hat, mask, and spectral costume, Carter Slade rode into the comics…and our hearts. Around that time, Western comics’ popularity was fading, and Marvel decided it was time to put Ghost Rider on a motorcycle. Instead of dumping Carter, he was christened the Phantom Rider. While he was largely forgotten by mainstream audiences, Sam Elliott brought him to life for the dubious 2007 Ghost Rider movie.
Again, the Multiverse makes anything and everything possible. There’s rumors that Nicolas Cage will ride again, and he could bring the Phantom Rider with him.
5. Cosmic Ghost Rider
It was a great time for Ghost Rider fans in 2017. The same year we were introduced to the mammoth-riding Stone Age Spirit of Vengeance, writer Donny Cates created one of the more popular alternate-reality Riders. This version happened to be a futuristic Frank Castle who went insane from loneliness.
As the story goes, Thanos finally defeated the Avengers, and there’s a moment where he tears Iron Man in half. During the epic battle, the Punisher was killed, and his last thoughts were of getting even with the Mad Titan. It just so happened that Marvel’s own Satan was listening, and Mephisto struck a deal with Frank to become the Spirit of Vengeance. A resurrected Punisher cruised the streets on a chopper equipped with a minigun, mowing down criminals all in the name of sweet vengeance. Eventually, he ran out of criminals. In fact, he ran out of humanity altogether as he witnessed the end of mankind. The centuries alone drove him mad, which actually caused Punisher to grow a sense of humor.
When Galactus came calling, he offered Earth since there was no life left on the planet as Frank was long since dead himself. The two then went on the hunt for Thanos with Galactus imbuing the Ghost Punisher with the Power Cosmic, thus giving the world Cosmic Ghost Rider.
Marvel loves its comedy, and this would be the most unique Ghost Rider to add to the MCU. Between cosmic adventures, the Multiverse, and What If…?, there’s several ways for him to be introduced.
4. Jonesin’ for a new Rider
Eleven years ago, Marvel created its first Latina and female Ghost Rider, Alejandra Jones. As a small child, she was kidnapped by human traffickers and sold to a cult that wanted the Spirit of Vengeance’s power for its own purposes. At that time, Johnny Blaze had walked away from his supernatural alter ego. The Seeker needed a new host, and it turned to a temple in Nicaragua. There it found the teenage Alejandra, who had been trained since childhood to host the Spirit of Vengeance.
During the Fear Itself crossover, Alejandra, under the temple’s control, attempted to rid the world of sin by turning all of humanity into mindless zombies, and Johnny was forced back into the superhero lifestyle. Once she broke free of the temple’s control, Alejandra would remain as Ghost Rider for a time with Johnny as her mentor.
With Marvel’s push for diversity, Alejandra fits the bill, giving her solid odds for a live-action counterpart.
3. Catch up, Danny
The hot rumor has been that Marvel will introduce multiple Ghost Riders into the MCU. Before Spider-Man: No Way Home, this would have been hard to imagine, but the Multiverse is the single most convenient plot device ever conceived. It’s left theorists to ponder if all the Ghost Rider gossip will result in several characters sporting that trendy flaming skull. If Marvel Studios follows the No Way Home formula, we could see Nicolas Cage return as Johnny Blaze while someone like Ryan Gosling or Norman Reedus revs his demonic chopper as Danny Ketch, the Ghost Rider of the 1990s.
2. Sweep the leg, Johnny
You would think Johnny Blaze would be the most likely candidate for the MCU’s Ghost Rider, but I picture Kevin Feige and company going a different direction.
By far, the most popular Ghost Rider remains Johnny Blaze. No matter how hard Marvel tries to saddle someone else with the role, it always returns to Johnny. He is the iconic version of the character, and fans have made it clear they want the classic Ghost Rider in the MCU. Of course, Feige doesn’t seem to like the audience telling him how to cast a movie. Don’t forget that fans wanted John Krasinski to play the MCU’s Mister Fantastic, and we saw what happened to him in Multiverse of Madness. Suffice to say, be careful what you wish for.
1. Reyes-ing Hell
As much as we all want to see a new Johnny Blaze ride his flaming Hell Cycle and blaze a trail across the MCU, the odds-on favorite is the Ghost Rider already in the shared universe, Robbie Reyes.
Played by Gabriel Luna, Robbie cranked up the Hell Charger for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. If he had ridden a Hell-arley, most fans probably would have been more accepting of Robbie. The limited special effects for the canceled ABC series didn’t help the lukewarm reception, so an upgrade in CGI could increase the badassery and win over the most staunch critics.
Marvel Studios isn’t keen on recasting roles, so my money is on Robbie sticking around as the MCU’s Spirit of Vengeance.
