10 Famous People You Never Knew Were In The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Comic book movie fans are probably the best at spotting cameos, as they're always on the lookout for nods to the comics hidden in the films. Marvel aficionados, in particular, are naturals at this, as they know that Stan Lee will always turn up in a (generally) humorous minor role. It’s not only Stan who pops up in Marvel movies, though. Over its thirteen films to date, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has squeezed in a number of familiar names into small roles. Some appeared before they were famous, while others were well-known beforehand but were stuck into small parts for laughs. Whatever the situation, many of these cameos can be easily missed by even the most eagled-eyed of viewers. Just like there were numerous famous faces in Star Wars movies that you probably never caught, here are 10 well-known people that you most likely didn’t realize had appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 10) Olivia Munn Fans will most likely know that Olivia Munn has appeared in a Marvel movie, as she recently played En-Sabah-Nur’s henchwoman Psylocke in X-Men: Apocalypse. However, you probably didn’t know that she has previously appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well. If you failed to realize this, don’t cut yourself up about it, as she only turned up in a very minor capacity. Munn featured in Iron Man 2 as TV reporter Chess Roberts. She can be seen reporting at the opening of the Stark Expo near the start of the film. If you were thinking that this is an unfairly small part for Munn, then you would be right - originally, she played Tony's latest squeeze at his birthday party. Though director Jon Favreau loved her performance, he thought the scene was too comedic and cut it from the film. To apologize, he gave Munn this role instead. 9) J. Michael Straczynski He might not exactly be a household name, but if you love sci-fi TV or comic books you will know of and probably revere J. Michael Straczynski. A hugely prolific writer who has worked on numerous projects over his long career, he's probably most known for creating Babylon 5 and for his celebrated runs on various Marvel comics - one of which concerned a certain Norse God. His history with the character is what got him an easily-missed cameo in Thor. Straczynski plays a hick who tries to move Thor’s discarded hammer Mjolnir, before calling a bunch of pals to help him. This segues into Stan Lee's cameo, as he tries to move it by tying the hammer to his truck. As much as we love Stan, it was nice for Thor to give a nod to another writer who has helped shape Marvel comics over the years. 8) Rob Zombie You might be wondering how you missed the distinctive look of heavy metal musician and movie director Rob Zombie in a Marvel movie. Well, don’t kick yourself, as only his voice was featured and in a very small capacity. In Guardians of the Galaxy - a movie that will keep cropping up on this list as it is filled with cameos - Zombie can be briefly heard as the voice of the navigator of the Ravagers, Yondu’s crew who are hunting down Star-Lord for stealing the powerful Orb from them. It’s not as out-there as his cameo as God in James Gunn’s previous movie Super, but Zombie's small role here is a nice nod his frequent collaborations with the director. Maybe he'll turn up in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, as well? 7) Michael K. Williams One of The Wire’s best characters has got to be sympathetic villain Omar Little, as played by Michael K. Williams. The role was the actor’s breakout part and was instrumental in getting him a cameo in Marvel movie The Incredible Hulk. Unfortunately, it’s a total waste of the guy’s talents. Just watch the video above to see what we mean. So, why did they bother to get Omar Little just to stand around looking scared? Well, actually, Williams originally had a larger and much cooler role. Caught in the battle between Abomination and Hulk, Williams’ character was at first freaked out before regaining his composure and telling Hulk to “go kick his ass!” In the final cut, however, the scene was excised, leaving Williams with only about five seconds of screen time and no dialogue. 6) Seth Green Comedian/actor Seth Green has had a pretty steady career from the mid-nineties onwards, from his regular role in Buffy The Vampire Slayer through playing Dr Evil’s son in the Austin Powers movies to voicing Chris on Family Guy. A couple of credits on his long CV that are often forgotten, however, are his brief turns in the MCU. Remember the fun cameo at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy that brought back Howard the Duck, the one character you never thought we would see on screen again after the infamous 80s movie? Well, the character’s quick speaking part - "why do you let it lick you? Gross." - was in fact provided by Green. This isn’t Green’s only appearance in the MCU, though – he can be also briefly be seen as a Tony Stark fan at the Stark Expo in Iron Man 2. 5) Jenna Coleman After playing Clara Oswald - one of the Doctor’s longest-running time-travelling companions - on Doctor Who for several seasons, Jenna Coleman is a natural at acting in period roles. It's fitting, then, that the actresses’ small appearance in the MCU came in the wartime-set Captain America: The First Avenger. Jenna appears in the fairground scene where a pre-serum Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes and their dates witness Howard Stark’s invention expo. She doesn’t get much to do, but Jenna still nabs a couple of lines as Bucky’s unnamed date. She's far from the only Doctor Who alum to appear in the MCU, though. The actress is also joined by the likes of fellow companion Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy) and two incarnations of the Time Lord in Christopher Eccleston (Thor: The Dark World) and David Tennant (Jessica Jones). 4) Lou Ferrigno Lou Ferrigno is a true giant of Marvel history, having played the Green Goliath himself in the hit 1980s TV series The Incredible Hulk. As thanks for his inextricable link to the character, he's lent his voice for every appearance of the Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, he has also appeared in the flesh, as well. Ferrigno has a decently-sized cameo as a security guard at Culver University. Unfortunately, he isn’t too great at his job, as Bruce Banner is able to get past him by bribing him with some pizza. This cameo is particularly fun as it references Ferrigno’s previous role in 2003’s Hulk, where he also played a security guard. That time, he starred opposite Stan Lee. Pairing the widely different duo up made for a nicely comic scene. 3) Elon Musk If Tony Stark lived in the real world, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to think that he would know Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and inventor most known for co-creating Paypal. It’s not really a surprise, then, that Musk turned up in Iron Man 2. It’s an easily missed scene, but Tony bumps into him at a restaurant, where Musk says that they will get together at some point to talk about a new idea for an “electric jet" - a nod to Musk’s ambition to make one in real life. Funnily enough, Musk’s former wife Inception actress Talulah Riley (they have recently filed for divorce) also appeared in a minor role in the MCU. She turned up as an Asgardian nurse treating Jane Foster in Thor: The Dark World. 2) Alexis Denisof Joss Whedon is known for working with the same core bunch of actors in his TV shows and movies. When taking the reins of The Avengers, the writer-director couldn’t help but give one of his most frequent collaborators a tiny role. Even the most hardcore Whedonites wouldn’t notice this one, however, as the actor is completely unrecognizable. Remember the gravel-voiced lackey who explains about Loki’s plans to take over Earth to his boss Thanos at the beginning and end of the film? Well, the character – mysteriously named The Other in the credits – is actually Alexis Denisof, who's most known for playing Wesley Wyndam-Price in Buffy and Angel. He returned to the role for Guardians of the Galaxy, where The Other was murdered by Ronan The Accuser - thereby ending Denisof’s MCU career before it had even really started. 1) Nathan Fillion From one Joss Whedon favourite to another, we bet you didn’t know that Nathan Fillion turned up in one of the same films as fellow Buffy alum Denisof. The reason this is a safe bet is because, just like that actor, Fillion was also hidden under an impenetrable alien disguise. In the film, he's actually one of the inmates who threatens Peter Quill and the Guardians when they are doing time in space prison the Kyln. Fillion is the bulky, reptilian turquoise one. The actor was pretty much guaranteed a part in Guardians, of course, as he often plays a role in James Gunn’s films, like Super and Slither. In fact, he's set to get to use his own face in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 as Simon Williams (who becomes the superhero Wonder Man in the comics).