25 Major Marvel Heroes/Villains Not Yet In The Marvel Cinematic Universe
Fourteen films and five TV shows and counting, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done a tremendous job of translating decades' worth of comic book characters to the big and small screens. Everyone from big-hitters like Iron Man and Thor to relatively obscure heroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy and Doctor Strange have now graced the spotlight thanks to this all-encompassing shared universe. Still, there remains many great heroes and villains from Marvel's long history to pick off the shelf.
Marvel's answer to Aquaman (though he came later) is one of the company's oldest characters, so it's well past time for The Sub-Mariner to make it to the big screen. Have him pop up in Phase Four, maybe?
As a mercenary and hunter of various war criminals, Silver Sable has clashed with numerous Marvel heroes in the past due to her fairly unforgiving methods and motives. She's by no means a simple character, though, and if nothing else, her future inclusion in the MCU could provide a little growth and focus for Natasha Romanoff, as she bonds with the kindred spirit in later plotlines.
While Peter Parker's notched up three different franchises in the last two decades, the successor of his Spider-Man mantle has yet to appear in live-action. Let's hope that changes soon.
Before his powers took on a more mystical nature, Kraven the Hunter was exactly what the name implies - a hunter. With no superpowers, this would certainly be a very different type of foe for the MCU and in particular Spider-Man, who has a long history with the villain - which is why so many people want to see him in the rebooted series.
Kamala Khan AKA Ms. Marvel has gained legions of fans since she was created as the company's first Muslim superhero in 2014. While a light-hearted ABC TV series would be perfect for the character, we imagine it won't be happening any time soon.
It's unclear whether Marvel or Fox have the rights to Jessica Drew, but if it's Marvel, they really need to make the most of her. An Avenger and an agent of S.W.O.R.D (an offshoot of S.H.I.E.L.D), there's bound to be somewhere she can fit in, right?
The Nova Corps might have already appeared as space police in Guardians of the Galaxy, but we really want to see the Green Lantern-like cosmic hero Nova at some point - and preferably the Richard Rider version.
Bruce Banner's cousin Jennifer Walters also shared his penchant for hulking out. The difference is, though, that Jennifer retains her personality and intelligence in her green form, which she elects to remain in during everyday life.
Gabriel Luna is currently playing Robbie Reyes' Ghost Rider on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., but what we really want to see is the first incarnation of the Spirit of Vengeance brought to the MCU. Especially after those awful Nic Cage movies.
Often labelled as Marvel's answer to Batman, Marc Spector AKA Moon Knight is a rare night-stalking vigilante. A dark and fascinating character, he suffers from dissociative personality disorder, which could be interesting for the films to explore.
Wesley Snipes previously brought Blade the vampire hunter to life in three movies in the early 90s/late 00s, but now it's time to re-introduce the Daywalker to a new generation. Snipes is even up for reprising his role, so make it happen Marvel.
There are hints that Adam Warlock might appear in a future MCU movie, but it hasn't been officially confirmed just yet. With fan demand for the character high though, we imagine it's just a matter of time before this happens.
England's answer to Captain America is an often overlooked Marvel hero. Granted magical superpowers by the wizard Merlin, Brian Braddock is sworn to be Britain's protector. Could be a fun Netflix series, no?
Runaways and New Warriors are coming to the small screen soon, but what about Young Avengers - a team of teen relatives of major superheroes. Members include Hulkling, Iron Lad, a female Hawkeye, Ant-Man's daughter and Miss America. Sound like something you might be interested in?
Carol Danvers might be making her big screen debut soon, but it would be a shame to completely wipe the first Captain Marvel, a member of the Kree called Mar-Vell, from continuity. Stick him in a supporting role in Captain Marvel and make the fans happy.
Horse-faced alien Beta Ray Bill is one of the weirdest Marvel heroes out there, but nonetheless he's one of the most pure of heart - he's also one of the few to wield Thor's hammer Mjolnir. As for where he could show up, we think he could make for a great Guardian of the Galaxy.
General Ross (as played by William Hurt) is a part of the MCU, but his Hulk alter-ego is not. As such, we're hopeful that Ross' recent appearance in Civil War was a tease for a Thunderbolts movie further down the line.
The Sentry is the persona forgotten about by middle-aged and overweight Robert Reynolds, until he has visions of his returning enemy the Void. He's proven to be a vital player in some recent storylines that Marvel have put together and would certainly be a great, and powerful addition to the MCU.
Morlun is a fairly new villain, but he's still one of the Marvel Universe's most fierce and powerful bad guys, and Spidey very nearly failed to survive their first encounter as he was truly pushed to and beyond his limits. As such, he'd make a fantastic villain for the webslinger's new rebooted series and his mystical nature would tie in nicely with what's going on over in Doctor Strange's corner of the MCU.
Initially someone Spider-Man clashed with, cat burglar Felicia Hardy is best known as the Black Cat. She's been portrayed with and without powers over the years and at one point even became Spidey's girlfriend. Introducing Black Cat in the MCU could be tricky, but perhaps Marvel's reboot could change things up a little by having her be a fellow high school student? It'd be a departure, but fans could welcome it.
Season 3 of Daredevil has already been confirmed, and if it's going to continue the war between Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk, then it's essential that Bullseye, arguably the hero's most iconic villain, shows up. He needs to be redeemed after the Daredevil movie anyways, and he should definitely be a priority for Marvel and Netflix in a post-Defenders world.
Quite a few different people have held the White Tiger mantle over the years, but it's Angela Del Toro who I'd like to see most on the screen, hopefully introduced in the next season of the Man Without Fear's show. Providing she's handled well enough, there's even a chance the character could move into her own spinoff series.
Taskmaster possesses the ability to absorb knowledge and instantly replicate combat skills of anyone he observes. The most interesting thing about him though is that his powers cause him to frequently lose the memories of his past. We can easily see him on the big screen, but Netflix could very well serve him much better than the movies, especially if he's used as a big bad of sorts.
Now that Spider-Man rests with Marvel, it surely won't be long before they re-introduce Venom. When they do that, we hope they'll give his nastier spinoff Carnage a shot at the limelight. What makes Carnage so much more dangerous than Venom is that its host Cletus Kassidy was a crazed serial killer even before he merged with the alien symbiote.
Marvel's movie villains have often stuck to the rigid formula of being dark mirrors of the heroes. If we ever get an Iron Man 4, how about pitting Tony Stark against an evil talking giant dragon with the brilliant name of Fing Fang Foom? I guarantee no one will see it coming.
Throughout fourteen films and five TV shows and counting, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done a great job of translating decades’ worth of comic book characters to the big and small screens. Everyone from heavy-hitters like Iron Man and Thor to relatively obscure heroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy and Doctor Strange have now had the spotlight thanks to this all-encompassing shared universe. Still, there remains many great heroes and villains from Marvel’s long history to pick off the shelf.
Thankfully, the next few years will see several new faces. In the movies, two big female heroes – namely Captain Marvel (the Carol Danvers version) and Evangeline Lilly’s the Wasp – are confirmed to be making appearances. Marvel’s TV output, on the other hand, is about to explode – Iron Fist, Runaways, Cloak and Dagger, Damage Control, Inhumans and possibly New Warriors are all on the upcoming slate. And those are just the ones we know about.
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With all these new shows and movies coming down the pipeline, we’ve been thinking about which others heroes and villains we’d like to see arrive in the MCU in the near future. Some are characters we’ve already seen on screen but now want to see interact with the wider Marvel universe, while others have never had a live-action appearance before – for shame. Each one of them would make for a fantastic addition to the ever-growing roster and we’re hopeful that they’ll show up soon enough.
Just one proviso before we begin, though. Only characters that (we think) Marvel have the rights to are eligible for this list. So as much as we might want to see it, those that rest with 20th Century Fox – the X-Men, Deadpool and Fantastic Four – will not be mentioned here.
About the author
Christian Bone
Christian Bone is a Staff Writer/Editor at We Got This Covered and has been cluttering up the internet with his thoughts on movies and TV for a full decade, ever since graduating with a Creative Writing degree from the University of Winchester. He can usually be found writing about anything Marvel or DC. And yet, if you asked him, he'd probably say his favorite superhero film is 'The Incredibles'.
