3) Malekith The Accursed
The first Thor was not exactly the bell of the ball, but it featured a terrific performance from actor Tom Hiddleston who portrayed its reluctant antagonist Loki. For the sequel, Thor: The Dark World, Marvel tapped former Doctor Who star Christopher Eccleston to play Malekith the Accursed, a ruler of the Dark Elves that had a horrifying childhood, resulting in him being an entity of pure evil.
Unfortunately, the film’s version of the character had none of his flavor, turning Malekith into just another generic villain seeking to gain power: in other words, a rehash of Loki, which is made all the more ironic considering that Loki’s in the film, too.
There was a lot wrong with The Dark World, and while Malekith was far from the biggest issue, he also didn’t help matters. A true trashing of talent and comic mythology.
4) Yellowjacket
If there was ever a stereotype to avoid using in cinema, it would have to be the evil white businessman. Caucasian industrialists that turn bad is one of the oldest cliches in the book, going all the way back to The Odyssey with Antinous and the other suitors that attempt to gain control of Odysseus’s possessions through forcing his wife Penelope into marriage. Yet, it continues to be redone each and every year in both movies and television, with some of the latest examples being Morgan Edge in Supergirl, Santino in John Wick 2, and Zander Rice in Logan.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been suffering from this as well ever since the first Iron Man had Jeff Bridges portray Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger, a partner of Tony’s in managing Stark Industries who’s revealed to be secretly selling weapons directly to terrorists. But Phase II’s Ant-Man featured the hopefully final incarnation in the form of Darren Cross/Yellowjacket.
Though he’s hinted at having a deeper emotional motivation through his former mentorship with Hank Pym, Cross ends up turning into a tasteless capitalist criminal interested in making money through selling unethical technology. Not very memorable if you ask us.
