Marvel: 10 MCU villains who could replace Thanos as the new Big Bad

9. The Elders of the Universe

Marvel Comic fans know The Elders of the Universe are a group of immortal beings spread across the galaxy. In the comics, Thanos faces off against and defeats a few Elders on his quest for the Infinity Stones. They have also clashed with other Marvel characters. In the MCU we’ve met a few Elders. No, Ego, the Living Planet doesn’t count, he was “made” into an Elder in name only.

The Collector, aka Taneleer Tivan, is the first Elder introduced in the MCU, as a holder of an Infinity Stone among other things. Per Thanos we learn that Taneleer has a brother, and their relationship isn’t a good one — we’d meet that brother in Thor: Ragnarok.

The Grandmaster is the eldest of the group who loved games. In the MCU, he’s the ruler of Sakaar where Thor gets trapped. On this world, we see the Hulk is the Grandmaster’s champion. There are a number of other Elders in the comics who can make an appearance down the line as well.

In the comics, unlike so many others on the list, the Elders don’t serve as a major threat to our heroes. Nevertheless, they come together to achieve one common goal. Maybe that common goal in the MCU could be to seize control of Earth.

The Collector once kidnapped Thor, among other heroes and the Grandmaster loves his warriors, so I can see those two teaming together. Then there’s an Elder like the Challenger who often goes head-to-head playing games with the Grandmaster. There’s a story in there somewhere that makes them great candidates to be used as Marvel’s next overarching villains.