These Marvel Cinematic Universe characters were underused in their respective movies.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe revolutionized movies.
After other movie studios saw how an entire universe can become a money maker they tried to replicate what was done. It’s even happening in shows. Amazon’s The Boys adding a spinoff is a prime example. If this is successful, we’ll likely see other shows added to The Boys’ universe.
It takes a special kind of franchise to do what Marvel Studios has accomplished. The best part is that they’re not close to being finished, but no matter how good something is, there’s still going to be missteps along the way.
Misstep may be a strong word, but it’s applicable in each of the Marvel films. There have been characters that didn’t get the respect they deserve.
There are a lot of factors that contribute to this. Sometimes it’s the length of time in a movie and other times the ball was just dropped. These heroes and villains are often given an opportunity in other projects. However, sometimes they die before we can get a chance to see their greatness. This article is going to highlight these characters. Then, this writer will break down why and how they were underused. The article will go in order of the way the MCU movies should be watched.
Captain America: The First Avenger: Doctor Arnim Zola
As much as everyone loves Iron Man, Captain America has the superior trilogy. All of his movies are well-received years after they were released. This writer would go as far as to say the first two were perfect.
Because of this, it was difficult finding a character that wasn’t properly used. Each of them had a moment where they shined. For example, Peggy Carter was so beloved that she was given her own series.
If there was one person who was given a raw deal in this project it’s Doctor Arnim Zola.
He was a joke in Captain America: The First Avenger. A weak-willed scientist who gave up at the slightest sign of aggression. Eventually, we find out he was still working for Hydra on the inside well after he was captured. We could have gotten the same result if he wasn’t scared of everything and everyone.
Thankfully, Zola didn’t have to have the robot body he has in the comics. It would have seemed out of place considering the technology wasn’t that advanced yet. The nod to his comic book form was good enough. We do see something like it in Captain America: Winter Soldier, though, and there was a change in personality as well. He was confident and very boastful.
At that point, all we could do is wish that he could have had that kind of confidence in his first appearance. Having two intelligent and confident villains would have made Cap’s victory sweeter.
Captain Marvel: Phil Coulson
This writer will never understand the hate for Captain Marvel or her movie. Her origin was well done and saw a glimpse of how powerful Carol Danvers is. It also gave us a young Nick Fury, Skrulls, and the Kree Empire. This is on top of the movie being entertaining from start to finish.
There’s not much more you could have wanted. Although, there’s one person we didn’t see that every MCU fan would have liked more of. We could have used more Phil Coulson.
If this writer is going to pick anyone in this movie that could have gotten more screen time it’s Phil Coulson. When he was in the project, he was as entertaining as you’d expect him to be. Even then, some of those entertaining moments were actually Skrulls. That doesn’t count. It would have been nice to see him throughout.
This isn’t something that could have been changed and it might have been better to cut him out than shoehorn him into the movie. We’ve seen how adding too many characters into Iron Man 2 turned viewers off. Still, it would have bern nice to see what could have happened if Coulson was given more screen time in Captain Marvel. A fan can dream.
Iron Man: Raza
Iron Man is the movie that started it all. The project spring boarded Marvel Studios into a class of its own. We can probably all agree that Robert Downey Jr. deserves around 80% credit for this movie being so popular. It’s been said over and over that this role was made for him. That said, there was a glaring hole in this movie. The villain.
In the beginning, Raza (the leader of the terrorist group) was set up to be the big bad in Iron Man. He captured Tony Stark, was ready to torture Ho Yinsen to get his missile built, and Tony gave him a scar in the movie. The scar made it seem like there was a reason for Raza to want revenge. Instead, we get Obadiah Stane.
Obadiah Stane was a good villain, but not the one we deserved. His reasoning for going after Tony was flimsy and cliché. Raza was built up to be killed in a weak way. If anything, Stane could have been double-crossed. At least then he remains a trader and we get a fight scene that makes more sense.
Raza is a fighter who was willing to do his own dirty work. Stark beating Stane in the Iron Monger suit didn’t have an emotional tie to it. Had Raza been in the suit, maybe the final fight would have meant more.
Iron Man 2: Justin Hammer
The biggest critique with Iron Man 2 is that there were too many main characters.
Other than Tony Stark, there was the introduction of Black Widow, Pepper Potts, a new James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Nick Fury, Ivan Vanko (Whiplash), and Justin Hammer. This is a perfect example of too many ingredients ruining a soup. We didn’t need Whiplash to be the main antagonist. He’s not a villain anyone cares about. He could have shown up during the race and been defeated by Iron Man and we didn’t have to see him again. Justin Hammer should have been the one to carry the bad guy role.
Justin Hammer was an incompetent, businessman who’d rather rush a project than get it right. He essentially is everything Tony Stark isn’t.
Despite all of his bumbling, everything that Ivan Vanko did Hammer could have done. The drones sent after Iron Man still could have happened. And since the Whiplash final fight wasn’t that long or epic, Hammer could have been controlling the suit remotely. Plus, he was a more entertaining character.
Whiplash had his moments, but not like Hammer. Whiplash’s bird was more memorable than he was. Proving that no one cared about him at all.
The Incredible Hulk: Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross
The Incredible Hulk is one of the Marvel movies that people can never seem to agree on. Some people liked Edwards Norton as Bruce Banner while others hated him. Then there’s always the debate on how The Hulk and Abomination looked. This writer is among the people who thoroughly enjoyed everything about the film from the look to the casting.
Speaking of casting, it was difficult to pick someone who could have used more screen time. It was balanced well. If there was one person who could have been used more, it was probably Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross.
This may come as a shock to a lot of readers. He was in this movie quite a bit, especially for someone who wasn’t Bruce Banner or Betty Ross. Now, the question that needs to be answered is if it was enough? This writer votes no.
First off, Thunderbolt Ross is important to The Hulk’s story and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. If he’s going to be a major component to either, we should have seen him do more than bark orders and in a helicopter crash. It would have been nice to see him grab a gun and actually shoot the Hulk. It would have added more to his personality. Ross isn’t afraid of anyone including people with powers after all.
Thor: Thor
Of all the movies in the MCU, Thor is among the most disliked. There weren’t a lot of memorable fight scenes, a good portion of the movies were too dark to see (Jotunheim for example), and it wasn’t a great representation of Thor in general. However, it did give us Loki. A villain who stole the show from the star. A character that’s so beloved that he became one of the most popular characters in the MCU. So what was the one character we could have used more of in Thor? Thor Odinson himself.
It’s a shame when the star is the one part you need more of. Thor was the star of the movie, but he lacked the God of Thunder we wanted to see. Sure, the point was to depower Thor and give him a sense of humility, but it dragged on too long. In fact, the movie seemed more about Loki than his brother.
When we were given a chance to see Thor in action, it wasn’t anything to write home about. Maybe the best action was him fighting S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. That shouldn’t have been the case. Thor needed more lightning, thunder, and Mjolnir. In short, more Thor.
The Avengers: Hawkeye
The Avengers is still one of the best comic book movies of all time. This was the film that showed how a universe could be created. All a company needed was the patience to make it work. It also showed how you can have multiple heroes in the same movie and balance the screen time.
Each Avenger had their moment to shine. Hulk became a powerful star, Captain America had his undefeatable willpower, Black Widow showed fighting and interrogation skill, Thor displayed a vast amount of power, and Iron Man proved he’s more than his ego. You’re probably seeing the one character that’s missing.
At the time, the one hero we could have a bigger feature is Clint Barton. There were very few moments that showed Hawkeye for what he was. We saw flashes here and there, but not enough for us to care about him as a character. His biggest moment came from his trick arrow that exploded in Loki’s face.
There’s also Hawkeye being more than his arrows. He’s an excellent hand to hand fighter and can use more than his arrows as a projectile. If we’d seen more of that, Black Widow beating him would have had a bigger impact. We haven’t gotten to his sense of humor either. There was a lot of Hawkeye left on the table.
Thor: The Dark World: Sif and the Warriors Three
This writer tries not to be too harsh with his movie critiques. That said, there isn’t much to enjoy about Thor: The Dark World.
Loki was as incredible as always, Thor had a few good moments, and Frigga’s death was emotional. Other than that, this movie is pretty bad and has little replay value. To top it all off, the final fight scene between Thor and Malekith was one of the worst movie ending fights of all time. A complete waste of a great Marvel Comics antagonist.
Being completely honest, we could have used more of Sif and the Warriors Three in any of the Thor movies. Whenever they appeared on screen you knew something fun or exciting was going to happen. In Thor: The Dark World, we saw them help Thor and Loki escape Asgard. They made funny threats to Loki along the way and battled the entire Asgardian army on their own.
It may have been better for Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun to die in Thor: The Dark World. Instead of a glorious death there, they died in Thor: Ragnarok in a manner that they didn’t deserve. Thankfully, Sif survived that. Hopefully, we’ll see her in the future.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Ronan the Accuser
The movie that Marvel took a chance on and exceeded its expectations. Guardians of the Galaxy is on everyone’s top comic book movies. It combined comedy, romance, and action. That’s what made it good. What made it special were the characters.
It’s easier to make well-known characters a success. It’s another to take a group of random heroes and make them popular. With the heroes came a villain with the same kind of popularity.
Unless you’re a fan of Marvel Comics, you have no idea how barbaric Ronan the Accuser is. After the movie, you still might not know. Ronan was ruthless in the few scenes that he was in and that was the problem. He wasn’t in this movid enough. His first action scene was him destroying Drax in a fight. The next time he had an Infinity Stone. While it was a good balance, it would have been nice to see what he could do without the Infinity Stone more than once.
The hard part about this is the movie was already a little under two hours of run time without the credits. Considering a lot of people doubted this project, it makes sense that he wasn’t a bigger part of the film. Maybe we’ll see him later in a flashback or a resurrection.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Drax
The second Guardians of the Galaxy was met with mixed reviews. The sad part is that a lot of it isn’t the fault of the movie itself. There were some problems (like Ego), but this movie suffered from high anticipation. People wanted more of the same and didn’t receive it how they wanted.
Nonetheless, it wasn’t a bad movie. One major highlight was Drax. He easily had the best performance in the movie. He was entertaining from start to finish, but he became a joke instead of a warrior.
In the first Guardians of the Galaxy, Drax’s character couldn’t understand sarcasm. It was something that was highlighted throughout the project. However, he was still a vicious, tough fighter. We’ve yet to see that from him again. Since then, he’s lacked the same kind of aggressiveness we’ve seen in the first movie and the comic books. It’s like he’ll forever be a comedic character and not a great fighter.
In the third Guardians of the Galaxy movie, it would be nice to see Drax as more than a joke. He doesn’t have to be goofy all the time. When he’s having an emotional moment, it doesn’t need to be interrupted by a joke. Marvel has been known to do this in their projects. While it can be humorous, sometimes it takes away from the moment. Drax is a perfect example.
Iron Man 3: Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes
The general opinion is that Iron Man 3 was the worst Iron Man movie. That’s partly true. It isn’t a good Iron Man movie, but it’s a phenomenal Tony Stark film.
We got to see Tony Stark show the world that he’s more than his armor. Without a good amount of his resources, Tony Stark saved the day with his superior genius and savviness. If that wasn’t bad enough, his armor wasn’t working the way he expected it to. All of this is why it’s this writer’s favorite Iron Man project. The one thing missing is his best friend Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes.
Rhodey was in the movie, but not a lot. What’s worse is that he could have made the final fight be more than a montage of Iron Man’s armors. He was placed in that scene as a joke when he could have helped. This was a missed opportunity.
We know that Tony Stark doesn’t need help and asking for it isn’t something that he does. What could have happened was Tony Stark showing growth. In the end, it was Pepper Potts that saved Tony. The same result could have happened except the two people closest to him would have assisted in keeping him alive.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier: Batroc the Leaper
Captain America: The Winter Soldier was the perfect comic book or action movie. If you’re going to find a project to learn from in either of those genres, this should be the blueprint. There wasn’t a need for a love story, the lead protagonist was someone that you could get behind, and the villains were flawless.
Hydra was brought into this and looked better than their Marvel Comics counterparts and Winter Soldier was scary. The music that played when he came on screen made him frightening. You knew he was to be feared before he lifted his weapon. Like I said, flawless. So who is this mystery person that could have made this movie better (if possible)? It’s Batroc the Leaper.
Saying you need more Batroc the Leaper is a sentence that’s never been written. As funny as it is, it’s true.
In the comics, Batroc is someone who always puts up a good fight against Captain America. Yes, he looks goofy in the comics, but he is a good fighter. We saw this in his brawl with Cap. It would have been cool to see what else he could have done with Hydra backing him. More tech? A battalion to lead? Who knows. It’s certain that reading this feels like picking out the one grain of sugar in salt, but it is what it is.
Avengers: Age of Ultron: Wolfgang von Strucker
Avengers: Age of Ultron suffered from the same thing as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The fans’ high expectations.
Age of Ultron was a nine out of ten. It furthered the evolution of The Avengers as a team and set up for Captain America: Civil War. Ultron wasn’t as dominant as he was in the comics, but he certainly gave the Avengers all that they could handle. He was closer to completing his plan than almost any other villain.
Throughout the movie, the one thing that disturbed this writer was Wolfgang von Strucker. He’s one of the best villains in Marvel Comics. He could lead a group of nobodies into battle and win. He tormented Captain America for decades and found a way to avoid death. So why was it so easy to kill him off? It was honestly frustrating.
Marvel has a tendency to kill off their villains. To fans of the MCU, it seems very short-sighted. There’s no reason that Strucker couldn’t be one of the main villains in a future Marvel Studios project. Instead, he was killed in a jail cell off camera. Thankfully, there’s no guarantee he’s dead. Strucker has pulled the, “I’m dead” bit in the comics. Maybe he’s still alive. One can hope, anyway.
Ant-Man: Darren Cross
Ant-Man is yet another Marvel Comics character that no one would normally care about. Marvel didn’t even use the most popular Ant-Man to star in this film. Yet, here comes Paul Rudd being his awesome self and making us love Scott Lang.
He was one of the best casting decisions Marvel has made. Without him, no one would have recommended seeing this movie. He added the same kind of unexpected surprise that Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans did for their roles. Lastly, let’s not forget that Paul Rudd did this at 46 years old and is still going strong.
Can anyone name the villain without looking it up? Probably not and that’s the problem.
Darren Cross was the one with an obsession with his mentor Hank Pym. Sadly, the only thing most of us remember is the Yellowjacket costume and the toy train hitting him.
This movie sorely needed him to be the villain we’d remember. It was the only thing that was missing. It ended up feeling more like Iron Man than an original project. Darren Cross may not have been a villain to carry a movie, but something could have been done to make him unforgettable.
Captain America: Civil War: Crossbones
Captain America: Civil War was the weakest of Cap’s trilogy. Considering that this movie introduced Spider-Man and Black Panther and had one of the best fight scenes in the MCU, it’s not a knock. It was an emotional ride as well.
It was Two teams of Avengers going up against each other, Tony Stark versus Captain America and Bucky, and in the middle of it, all was Zemo. The villain who put the wedge between the entire team. That’s something that gets lost in all of this. Zemo’s genius needs to be more recognized than it is.
At the beginning of the movie, we saw Rumlow was back. He was all healed and ready to cause trouble. This writer was excited. Rumlow (in his Crossbones uniform) is a cruel villain. A guy who could have given Marvel’s heroes fits for years. Dying within the first ten minutes made his appearance pointless.
Crossbones could have wreaked havoc in the MCU for years but he was killed like some unimportant goon. It was disappointing, to say the least. He could have shown up on more than a few occasions to throw a wrench in Iron Man or Cap’s plans thanks to Zemo. Instead, he was killed off and no one cared.
Black Panther: Shuri
Black Panther was one of the most highly anticipated movies of all time. Before the movie hit theaters, it broke ticket sales records. When it debuted, fans weren’t disappointed.
The cast was full of inspiring people, the women were stronger than any movie, the secondary cast was unforgettable, and the antagonist was so good people were rooting for him. Black Panther will always be more than a film. It was a movement.
Shang Chi actor Simu Liu said it best when he brought up what Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther meant to people like him. “Without Chadwick, and what he gave to his character, there is no Shang Chi”
You’ll notice that as the movies get more current that the balance of the characters gets better. Black Panther may have done it better than all of the Marvel Studios projects. Although, it’s certain everyone could have used more Shuri.
She was a genius, goofy, and didn’t back down from a fight. Watching her be everything to Wakanda was inspiring. In short, everything Shuri was in the comics.
She’s someone that kids will dress up as on Halloween and adults will cosplay as. It was even better when she showed up Bruce Banner in Avengers: Endgame. Hopefully, she will continue to grow in the MCU.
Spider-Man: Homecoming: Adrain Toomes aka Vulture
After Spider-Man popped in during Captain America: Civil War, the world couldn’t wait for Tom Holland to swing into action (pun intended). He didn’t disappoint.
Holland was so good that people weren’t mad at having a third actor playing Spider-Man in less than twenty years. He was the perfect Web-Slinger and Peter Parker. Something that the previous two actors can’t boast. Spider-Man: Homecoming even made the Vulture look good. Then again, it was Michael Keaton playing him. There’s no way that could have gone wrong. Speaking of, we could have used more of him.
Michael Keaton is a treasure. Bringing him in to play a villain that’s normally laughed at was brilliant casting. When he was regular Adrian Toomes, he was a loving father and husband. Then, he switched it off and became a devious and frightening villain. It made him one of the most underrated villains in the MCU.
The difficult part would have been finding time to add him. Since this was Spider-Man’s debut film, he had to be the focus. All of the new toys in his suit and the learning curve coming off of his adventure with Tony Stark took a good chunk of the movie. And it should have. Regardless of all that, it would have been nice to see more Adrain Toomes or Vulture.
Doctor Strange: Kaecilius
Doctor Strange was one of the movies that stayed close to the comic book source material. Stephen Strange’s origin was spot on from his very narcissistic beginning to his humble endings.
It was easy to hate him when the movie started, but it was just as easy to love him as the film progressed. He learned his lesson and became a legitimate hero. It was very much akin to Tony Stark’s path in Iron Man, except Strange lost his fortune and became a man of the people. He shined throughout despite his villain was pretty awful. Which is disappointing considering how great of an actor Mads Mikkelsen is.
Marvel took another chance using Kaecilius as the villain. Thankfully, Benedict Cumberbatch was a strong enough lead to carry the movie, Tilda Swinton was amazing as the Ancient One, and Chiwetel Ejiofor was awesome as always.
Now, imagine if Mads Mikkelsen was given a stronger role. This movie could have rivaled the best comic book movies.
It’s not just the villain he played. Mads wasn’t given anything to work with. Plus, it didn’t help that comic book fans wanted to see Doctor Strange battle with Baron Mordo or Dormammu.
The good news is that there’s a chance of redemption for Mads Mikkelsen. We don’t know if Dormammu will give him a second chance or not. He could potentially return. Maybe this time without his nameless goons.
Thor: Ragnarok: Valkyrie
This was a tough one. How do you pick someone you wanted to see more of? Thor: Ragnarok was close to perfection.
Thor got a makeover. Something he desperately needed after his first two solo movies. Loki was incredible in a much smaller role than we’re used to seeing. Jeff Goldblum played the powerful Grandmaster, but he was more of comic relief than a cosmic powerhouse. And who didn’t love Korg and Miek? If you notice who’s missing then you know who deserved more screen time. Everyone’s favorite Aragorn riding, sword-swinging, ale drinking warrior.
Valkyrie was beloved as soon as she appeared on the screen. At first, it seemed like she was going to be yet another character there for jests rather than battle. Then, she picked herself up and scared everyone into submission, and captured Thor.
As the movie progressed, she became a deeper character. We learned about her past and understood why she was drinking herself into a haze. In the end, he helped Thor defeat Hela, move the Asgardians from danger, and solidified herself as one of the best characters in the MCU. By the end of the movie, we wanted to see more. We got that in Avengers: Endgame and we will see her again in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Ghost
If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Ant-Man and the Wasp followed the same formula as Ant-Man by being more wholesome and family-oriented than the other Marvel Studios projects.
Unlike in Ant-Man, there was a clear-cut villain. Her name was Ghost. She was more than capable of being the big-time villain all while Hank Pym, Hope van Dyne, and Scott Lang were searching for Janet Van Dyne and avoiding the government and Sonny Burch. Sometimes having too many adversaries can hurt a movie. Somehow, it worked here. They must have learned from Iron Man 2.
Having so many antagonists worked here, but why not make Ghost and Bill Foster the only villains? It would have been perfect. They could have ordered random goons around if they had to be there.
It also would have been nice to see Goliath grow and fight Scott Lang. Even if it was only for a little while. While they fought, Ghost and The Wasp could have clashed again. This wouldn’t have interrupted the government chasing the heroes. It just would have made Ant-Man and the Wasp’s battle more difficult. It seems like the only people that weren’t needed were Sonny Burch and his bumbling henchmen.
Avengers: Infinity War: Vision
The big question going into Avengers: Infinity War (and later in Avengers: Endgame) was who was going to die?
The best bets were on Captain America, Iron Man, and Hawkeye. Hawkeye especially. He’s had so many close calls and seemed like the weak link on the Avengers. The people who died weren’t the ones anyone bet on.
Both Gamora and Vision were killed so Thanos could achieve his goal. Gamora died and it was a heartbreaking scene proving Thanos has a heart. On the other side, Vision had a poor outing from beginning to end.
Vision was a punk in this movie and that’s not his character. You can make an argument that Vision being weakened helped him look good when he saved Steve Rogers. Admittedly, it did add to his heroic rescue. Now, picture him being vulnerable and doing more than being beaten whenever he’s attacked. Vision could have fallen at the end of Avengers: Infinity War and still looked strong. Vision is too powerful to be treated the way he was. We saw just how good he is in his debut in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Here’s hoping he has a better showing in WandaVision than Infinity War.
Avengers: Endgame: The Hulk
Avengers: Endgame was a mystery. No one knew what it would be called and we knew less about the outcome. Again, we wondered who’d die.
Now, it was certain it was either Captain America or Iron Man. Especially after seeing that they patched up their friendship. Other than that, one of the biggest questions was what was going to happen to the Hulk?
Thanos beat him so badly that angry Hulk disappeared into Bruce Banner. We assumed we’d see the Hulk again and we did. Although not in the way we wanted.
This writer enjoyed Bruce Banner as the Hulk. It was a change from what we’d seen and he was the genius we needed while Tony Stark was retired and he was funny. As great as he may have been, we deserved a little more, “Hulk smash” to go along with his quips and intelligence.
We couldn’t get one car thrown or a “Puny aliens” comment? Not getting much fighting from him in the final battle was disappointing. It made sense considering the story, but we’ve seen Bruce go back and forth in the comics. There’s no reason we couldn’t have seen it for at least a little while.
Spider-Man: Far From Home: Maria Hill
Finally, we come to Spider-Man: Far From Home.
This was the last movie to come out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as of the drafting of this piece. It followed Peter Parker after his mentor Tony Stark died saving the universe from the Mad Titan Thanos.
A journey that leads him to fighting Mysterio in Europe. Jake Gyllenhaal (Mysterio) is a good actor, but no one thought he was going to be as good as he was. He complimented Tom Holland’s Peter Parker and helped Spider-Man slowly get over the death of his mentor. It’s cool how Mysterio’s story was connected to Tony Stark.
The easy answer to this is J. Jonah Jameson. J. K. Simmons is so incredible playing him that he’s become the voice everyone hears when they think of him.
What we really needed was more Maria Hill. No, not the Skrull we saw in the end credits. This writer wants the actual Maria Hill. Why couldn’t she work with the Skrull that was impersonating Nick Fury? She’s close enough to Fury that she’d know what was going on and be his informant while he’s in space. Having the real her would have gone a long way to making her more important than we’ve seen.
What do you think? What characters do you think needed more screen time? Let us know in the comments below.