In 2023, the Marvel Cinematic Universe released a full slate of content. The studio distributed several live-action movies and shows, with the second season of the animated What If…? still to come. And since Baby Groot dominates each segment of I Am Groot without leaving room for others to swipe some of his sap, we can exclude that short-form entertainment from the scene-stealing conversation.
While the focal Marvel Cinematic Universe heroes (or anti-hero in the case of Loki) did a lot of heavy lifting this year, plenty of attention was paid to players that diverted the spotlight away from the titular stars. These captivating characters range from vicious villains to accommodating allies, and even some furry friends. Here are the MCU productions, in release date order, and their corresponding scene-stealers.
Kang the Conqueror (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania)
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania may have divided critics and even fans, however, it is difficult to deny the immense impact Kang has in this narrative. Jonathan Majors made his MCU debut in Loki’s season 1 finale as the Victor in a multiversal war. That Kang variant was known as He Who Remains, and he figuratively blew the roof off of this cinematic universe with his unbridled eccentricity.
Now Majors occupies the Quantum Realm in the third Ant-Man movie as Kang the Conqueror – a fierce version of the villain played with poise and consequentiality by Majors. Kang could at times appear harmless and then swiftly transition into startling intimidating tactics, with Paul Rudd’s alarmed reactions raising the stakes to new levels for an Ant-Man feature. Majors also teases the variety of Kangs to come in a mid-credits spot, illustrating that the MCU had ambitious plans for the antagonist.
There are other great characters in Quantumania, including both Ant-Mans, both Wasps, and Stature (MODOK is excluded for being more of a joke than a character). But Kang upstaged them all. He had even more of an impact on Quantumania than Thanos did in the first Guardians of the Galaxy. Granted, Kang is the big bad in Quantumania as opposed to Thanos overseeing Ronan in Guardians, but Thanos went on to become one of the greatest villains in film history, which makes Majors recent dismissal from Marvel even more unfortunate, for all parties involved.