I love the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's weird to think that some of you reading this were probably too young to watch Iron Man in theaters way back in 2008 (I was only 18 at the time) but as someone who has been there from the start, it's been a fascinating journey to follow and it's crazy to see just how big this shared world has now become.
However, while it may seem as if Marvel Studios can do no wrong, I think an argument could be made that they're not quite perfect.
One of the biggest issues over the years has been how they've handled villains, and while I could make this entire list about them, I've instead decided to focus on a broader batch of characters (and actors) who I believe haven't been handled anywhere near as well as they should have been.
From supporting characters who have been forgotten about to those never given the chance to live up to their potential, I think you may be surprised by some of the names here.
So, to take a look at this article in its entirety, simply click on the "View List" button down below...
Jane Foster
Natalie Portman left the MCU after two appearances and it's not hard to see why. From the start, she was relegated to being a typical superhero movie love interest and after basically being written out of this shared universe in Avengers: Age of Ultron with a throwaway mention, she's been M.I.A. ever since, and that's a real shame.
Had Marvel Studios handled things slightly differently, we could have witnessed Jane Foster become the new God of Thunder, something which would have been an awful lot of fun to see play out on the big screen.
Portman is a fantastic actress who was never given chance to shine, and regardless of whether or not she had ended up wielding Mjolnir, some subpar storytelling on Marvel's part led to a disappointing couple of appearances for a character who definitely deserved better.
The Mandarin
Let's get this one out of the way early on because it's been discussed to death. Personally, I found Iron Man 3's big twist about The Mandarin being "Trevor Slattery" pretty funny - but when Marvel Studios promoted the threequel in a way that made it look like we would finally see this villain on the big screen after he was first teased in Iron Man, it's easy to understand the disappointment.
Aldrich Killian outing himself as the "real" Mandarin certainly didn't help matters, and ended up being somewhat cringe-worthy.
Marvel went into damage control mode with that "All Hail The King" One-Shot but with Robert Downey Jr.'s stint as the Armoured Avenger about to reach its end, it's become clear that we're never going to see Iron Man go head to head with his greatest foe.
Maria Hill
The big screen version of Maria Hill has never really had much in common with her comic book counterpart and that's definitely a shame. A deleted scene from The Avengers revealed that Joss Whedon did at least consider making his Maria Hill a little rougher around the edges, but we've yet to see that developed and she's now stuck sitting firmly on the sidelines.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier and the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. came out so soon after The Avengers that we never really would have had a chance to enjoy seeing her in command of the spy organisation, and not being anywhere near as accommodating to the heroes as Fury was. Seeing as she was dusted at the end of Avengers: Infinity War, it's doubtful she'll have much to do this April either.
The Warriors Three
Introduced in the first Thor movie and dead after not even managing to reel off more than three lines between them in the third one. While they were used fairly well by director Kenneth Branagh in the sense that they got involved in that battle against The Destroyer, it was all downhill from there and they never managed to live up to their potential.
Zachary Levi, Ray Stevenson, and Tadanobu Asano are three talented actors who are now free to appear elsewhere, hence why Levi is taking on the lead role in Shazam!.
While it's no bad thing that Marvel Studios put the focus on the God of Thunder, there's a lot that could have been done with the trio and it would have been truly epic seeing them head into battle alongside Thor. Then again, the MCU has never taken the hero down the Game of Thrones route with massive battles and the like.
Doc Samson
When The Incredible Hulk was released way back in 2008, Ty Burrell hadn't yet become one of the most beloved actors on TV thanks to his role in Modern Family (the show is stale these days but was pretty good once upon a time). Had that been the case when Marvel cast him, perhaps they would have thought twice about wasting such a great talent in the forgettable role of Betty Ross' new boyfriend.
A glorified extra in some respects, this version of Leonard Sampson shared nothing more in common with his comic book counterpart than a name and profession.
There wasn't really room for his origin story here, but it's clear that Marvel never had any intention of going down that route with Leonard as he was just someone Zak Penn threw into the script with a familiar name. Clearly, very little thought went into how his alter ego could be utilised somewhere down the line, and too much time has now passed for him to return.
Heimdall
Idris Elba is one of the best actors working out there today and while he's made plenty of appearances in the MCU (including in The Avengers franchise), his quick demise in Avengers: Infinity War pretty much sums up his time in this shared world perfectly.
Heimdall has never been a lead character in the Marvel Comics Universe but with someone as talented as Elba playing him, we should have seen more of what we got in Thor: Ragnarok from the very start. Frustratingly, just as things started looking up for the character, he was taken out like a chump.
His role in Avengers: Age of Ultron pointed to there being plans for him at one point in time, but something tells me that we could see him land a lead part in the DCEU in the near future...
Hank Pym
As an older Hank Pym, Michael Douglas has done a great job and it's been a lot of fun spending time with his take on the character for the most part. However, it's hard not to get frustrated when thinking about what might have been.
There is a long list of great stories we'll never get to see on the big screen now and some fans haven't forgiven Marvel Studios for making Tony Stark, and not Hank, the creator of Ultron!
Edgar Wright's Ant-Man would have reportedly featured Hank Pym becoming the villainous Black Ant and betraying Scott Lang - an interesting nod to his comic book counterpart's psychological issues but one which would have pretty much written him off after one movie, so it might be for the best that things didn't end up playing out that way.
Ronan The Accuser
One of Marvel's biggest failings has been how they handle villains, and that was once again on display in the otherwise excellent Guardians of the Galaxy. Ronan the Accuser has fought as both a hero and villain over the years, and he stands out as one of the emotionally complex characters in the cosmic side of the Marvel Comics Universe. The movie version? Well, he was a psychopath.
Luckily, it appears as if Captain Marvel is going to shed some light on what pushed him to that point, but as of right now, the way he was handled in the MCU remains something of a disappointment.
He never had that one big moment which would have set him apart from other bad guys, and making him Thanos' b*tch certainly didn't help either. In all honesty, Lee Pace really could have been cast as any generic cosmic Marvel villain, as nothing beyond Ronan's Kree heritage and that fancy hammer of his really resembled the superior comic book version.
Iron Fist
I know an argument could be made that the Marvel TV shows are somewhat separate to the MCU proper but they're still set in that world, even if it is loosely. Personally, I think Finn Jones is a talented actor and a good choice to take on the role of Danny Rand but let's face it, he's been wasted from the start. There have been moments of greatness but that cancellation wasn't a surprise.
During season one, Danny could barely use the Iron Fist and then he spent most of season 2 without it, which is just jaw-droppingly stupid when you stop and think about it.
While it's said that he'll live on in this corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we're never going to get to see him meet Orson Randall, and that's purely down to the stupidity of Marvel Television when it comes to the way they've handled the hero.
The Leader
Like many of the comic book movies which came out before Marvel Studios started perfecting the formula, The Incredible Hulk (in many ways the black sheep of the MCU) had a very annoying habit of introducing characters with familiar names and doing absolutely nothing of significance with them.
After introducing Samuel Sterns as an ally to Bruce Banner, a cut to the head and some of the Green Goliath's blood coincidentally hitting the wound started his transformation into iconic Hulk villain, The Leader. While it's understandable that he hasn't shown up since, it's hard to imagine how Marvel would have turned him into the version of The Leader we know from the comics.
Ultimately, it's depressing to think about what might have been, but the casting of Tim Blake Nelson certainly helped to soften the blow as the thought of him being the lead baddie in any comic book movie isn't overly exciting.
Eitri
Eitri actually served his purpose in Avengers: Infinity War, but was this really the best use of an actor as talented as Peter Dinklage?
The gigantic Asgardian dwarf has a key role to play in proceedings when we learned that he had forged the Infinity Gauntlet for Thanos and I wouldn't be shocked to see him return in Avengers: Endgame, but you can tell that the Game of Thrones star wasn't particularly invested in what he was working with here.
Essentially playing Tyrion Lannister with an oddly booming voice, it feels like Eitri was added pretty late in proceedings and all those rumoured possibilities about who he might be playing here were far more exciting. Marvel Studios wasted Dinklage every bit as much as X-Men: Days of Future Past.
Quicksilver
Don't get me wrong, I definitely appreciated Quicksilver's sacrifice in Avengers: Age of Ultron but it would have been nice to see the speedster appear in more than just a single movie.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson was really good in the role, and I can't help but think how much more fun movies like Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War would have been had we seen Quicksilver racing into action alongside the rest of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Rumours continue to persist that he could return but I don't see that happening at this stage, and that's frustrating because the door has now been closed on a truly great character for good.
The Hand
When it became clear during the first season of Daredevil that The Hand would be the big bads of these Netflix TV shows, there was a lot of excitement among fans. Iron Fist and Daredevil season two attempted to expand on that but it soon started becoming clear that Marvel didn't really know what they were doing with the clandestine group of ninjas.
In fact, by the time The Defenders came around, it was apparent that Marvel had totally dropped the ball on the villains, doing away with what made them great in the comic books and focusing instead on businessmen and plans which made little to no sense.
Even Elektra's death and resurrection was botched and seeing Daredevil or any of these heroes battle ninjas quickly got old. As it stands, The Hand has now been defeated. but what happened to us getting to meet The Chaste and all those characters? Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you see it), this plot thread - and the show - is now dead, so who knows!
Wolfgang Von Strucker
Wolfgang Von Strucker was introduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron and, well, he didn't last very long! Despite having a lengthy comic book history, the villain was quickly taken down by Captain America before being murdered off screen by the titular android.
I'm not saying he should have become a big bad, but it would have been really interesting to learn more about what he'd been experimenting on besides "The Twins" and I feel like he had the potential to be a recurring villain who menaced The Avengers. Unfortunately, Joss Whedon decided to use Strucker as little more than a means to an end.
Ulysses Klaue
Another bad guy introduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron, the otherwise excellent Black Panther is to blame for this character being mishandled for the most part.
I really liked what Ryan Coogler did with him, but to kill him off in such a casual manner was a disappointment, especially as he was only just starting to live up to his potential with that awesome new hand of his. Ultimately, Klaue is another example of a villain Marvel could have used as a recurring presence in order to truly make this world feel connected.
Plus, Andy Serkis is a fantastic actor, so not keeping him around feels like a massive blunder!
Do you guys agree with this list? Can you think of any characters or actors who were waste in the MCU? As always, be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below.
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