Unfortunately, we don't have any more superhero movies to look forward to in 2019, but
Birds of Prey and
Black Widow aren't that far off and we'll no doubt get new looks at them both before the year is over. In the meantime, though, we're looking back at
Captain Marvel,
Shazam!,
Avengers: Endgame,
Dark Phoenix,
Spider-Man: Far From Home, and
Joker.
Each of those Marvel and DC Comics movie featured new and familiar characters in their respective universes, but not all of them were a hit, and there were some who were downright disappointing. They're the ones that we're taking a look at today.
The ten heroes and villains listed here let us down in a number of ways, and we think you'll be surprised by quite a few of the names who pop up (you'll likely have your own strong opinions on these characters as well). What made them so bad and how could they have been better? That's something we'll also delve into!
So, to check out this feature in its entirety, simply click on the "View List" button down below.
Talos (Captain Marvel)
On the one hand, the reveal that Talos and his fellow Skrulls were actually the heroes of this tale was a clever way of subverting expectations. On the other, it also weakened the inevitable and predictable twist regarding Yon-Rogg, and was far from the "Secret Invasion" set up fans hoped to see.
Ben Mendelsohn certainly didn't deliver a
bad performance in
Captain Marvel, but seeing him struggle to talk through those prosthetics wasn't exactly fun. Ultimately, this terrifying comic book villain ended up being watered down to the point where he was more forgettable than anything else, and while he certainly still has potential as a supporting character, it's mostly been squandered.
Talos had the making of a great new MCU baddie but that's not the path Marvel Studios is taking, something that's evident from
Spider-Man: Far From Home's underwhelming post-credits scene.
Jean Grey (Dark Phoenix)
Dark Phoenix as a whole was a disappointing, underwhelming mess, but the fact that Simon Kinberg couldn't even get Jean Grey right was...well, it wasn't even remotely surprising, to be honest!
After all, he had already dropped the ball with this storyline in
X-Men: The Last Stand and while Sophie Turner was definitely well cast as the powerful mutant, the way Jean was characterised and her descent into madness were not handled in anything even close to resembling a satisfying manner.
Those initial images of Jean imbued with the powers of the Phoenix were really cool, but Fox's fears that she would look too much like Captain Marvel resulted in an utterly generic overhaul.
Cassie Lang (Avengers: Endgame)
This is a minor complaint in the grand scheme of things, but Emma Fuhrmann's limited amount of screentime meant that the impact of Cassie Lang growing up in those five years was lost.
We only really got to see her hug her dad in the first act, and while it would have been too much to expect her to make her presence felt in the final battle as Stature, taking the time to establish Cassie's new relationship with Scott would have added a little more emotion to proceedings in an, admittedly, already very busy movie (instead, it's clearly being saved for
Ant-Man 3).
Avengers: Endgame did almost everything right and there's no denying that it was a masterpiece. However, both Fuhrmann and Cassie deserved better, and what we got was a let down.
Nick Fury (Spider-Man: Far From Home)
Spider-Man: Far From Home was a blast, but there was something decidedly dull about Samuel L. Jackson's performance as Nick Fury. The sequel never really explored what could have been a truly fascinating dynamic with Tom Holland's wall-crawler, especially after those early
Iron Man movies did such a great job of delving into the former S.H.I.E.L.D. Director's relationship with Tony Stark.
Instead, we saw Fury taken for a fool and he only seemed to want to manipulate Spidey for his own gain, something that's not necessarily out of character, but is far from his best portrayal.
Of course, it was eventually revealed that Fury was Talos in disguise and while that may explain why he was a tad clueless, it also makes this team-up completely irrelevant.
The Seven Deadly Sins (Shazam!)
Shazam! was a fun ride and it's a shame it didn't perform a little better at the box office, because it certainly deserved to be a hit. It still did well enough to hopefully justify a sequel, though, as returning to this corner of the DC Extended Universe (especially after
Black Adam) would be a lot of fun.
Something that didn't work in this origin story for the original Captain Marvel were the Seven Deadly Sins. When it was revealed that they would have a role to play, fans started getting excited about what horror director David F. Sandberg would bring to the table. Unfortunately, the monsters were generic, somewhat poorly rendered CGI brown lumps who brought very little to the movie.
Giving them a little more personality wouldn't have been a bad thing, and while they were scary in some ways, they were sadly too fake looking to really make much of a lasting impact on fans.
Vuk (Dark Phoenix)
Jessica Chastain signing up to a superhero movie was a big deal, and while the actress could have made a much better choice than an
X-Men film directed by Simon Kinberg, seeing her play the leader of the Skrulls was definitely worth getting excited about. Sadly, that release date delay meant "Vuk" became a shape-shifting member of the little known D'Bari.
With a poorly thought out plan, unclear motives, and a performance which definitely left a lot to be desired, Chastain's Vuk had no redeeming qualities and should have been so much better.
After all, Skrull or not, Vuk could have been
Dark Phoenix's Mastermind and her powers and alien origin had the potential to be a game-changer for the long-running franchise. In the hands of Kinberg, though, it all fell flat and any excitement fans had for this character was not rewarded.
Sophie (Joker)
Joker exceeded everyone's expectations and the sooner Joaquin Phoenix starts picking up awards for his jaw-dropping performance as Arthur Fleck, the better. The movie itself may not have strictly adhered to the comic books, but it certainly delivered an amazing origin story for Batman's greatest foe.
Despite that, the film's female characters never really got the chance to shine and Zazie Beetz was arguably wasted as Sophie. She certainly served a purpose in
Joker, but as the object of Arthur's affections and someone we ultimately learn is imaginary for most of the movie, the character is never given much of a personality and any potential she had to make a bigger impact is wasted.
In an earlier version of the screenplay, we would have seen Arthur confronted with the sight of Sophie having sex with another man as well as her reaction to him shooting Franklin Murray. Even minor moments like that could have fleshed her out and made her a more important part of the proceedings.
The Supreme Intelligence (Captain Marvel)
Bringing the Supreme Intelligence to the big screen was a bold move on Marvel Studios' part, and Annette Bening certainly did a good job of playing this sinister mentor to Carol Danvers.
However, the fact that we never got to see the Supreme Intelligence's true form was a major disappointment, and, bizarrely, it is something that was filmed because the scene is included on the new
Infinity Saga box set! As a result, it's impossible to say why that wasn't included in the film's final cut, as it would have been a moment definitely appreciated by fans.
It also would have shown a very different side to this A.I. and made it more than just a generic baddie controlling Captain Marvel (even regular moviegoers would have no doubt been intrigued by this reveal). As it stands, though, the Supreme Intelligence was a forgettable addition to the MCU.
2018 Thanos (Avengers: Endgame)
Whoa, put your pitchforks away already! As we've already mentioned,
Avengers: Endgame is awesome and seeing Earth's Mightiest Heroes battle Thanos and his army was unforgettable. Still, it's a shame that they ended up fighting a version of the Mad Titan who had zero history with them.
That is what ultimately makes the 2018 version of Thanos such a disappointment. There's no denying that it was a shock to see the villain beheaded at Thor's hands, but it also would have been nice to further explore the ramifications the Snap had on him and to see him go toe to toe with The Avengers one more time after delivering their biggest defeat to date.
Josh Brolin's performance can't be faulted, though, and for pure shock value, this version of Thanos worked. It just would have been good to see Marvel Studios do a little more with him.
Dmitri (Spider-Man: Far From Home)
The second we learned that
Spider-Man: Far From Home was going to feature a mysterious agent called Dmitri, speculation started going into overdrive that The Chameleon would join the MCU. It would certainly have made sense given his links to Nick Fury and he could have easily been outed as an ally of Mysterio's (whose tech would explain how he could so easily change his appearance).
Unfortunately, Dmitri was just a random dude who kept an eye on Peter Parker during his field trip in Europe, and it turns out that there was nothing more to him than met the eye.
This is another wasted opportunity, and Marvel Studios missed a chance to deliver something special and introduce a major new player in Spider-Man's corner of the MCU. This could change down the line, of course, but it feels like a pointless tease with absolutely no payoff.
Do you guys agree with this list of disappointing characters in 2019's Marvel and DC superhero movies or are we way off? As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.