The Marvel Cinematic Universe is ever expanding and growing, it has become my Star Wars, as Marvel films have been in general. Marvel Studios has a pantheon of great characters that deserve to be brought into the MCU whether in cinema or to the small screen. For them, it's all about timing but for us, it's about fanticizing. They've proven that they don't need the big guns Spider-Man, X-Men or Fantastic Four to succeed. Join me as I tell you the five characters I want to see come into the fray between now and 2028. I would add Doctor Strange and Black Panther to this list but, they are not only happening but also, those would be the obvious for any list of this nature. But, let's start off with an honorable mention shall we?
Honorable Mention: Ghost Rider
The reason he isn't on the list is because everybody here he is second to Spider-Man for me when it comes to my favorites as my numerous fancasts and a couple of editorials have proven. Doctor Strange being brought into Phase Three and the MCU while keeping in with the fun, is ever growing darker and more serious. I think within the next couple Phases, it would be a good time to redo the Ghost Rider character in cinema and with the Johnny Blaze character as I think he is the most interesting of the Ghost Riders to have graced the comic panels. Not to mention the budget to do the character and his villains would be too big for tv without it looking like crap. To give a good idea what I would like for Ghost Rider in the MCU, let me give a quick rundown from my recent fancast that I think would make Ghost Rider not only popular with audiences but as a standalone, could make for a great supernatural superhero film and for those who haven't checked that fancast out. Director: David Slade from Hard Candy and 30 Days of Night fame. Hell, he was in contention for DareDevil at one point. Writer: John Logan. Gladiator, The Last Samurai and Skyfall. 'nuff said. Composer: Steve Jablonsky. Johnny Blaze: Jake Gyllenhaal. His performances in Enemy, Prisoners, Brokeback Mountain, Donnie Darko as well as more action based films like Source Code spell it out for you. Last but not least for Roxanne: Evan Rachel Wood. Now that we are done with the honorable mention, let's get down to the real list.
Moon Knight
This guy is the epitome (probably misspelled that one) of not only crazy but also the darkness that the Marvel films and characters are not known for. Moon Knights great history and the unpredictable nature of this character would make for an edge of your seat, thrilling watch. His morales and the way he goes about justice makes him a very interesting character but because of his past and the nature of the character, I think he would be best suited for tv, Netflix in particular. He's a street level character and I think if you pit him against someone like Taskmaster, easily a 13 to 20 episode show would make for a great watch. If they went about it as CW does Arrow as a dark show but with flashbacks of his past and the overall history of the Moon Knight character, it would make for a big hit. But, that's just my opinion
The Punisher
Yet another character that is by nature, too dark for the cinematic treatment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, not to mention three failed big screen attempts (Thomas Jane still remains my favorite Punisher and overall Punisher film). I think it's time the character moves to a different medium in film. Whether on Netflix, Fx, HBO. The Punisher is a character of tragedy and vengeance. I think Netflix would be too short if they wanted to do a 13 episode series as his never ending war with crime would continue after his lifetime. The brutal but fantastic villains that The Punisher has and the great allies of his would make for an amazing tv show if done right. I think Blackreverend said it best. It should be a mix of Dexter and The Blacklist. The Punisher would finally be done justice and would create a new wave of non comic fans who would finally jump onto the bandwagon of Punisher fans and would finally let the character gain the appreciation he deserves.
Blade
Continuing my trend in this article with darker characters, Blade has had three successful films as well as a now dead tv series on Spike. Blade as with Ghost Rider, Doctor Strange, etc. opens up the door of the Marvel Supernatural. Villains like Morbius (if he isn't already owned by Sony), Dracula etc. True Blood proves you could have a an interesting vampire tv show (although there is more to that particular show) and even if you have to invent a character or two. While I didn't care for the tv show which had its hands cuffed as being more of an epilouge to the films, there was clear potential for the show to be great. Plus, there is potential for a crossover with Moon Knight if they were to decide to do these shows at the same time.
The Winter Soldier
Before I get the hate, let me explain. The Winter Soldier as well all know is a fantastic character but let's face it, from the comics, nobody audience wise cared about Bucky and the first film didn't develop him enough as a character to fully care about him. As with the comics, he didn't become fully interesting if at all until he became, The Winter Soldier. I'm not saying have The Winter Soldier series be a continuation from the films but, what if like Agent Carter, it was a prequel series. While it may not entirely be a necessary move, you can't say it wouldn't be interesting. Keep Sebastian Stan in the role and chronicle the events that has happened and the missions he's been on since The First Avenger and before The Winter Soldier. Hate all you want, this is just something I would be very interested in seeing. After all, this is my list.
The Runaways
This one is a cheat, I'm not going to lie. This is more of the potential and development that has being going on for the property than something I'd want to see. Although, I would be interested in. Definitely different in tone than what I've laid out so far. While certain things should be changed that quite frankly I find to be a bit ridiculous (telepathically linked to a dinosaur), this could work as a great show for teens rather than the typical drama like Teen Mom or something along those lines. Simply, it would be something rather different that I think wouldn't fit on film where you have The Avengers, Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, etc. The project was shelved due to the 1.5 billion dollar success of The Avengers so, why not take advantage of the tv medium?
Those are my thoughts and characters I want to see. As you can tell, outside of my honorable mention, these are things I want to see be brought to tv. Sure, the title was misleading. I was typing as I was thinking and the more I thought, the more I realized that not only that I'm a big fan of the darker characters but also, these are all characters that are best fit for television. What are your guys' thoughts and who would you like to see be brought into the fray of the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Whether the big or small screen. As always, be respectful.