Marvel Television was responsible for a lot of different TV shows, including Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the street-level Defenders we saw on Netflix, and the likes of Runaways and Cloak and Dagger on Hulu. Inhumans was a real low point, and given the mixed response to most of those series, it's no wonder Disney turned to Marvel Studios when it came to developing the current Disney+ shows.
Now, Marvel Television is no more, and there's a lot of speculation online about whether anything that we saw from them should actually be considered "canon" in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Despite that, the signs are pointing to at least some of those characters being rebooted by Marvel Studios, which would make sense given how much potential the Inhumans, for example, have. The kicker, though, is that it sounds like the plan is to use the same actors who played them before!
With that in mind, we're now looking at the most likely candidates for an MCU return, so to find out who makes the cut, all you guys need to do is click on the "Next" button down below...
10. Elektra
Season two of Daredevil did a great job creating a compelling dynamic for Matt Murdock and Elektra, but also gave her a convoluted origin story that hurts our heads to think about even now. All the Black Sky nonsense aside, the ball was dropped in a big way when she was killed off so soon, and the less said about her return in The Defenders, the better.
This is a character in desperate need of rebooting, and picking up with her as the MCU's deadliest assassin would make perfect sense.
Elodie Yung overcame a lot of crappy material to put a fresh and exciting spin on Elektra, and we'd love to see that continue, albeit with a stronger group of storytellers. That's where Marvel Studios could come in, and there are any number of upcoming TV shows or movies where this anti-hero could appear.
That rumoured Echo TV series has to be one very likely possibility...
9. The Punisher
The Punisher is a character who has always struggled on the big screen, and while both Thomas Jane and Ray Stevenson have their fair share of fans, neither of them resonated with comic book readers the way Jon Bernthal did.
The perfect Frank Castle from the start, his work in that second season of Daredevil was Emmy worthy, so what did Marvel Television do? They put him in a terrible spinoff series that further complicated his extremely simple origin story and turned this violent vigilante into someone who deals more with conspiracies than crooks.
Moving forward, there's bound to be a place for The Punisher in the MCU, even if he has to be toned down a little.
He could cross paths with Moon Knight, take aim at Spider-Man, or even be an old friend of Clint Barton's from his time as the killer, Ronin.
8. Mockingbird
Once upon a time, there were plans for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Mockingbird to receive her own spinoff series alongside that irritating husband of hers, but it never happened, and Adrianne Palicki subsequently vanished from the show.
That was a real waste of an otherwise great character, and we'd love to see the actress given the chance to redeem Bobbi Morse while ditching the unnecessary baggage the ABC series saddled her with (for starters, we really don't need to see any more of Lance Hunter).
Yes, it's probably too late for Marvel Studios to explore her dynamic with Clint Barton, but there's so much more to this S.H.I.E.L.D. agent than that, and she could make an impact in any number of franchises.
If it was up to us, however, Mockingbird would make her return in Captain America 4.
7. Jessica Jones
The first season of Jessica Jones was great. The second was not. The third, meanwhile, was unwatchable.
Despite that, Krysten Ritter was bloody brilliant as the alcoholic private eye, and managed to add a great deal of depth to the character even in those later, nowhere near as enjoyable, seasons. Throwing a superpowered P.I. into the MCU just makes sense, especially as she would bring something new to this shared world.
Spider-Man: No Way Home would be a good place to bring Ritter back as Jessica, though She-Hulk might be even better. Jennifer Walters specialises in superhuman law and would no doubt appreciate the help of a P.I. like this one while defending her clients.
Oh, and if we can do a 2-4-1, then bring back David Tennant as Purple Man as well.
6. Morgan le Fay
No, we're not just including Morgan le Fay because of how damn good Elizabeth Hurley looked as the villain in Runaways (though we'd be lying to say that didn't cross our minds).
Runaways revealed that this version of le Fay was a powerful enchantress trapped in the Dark Dimension and once the leader of a coven of witches. That right there ties her to both Doctor Strange villain Dormammu and WandaVision's Agatha Harkness, and that should make it easy for Marvel Studios to incorporate her into the MCU.
Hurley was clearly having a blast as le Fay, and with the right director (and slightly better material than the Hulu series), she could do something really special with the character.
We're not suggesting she become a lead villain, but it would be fun to watch her cross paths with the Scarlet Witch.
5. Daredevil
Marvel Television did a solid job of exploring the Man Without Fear's origin story, but it was all downhill from there. A cheesy finale saw him suit up in a disappointing costume, and it wasn't really until season three that he really rebounded (which, coincidentally, was without the red suit).
That costume was ugly to look at, but inconsistent storytelling was the real problem, and if anyone can now redeem Matt Murdock, it's Marvel Studios.
With Charlie Cox back as the blind superhero, the groundwork can be laid for an improved take on Daredevil...and a vastly better suit to go with it. Rumour has it that Matt will be part of Spider-Man: No Way Home and, from there, he should most definitely become a supporting character in She-Hulk.
This character needs and deserves a second chance, so we'd best hope those "scoopers" are correct.
4. Gladiator
We're going to say in Daredevil's world for a little while longer to focus on a lesser-known character who definitely has some serious potential in the MCU.
Marvel Television never really tapped into Melvin Potter's transformation, and completely glossed over his mental health issues and how those eventually lead to him becoming a supervillain known as Gladiator. We're not suggesting he be used as a lead baddie in a future TV show or movie, but he could certainly make for an effective secondary villain somewhere in this shared world.
Matt Gerald is one of those actors who has appeared in a lot of different movies and TV shows, but his star appears to be on the rise now after booking appearances in James Cameron's Avatar sequels.
Disney would be wise to ride that momentum and give him another shot at playing Gladiator.
3. Black Bolt
We know that it was Marvel Entertainment CEO Ike Perlmutter who pushed for the Inhumans to be brought into the MCU, and when Kevin Feige decided against making a movie, we ended up with an awful TV series as well. That was a total disaster, and the characters have since been shelved.
Efforts to have them replace the X-Men in the comic books also failed, so their MCU future is hard to predict (if they are set to be reintroduced, then Ms. Marvel is the likeliest possibility).
Anson Mount may not have impressed on ABC, but he did his best and has since proved himself a more than capable actor in Star Trek Discovery. With that in mind, we'd be open to seeing him get another chance to bring Black Bolt back in some capacity, even if it's just a cameo to lay the groundwork for a fresh take on this team down the line.
Of all those listed here, however, Mount is probably the most disposable.
2. Quake
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. introduced us to a lot of great characters, but most were either newly created or miscast to some degree (for proof of that, look no further than Deathlok). However, there's no faulting Chloe Bennet as Quake, and while her journey from Skye to Daisy Johnson was borderline ridiculous, the MCU can move past that.
Arguably the show's most popular character, bringing Quake back would be a smart move on a number of levels, and Bennet has all the makings of a legit movie star.
Secret Invasion might be a good place to introduce Daisy as one of Nick Fury's proteges, with a new, comic accurate take on the Secret Warriors who could fight alongside the heroic Skrulls attempting to defend Earth. Starting fresh with this character would be the right move, even if it upsets longtime fans of Quake on the small screen.
Armor Wars could also be a good fit for the hero depending on how her powers are handled.
1. The Kingpin
At this point, it's really difficult to imagine anyone other than Vincent D'Onofrio playing Wilson Fisk. Despite not being as comically large as his comic book counterpart, this version of The Kingpin was sinister, intimidating, and someone it's easy to imagine ruling over New York City as its crimelord.
That's thanks to D'Onofrio's performance, so bringing him back as the villain is absolutely essential.
Daredevil didn't always do the best job with Fisk, but he had plenty of great moments and made for a fitting choice of nemesis for Charlie Cox's Man Without Fear.
In the MCU, it would make perfect sense to pit him against Spider-Man, though his presence could easily be felt throughout any number of franchises, squaring off with everyone from Moon Knight to Hawkeye and even the rebooted Daredevil!