SPIDER-MAN's Most Sinister Marvel Cinematic Universe Villains Ranked From Worst To Best

SPIDER-MAN's Most Sinister Marvel Cinematic Universe Villains Ranked From Worst To Best

Since swinging into the MCU back in 2016, Tom Holland's Peter Parker has squared off with some undeniably sinister foes. With Spider-Man 4 on the horizon, we're now ranking them from worst to best...

Feature Opinion
By JoshWilding - Dec 07, 2023 12:12 PM EST
Filed Under: Spider-Man

Over the course of three movies set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tom Holland's Peter Parker has faced some truly spectacular - and sinister - villains. Before those Variants were brought to Earth-616, Marvel Studios made it a priority to use bad guys we hadn't seen on screen before and they've all challenged this iconic superhero in new and exciting ways.

Spider-Man: No Way Home upped the ante by pitting the teenager against a quintet of baddies, and between that, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home, it's been a challenging few years for poor Peter. Luckily, he's overcome the odds, but not without being pushed to his limits.

In this feature, we rank the main villains Spider-Man has faced in the MCU from worst to best. The web-slinger has crossed paths with a lot of very iconic foes since 2017, but some stand out more than others and only one can be considered Spidey's greatest opponent in the rebooted franchise. 

To see who comes out on top of this sinister ranking, you just need to click on the "Next" button down below. 
 

8. Mac Gargan

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As things stand, we're still struggling to figure out why Marvel bothered to include Mac Gargan in Spider-Man: Homecoming. After a blink-and-you-'d-miss-it cameo during the Staten Ferry sequence, he returns in the mid-credits scene scarred, broken and eager to get revenge on Spidey.

Nothing has happened since then, though, and we're hoping there's a chance he'll now be the villain (or at least one of them) in Spider-Man 4. With any luck, Marvel Studios can find a way to make up for the fact the private eye from the comics - who found himself trapped within the Scorpion suit after a deal with J. Jonah Jameson went awry - has been turned into a generic criminal.

It seems most likely that we'll see Scorpion used the same way as Crossbones in Captain America: Civil War or as a secondary villain, but the opportunity to do something special with him has not been lost (especially if he's paired up with the Venom symbiote like in the comics). 
 

7. Lizard & Sandman

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Yes, we're lumping these two Spider-Man: No Way Home villains in together because, honestly, they made about the same impact in the threequel. Both were brought to life solely with visual effects (footage from previous movies was used to show them in their human forms due to the pandemic), and neither had much of a story arc beyond being there to give the Spider-Men something to punch.

They served a purpose, though, and it was fun to see the MCU's Peter Parker interact with them. The Lizard still wanted to turn everyone into a lizard, while Sandman needed to get home. We appreciate there was only so much screentime to go around, but more could have been done.

As it stands, we enjoyed what they both brought to the table in terms of the fight scenes, though the giant Sandman idea feels played out now. When it comes to The Lizard, we're not sure why Marvel Studios didn't take this opportunity to re-design the character, because he looked every bit as disappointing here as he did in 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man
 

6. Shocker

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Herman Schultz has never been one of Spider-Man's greatest villains, so we can't complain too much about him being "wasted" here. Despite that, it's hard to escape the feeling that more could and should have been done to ensure that he made a bigger impact beyond the one fight scene with Spidey which sees him stopped by Ned Leeds and beaten with relative ease.

Ultimately, it may just boil down to Marvel needing a C-list villain for Spider-Man: Homecoming to be part of Toomes' operation and Shocker managed to fit the bill. It is a shame that we never got the version promised by promo art, though, as that could have redeemed this Shocker somewhat. More could have been done with the immensely talented Bokeem Woodbine, too.

It would be no bad thing for Spider-Man 4 to open with a rematch between Spidey and this villain, reminding us he's still out there while showing how much more experienced Peter has become.
 

5. Electro

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Unlike The Lizard, Max Dillon did get a new look in Spider-Man: No Way Home and was treated as less of a comedy character. He still delivered some of the movie's funniest lines, but they were legitimately funny, and not just painful to watch play out on screen (which they were in The Amazing Spider-Man 2).

With an overhauled appearance and attitude, Electro made a much bigger impact and proved himself a credible threat to Spider-Man. His quest to become more powerful - whether it be through the MCU's unique energy or one of Tony Stark's old Arc Reactors - was a solid subplot in the threequel, and one that culminated with that tense scene in Happy Hogan's apartment. 

By the time we reached the Statue of Liberty, Electro was rocking a comic book-accurate costume (mostly) and pushed Peter Parker to his limits. With any luck, Foxx will be given the chance to reprise this role because, in many ways, it feels like he was only just scratching the surface of what he can do with the villain.
 

4. Doctor Octopus

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We may not have seen anything quite as iconic as that battle on top of the train in Spider-Man 2, but Peter Parker's freeway fight with Doctor Octopus in No Way Home was by no means a disappointment. With the benefit of today's technology, Doc Ock showed us just how formidable he truly is, laying waste to the cars there as part of an effort to put the wall-crawler down and find his machine. 

Ultimately, the villain got the upper hand, and if it wasn't for that Iron Spider nanotechnology, he may well have taken Peter out. From there, Alfred Molina frequently stole the show with some superb lines of dialogue and ended up regaining his senses around the midway point.

As a result, you might be wondering why this "good guy" ranks so highly on a list of villains. Well, while he may have ultimately proven himself an ally to Peter Parker, Doc Ock remains one of the greatest threats the wall-crawler has faced and we can't help but hope for a rematch somewhere down the line.
 

3. Vulture

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It's a real shame The Vulture didn't factor into Spider-Man: No Way Home because he truly is one of the web-slinger's best villains. Not only did he deduce the hero's secret identity, but he took Peter Parker to the edge and came this close to ending his superhero career.

The design was drastically different to the comic books in many ways, but it was the best possible direction to take the villain in for his live-action debut. It's just a shame that his cameo in Morbius was such a complete mess. 

It's a shame there wasn't time to do more with The Vulture before Mysterio outed Spider-Man's secret identity to the world, but we certainly hope they cross paths again one day. If their battle was a one-off, though, then we definitely can't fault the way things played out on screen. The way his supervillain origin story was tied to 2012's The Avengers was also pretty clever. 
 

2. Mysterio

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Some might argue that Marvel Studios wasted too much time portraying Mysterio as a superhero before his villainous nature was revealed in Spider-Man: Far From Home. We all knew it was coming, but in fairness, it was necessary to set the stage for that jaw-dropping mid-credits scene and everything that followed in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

While he doesn't sit atop this list, Mysterio did something no one else here was able to: he beat Spider-Man. By revealing his secret identity and making him a wanted man, Beck left a lasting impression on the wall-crawler that will have an impact on his adventures even now the genie has been put back in the bottle. 

We remain convinced that the character survived, as his comic book counterpart had a habit of jumping between realities. Whether a return is in the works remains to be seen, but we need more of Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio in the MCU, especially if it leads to more epic illusion sequences. That remains one of the franchise's greatest battles. 
 

1. Green Goblin

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We're going to forgive Marvel Studios for not giving us at least another scene or two with Willem Dafoe in his classic Green Goblin costume because the villain truly established himself as Peter Parker's most sinister foe here. Just like he'd once pushed the Spider-Man of his world to his limits, Norman Osborn destroyed the hero's life in No Way Home and killed his beloved Aunt May. 

The entire time, he was trying to teach the web-slinger a twisted lesson, meaning it wasn't just May's death that earned him this spot. The sight of the Goblin laughing manically as Spidey relentlessly hits him won't soon be forgotten, and this Norman was downright terrifying. In the final battle, he very nearly succeeded in breaking the hero's spirit but was thankfully overcome by Peter...with a little help from his new friends, of course.

Heading into this movie, many fans hoped the MCU would get its own Norman. After this clash, we think it's fair to say there's no longer any need because no one would be able to top Dafoe's work or the impact this Goblin had on Spider-Man's life.
 

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grif
grif - 12/7/2023, 12:18 PM
this is just no way home worship. big surprise.
marvel72
marvel72 - 12/7/2023, 12:29 PM
I thought Spider-Man:No Way Home was very good,definitely the best movie from Phase 4.
tb86
tb86 - 12/7/2023, 12:32 PM
1) Green Goblin
2) Vulture
3) Doc Ock
4) Mysterio
5) Electro
6) Sandman
7) Shocker
8) Lizard
9) Mac Gargan
JFerguson
JFerguson - 12/7/2023, 12:33 PM
If theres one thing Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers need to improve on, it’s writing the villains. The Raimi villains are too top tier. These Watts villains were child’s play.
ModHaterSLADE
ModHaterSLADE - 12/7/2023, 12:34 PM
Always thought Vulture was kind of lame until I saw the MCU version. Great take on the character.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 12/7/2023, 12:36 PM
Yup, this is correct.
DocSpock
DocSpock - 12/7/2023, 12:36 PM


Spider-Man NWH was so great that I didn't even mind that the villains from the totally sh!tty ASM movies were in it.



Nomis929
Nomis929 - 12/7/2023, 12:42 PM
1. Doc Ock
2. Green Goblin
3. Mysterio
4. Vulture
5. SandMan
6. Electro
7. Lizard
8. Shocker
9. Mac Gargin
marvel72
marvel72 - 12/7/2023, 3:53 PM
@Nomis929 - I would put Green Goblin at number one because of....



Aunt May's Death

Baf
Baf - 12/7/2023, 4:29 PM
@Nomis929 - Finally, someone here with guts...and taste. Doc Ock had the best arc. Thank you for splitting Sandman and Lizard. Grouping them together doesn't make sense.
Nomis929
Nomis929 - 12/7/2023, 6:23 PM
@marvel72 -
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 12/7/2023, 12:54 PM
Say what you want about Watts or the take on Spider Man and his world that he helped craft but the guy did well with the main villains imo.





MCUKnight11
MCUKnight11 - 12/7/2023, 12:56 PM
@TheVisionary25 - One of the best collection of villains for a CBM series.
MCUKnight11
MCUKnight11 - 12/7/2023, 12:57 PM
Looking forward to who's in the next trilogy and how they challenge Spidey. Best rogues gallery in Marvel hands down.
SheepishOne
SheepishOne - 12/7/2023, 12:58 PM
You know, I loved seeing Goblin and Ock in NWH, but I've really wanted to see the MCU's take on those characters, and I worry that we've missed the boat on that.

Now, I do think there's potential for an interesting dynamic if Peter meets the MCU Norman. The dramatic irony of knowing what Norman may become, and Peter trying to either prevent it or get ahead of it. Could be an interesting (and very Spider-Man) story to see him inadvertently create the MCU's Goblin while trying to prevent it.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 12/7/2023, 12:59 PM
@SheepishOne -
JFerguson
JFerguson - 12/7/2023, 1:08 PM
@SheepishOne - I agree. I feel like Spider-Man freshman year is marvel studios’ way of giving us “how we would have done Spider-Man if we didn’t share custody with sony”

We get a new Norman, Doc Ock, and Harry in that too.

I think any future plans for a Norman roaming the wider MCU is up to Sonys willingness to share.
MotherGooseUPus
MotherGooseUPus - 12/7/2023, 1:05 PM
Holy f*ck! I actually agree with Josh. Hell must be freezing over soon.



I do disagree though with Norman.. I WANT MCU peter to have his own Norman to deal with. As GREAT as Dafoe is, and trust me he's one of a kind... i want the MCU peter to deal with Norman, septically after what he just went through, theres alot of great story lines to be had.
Izaizaiza
Izaizaiza - 12/7/2023, 1:35 PM
I guess I'd list them as

1. Doc Ock
2. Green Goblin
3. Vulture
4. Mysterio
5. Electro
6. Sandman
7. Lizard
8. Shocker
9. Gargan
Thing94
Thing94 - 12/7/2023, 2:06 PM
No love for the Tinkerer ?
Forthas
Forthas - 12/7/2023, 2:44 PM
Vulture > Mysterio
Baf
Baf - 12/7/2023, 4:32 PM
Even Topher's Venom was better than Mac's 3 seconds.

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