Being an MCU fan is immensely frustrating these days. Once a franchise marked as cultural landmark is now just full of plotholes, poor CGI, and questionable casting decisions.
Although Phase 4 and Phase 5 of Marvel Cinematic Universe are tanking at the box office, there was a time when Marvel had smash-hit blockbusters. This was because the franchise would not only feature cool superheroes but also jaw-dropping supervillains who would become fan-favorite characters.
While MCU featured a number of supervillains in the past, there were three supervillains in particular, who had the potential to be one of the best supervillains in the superhero had the plots been developed accordingly. Instead, they were showcased for just one film, which ruined a whole lot of potential and what could have made them a big name in the Marvel fandom.
MCU Wasted The Potential of 3 Great Supervillains
The MCU has built its success on the classic heroes-versus-villains narrative, though the franchise relies heavily on the simple idea of the supervillain going against the superhero, and after a massive battle, the villain is eventually stripped of its powers or dies. But with Marvel, there’s a different case, as it came up with 3 iconic supervillains in the past, but they could not make a big name as they were the victim of a poor plot.
YouTuber AustinBurke mentioned three supervillains in particular who would have definitely made it big in the franchise, but Marvel wasted those potentials. Though he mentioned some interesting choices, he emphasized the case of Mickey Rourke’s Whiplash in Iron Man 2, Mads Mikkelsen’s Kaecilius in Doctor Strange, and Walton Goggins’ Sonny Burch in Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Burke mentioned that Whiplash and Kaecilius deserved more screentime, as these two characters were outstanding in their respective roles, but the MCU could not profit from them, eventually wasting their potential, “becoming wasted villains.”
“Whiplash and Kaecilius, they’re in the same spot because of amazing casting decisions, but both wasted villains, wasted opportunites.”
Goggins’ Sonny Burch was also an interesting choice as the villain in Ant-Man 2 was quite unique and different from what we would normally expect from a traditional supervillain. The character preferred the pursuit of money by selling scientific innovations in the black market and having a massive profit for himself. Moreover, his portrayal was refreshing, and he added a refreshing take to the MCU’s list of outstanding villains.
Kevin Feige Talks About The Potential Return of RDJ To The MCU
While Marvel has messed up a bit with their villains in the franchise, they have surely made sure that their heroes get plenty of screen time and iconic moments. One such case was with Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man, as his most iconic moment was in Avengers: Endgame, where he said “I am Iron Man” before he snapped to defeat Thanos.
However, MCU is struggling after his exit, and it was believed that the actor is set to return before Avengers: Secret Wars. During an interview with Vanity Fair, Kevin Feige talked about the character’s potential return, but they don’t want to ruin his most iconic moment in any possible manner.
“We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again. We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
Kevin Feige’s comment has raised speculation of the actor returning as Tony Stark/ Iron Man, but it will be a different variant like Superior Iron Man or a different one that will not ruin his iconic moment in the 2019 MCU film.
Iron Man 2, Doctor Strange, and Ant-Man and the Wasp can be streamed on Disney+.
