As much as we’ve grown familiar with superheroes from both the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and DC Extended Universe (DCEU), we’ve also come to know their villains quite well.
Villains are characters that typically propel the plot forward. This is precisely what rank the most powerful Marvel and DC villains. And when it comes to villains, we think these are the best ones from the MCU and DCEU so far:
MCU: Hela
Hela may be Thor and Loki’s sister, but her MCU debut took time, nonetheless. As it turned out, the character’s debut could have occurred in the 2011 film Thor. However, the character only appeared in an earlier version of the script before Hela was removed completely. And since Hela only appeared in the third Thor installment, there are so many why Hela would win against Thanos if they were to fight.
DCEU: Black Manta
Some comic book fans may have likened Black Manta to MCU’s Killmonger. In a way, their stories are similar. Their fathers were killed, which is why they were seeking revenge. In the case of Black Manta, his father decides to commit suicide after getting injured and pinned down during a fight with Aquaman. This essentially becomes Black Manta’s motivation for coming up with his suit and going after Aquaman. Later on in the film though, it becomes apparent that he wasn’t strong enough to take down the superhero.
MCU: Ultron
You know right away that a villain would wreak major havoc when their name is mentioned in the movie title, just like Avengers: Age of Ultron. Not surprisingly, Ultron was also among the characters with the most screen time in this installment. Blacklist star James Spader was tapped to portray this villain that managed to infiltrate the Avengers Tower. Meanwhile, it’s possible that we haven’t seen the last of Ultron yet even if he died at the end of the film. In recent months, a Marvel theory has emerged that he’ll return in Marvel’s Phase Four.
DCEU: General Zod
General Zod was the first villains introduced by the DCEU. Hailing from Krypton, this character has always been determined to take down Superman at all costs. It doesn’t even matter if he has to annihilate the entire human race to get the job done. Because of this, General Zod is considered to be one of the most sinister villains the DCEU has ever had.
MCU: Mysterio
Unlike other MCU villains, Mysterio doesn’t have powers. However, he is clever, even managing to fool people into thinking that he is from another dimension. Later on, however, Mysterio’s façade started to crack and for actor Jake Gyllenhaal, that’s what made the character interesting to portray. “Throughout the whole thing … there’s a real shakiness to certain things that he does,” he told five things that they changed about Mysterio in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
DCEU: Doctor Poison
Doctor’s Poison’s real name is Isabel Maru and she is fictionally credited for creating a mustard gas for the Germans during World War I. Actress Elena Anaya was eventually tapped to portray her and one of her first questions about the character concerns Doctor Poison’s scars.
When she asked Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins about it, Anaya got the most shocking answer. “She said, ‘She wants to provoke painful suffering, so she tested her own gas on her own face,’” Anaya told The Verge. “This is the sadistic side of Dr. Maru.”
MCU: Erik Killmonger
Killmonger is a villain who had personal issues with the Black Panther. As the son of Prince N'Jobu, he had a valid claim to the throne of Wakanda, something that T’Challa himself didn’t deny.
The problem was nobody in the kingdom knew of his existence initially. In portraying the character, Michael B. Jordan noted that it was quite challenging as he explained to 10 best Killmonger scenes from the film.
DCEU: Ares
In the film Wonder Woman, Diana a.k.a. Wonder Woman was determined early on to kill Ares. This is because she believed that this would finally restore peace in the world. The problem was Diana didn’t recognize who the real Ares was in the beginning. Initially, the superhero was convinced it was Ludendorff. Towards the end, however, Ares had been disguising himself as Sir Patrick Morgan all along. He attempts to get Diana to his cause, telling her it was pointless to defend humans. However, Diana refuses and an epic fight scene breaks out.
MCU: Thanos
Thanos's presence was teased in previous MCU films. However, the superheroes only come to realize his full brunt during the events of both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Thanos is nothing like your typical bad guy. Sure, he kills without mercy and the creatures his army has unleashed are quite menacing. Underneath it all, however, Thanos is convinced that he is just doing his part to help prolong the existence of the entire universe. And a villain who thinks that his actions are justified is far scarier than someone who just likes to do bad things to people.
DCEU: King Orm
Although Black Manta did give Aquaman a hard time in Aquaman, it eventually became clear that King Orm is the main villain of the film instead. As you know, the king also happens to be Aquaman’s younger half brother and he was determined to become Ocean Master so that he could take control of the entire underwater world. Considering the Earth is mostly water, that’s quite an impressive territory to have. Fortunately, Aquaman manages to defeat him in the end, thanks in part to the re-emergence of their mother.
