Best villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Board 8

Board 8 » Best villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
RikkuAlmighty
03/19/2024
02:27 AM
#1
Posting because I randomly saw a Youtube thumbnail with Michael Keaton and it made me realize him as Vulture in Spiderman Homecoming is the most memorable bad guy role I can think of in the MCU.* That scene in the car with him and Peter Parker is just so understated and full of tension. The movie also managed to give him a motivation that was grounded and believable, something that I don't really think other villains get the benefit of in the MCU. Granted, I haven't really seen anything beyond Endgame/No Way Home.

*Other than Loki. Loki will obviously get lots of love, and he's amazing. But damn if Keaton didn't kill it as Vulture.

Do any of the other more recent movies have anyone noteworthy, or is it more villain-of-the-week flair?
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Paratroopa1
03/19/2024
02:28 AM
#2
Oh, well, you said what I was gonna say in the first post
CassandraCain
03/19/2024
02:53 AM
#3
Let's see, Loki, Vulture, Killmonger, Thanos... I figure everyone would agree on those being the best. Oh and Green Goblin, Willem Dafoe truly made that character his own in No Way Home.

Personally I also loved Justin Hammer and wish he'd come back. Scarlet Witch as a villain was fun, but coulda used a bit more buildup.

I was actually hyped for Kang until... well the drama happened.

Sad that they completely backtracked on how they handle villains. That Ronan cosplayer from the Marvels was embarrassing.
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bryans7
03/19/2024
02:55 AM
#4
My top five is Thanos, Loki, Vulture, Red Skull, and Klaue.

I just really love Klaue
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Wanglicious
03/19/2024
04:06 AM
#5
on the one hand, Thanos and Vulture can be complex characters but Dafoe's Green Goblin is probably my favorite. nothing overly complicated or difficult to understand, just pure malice and evil. if it was any other actor i don't think it'd have been the same. sometimes i just want a villain to be a villain and he embodied that.
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Snake5555555555
03/19/2024
04:14 AM
#6
Thanos, Loki, Zemo, & Killmonger stand out the most for me
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ChaosTonyV4
03/19/2024
06:08 AM
#7
Honestly, I love James Spader chewing scenery so much that I pick Ultron.
Phantom Dust.
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Leonhart4
03/19/2024
07:32 AM
#8
I love the Spider-Man gallery of rogues in general, so I thought Vulture and Mysterio were both great. It's hard to count Willem Dafoe as an MCU villain, but he was great, too.

Beyond that, the top three for me are probably Loki, Thanos, and Killmonger.
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XIII_Rocks
03/19/2024
09:09 AM
#9
Loki, Hela, Thanos, Killmonger, Namor, Vulture, Goblin, High Evolutionary, MoM villain
Not to be confused with XIII_Minerals.
colliding
03/19/2024
09:39 AM
#10
Thanos, High Evolutionary, Purple Man

the purple trio
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FFDragon
03/19/2024
09:47 AM
#11
If Netflix counts, Purple Man is def 1a or 1b

Even less likely to count, but I will shout out Shadow King
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Isquen
03/19/2024
10:51 AM
#12
Oh god Purple Man killed it. If Netflix holds, Madame Gao counts for me, as well.
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RikkuAlmighty
03/19/2024
11:01 AM
#13
Wtf is purple man
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Lopen
03/19/2024
11:18 AM
#14
I think the only vaguely good villain since you stopped is the Shang Chi guy-- whatever his name was.

I guess maybe Scarlet Witch if you count her

Kang could have been good but didn't pan out
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Isquen
03/19/2024
11:36 AM
#15
RikkuAlmighty posted...
Wtf is purple man

Jessica Jones villain, David Tennant's character.
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Underleveled
03/19/2024
11:39 AM
#16
Probably Killmonger
darkx
scarletspeed7
03/19/2024
11:43 AM
#17
The High Evolutionary and Hela
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Maniac64
03/19/2024
11:59 AM
#18
Killmonger, High Evolutionary, Thanos, and Loki are my top tier.

Hammer, Shang Chi's Mandarin, Mysterio, Goblin, and Vulture would be in my next tier.

And yeah if we count Netflix than Purple Man is top tier. Kingpin, Gau, and Cottonmouth were also all good.
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Big_Bob
03/19/2024
12:21 PM
#19
No one is saying Agatha in this topic?
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Johnbobb
03/19/2024
12:23 PM
#20
Kingpin still my #1, although I haven't finished Echo
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Isquen
03/19/2024
01:06 PM
#21
Big_Bob posted...
No one is saying Agatha in this topic?
You just did!
[Rock and Stone] <o/
HanOfTheNekos
03/19/2024
01:14 PM
#22
Big_Bob posted...
No one is saying Agatha in this topic?
Her inclusion muddied the themes of the show. She was portrayed well but her inclusion as a villain was questionable.
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bryans7
03/19/2024
01:14 PM
#23
Maniac64 posted...
Cottonmouth

Goddamn I forgot how good that first half of Luke Cage S1 was. I wasn't counting any tv shows or else he would've made top five easy.
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HanOfTheNekos
03/19/2024
01:15 PM
#24
My answer tho is Loki, specifically for Thor 2. I don't think he was great in Avengers and he was solid in Thor 1. He wasn't a villain the rest of the time.

But Thor 2 Loki is like my top villain in the MCU, along with Thanos.
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XIII_Rocks
03/19/2024
01:44 PM
#25
Oh yeah, Wenwu ruled

I forgot about Shang-Chi because of the fucking dragon runining everything
Not to be confused with XIII_Minerals.
Paratroopa1
03/19/2024
04:46 PM
#26
It's super funny to call David Tennant's character Purple Man because it's impossible to say Purple Man without sounding like you're giving a meme name to Thanos
skulltrumpets
03/19/2024
05:09 PM
#27
I'm so mentally and physically exhausted I read "purple man" and had to make sure I wasn't in a FNaF topic by mistake.
ChichiriMuyo
03/19/2024
05:13 PM
#28
Killgrave/Purple Man is by far the scariest and most sinister MCU villain. Killing you might just be the least bad thing he does to you.
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MarkS2222222222
03/19/2024
05:43 PM
#29
It's pretty clearly Thanos but he's suffers from overexposure due to memes

Kingpin, Cottonmouth are also great
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Paratroopa1
03/19/2024
06:33 PM
#30
Yeah I think if we're including Netflix shows my ranking of villains is Kilgrave 1, Kingpin 1a lol. Those guys both absolutely crushed their roles

As far as just the movies/Disney+ series go though Vulture's my fave, followed by I guess Thanos even though it's a boring answer but he IS really good

but Thanos is never as threatening or scary as Michael Keaton in the car. holy s h i t
ChichiriMuyo
03/20/2024
04:40 AM
#31
Agreed w/ para. Denofrio killed it as Kingpin. And Keaton as Vulture is also great. I like the villains that who take/make shit personal. Killmonger makes that list. A lot of people are saying Cottonmouth, but Mariah Stokes really took shit personally.

I have a hard time taking Thanos as a great villain because nothing he did to anyone was really personal. He actually wanted to help people, but was very badly misguided in his attempt. Kill half of all life and it is all back in a handful of decades. He wasn't saving anybody, let alone the universe. I'd put a dunce cap on him. Capable of anything, fails to be even a half decent villain/anti-hero-as-he-wished.
Existence. Existence is but shallow question with no answer. Buu make you chicken nuggies!
HanOfTheNekos
03/20/2024
07:22 AM
#32
but... he succeeded
"Bordate is a pretty shady place, what with the gangs, casinos, evil corporations and water park." - FAHtastic
colliding
03/20/2024
09:59 AM
#33
I don't think Thanos actually wanted to help people though. It's typical Malthussian logic that's employed by sociopaths. Which makes him sympathetic but still villainous imo.
while you slept, the world changed
XIII_Rocks
03/20/2024
12:03 PM
#34
colliding posted...
I don't think Thanos actually wanted to help people though. It's typical Malthussian logic that's employed by sociopaths. Which makes him sympathetic but still villainous imo.

Yeah. His responses to issues of overpopulation and resource exhaustion were all military and involved mass murder that wouldn't solve a whole lot. He's an intelligent, eloquent lunatic
Not to be confused with XIII_Minerals.
Leonhart4
03/20/2024
12:07 PM
#35
Thanos was convinced he was right and believed nobody else had the will to do it. I think that's what makes him appealing as a villain. He was the self-proclaimed Messiah nobody asked for.
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RikkuAlmighty
03/20/2024
12:29 PM
#36
Thanos is okay. The fact that he won makes him compelling more than anything specifically about him as a character.
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Leonhart4
03/20/2024
12:35 PM
#37
It's not just that he won. It's that they spent a decade building up to him, and he actually lived up to the hype, which is hard to do.
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CoolCly
03/20/2024
01:23 PM
#38
Justin Hammer is fully realized as a Tony Stark wannabe. chefs kiss ~
The batman villians all seem to be one big joke that batman refuses to laugh at - SantaRPG
Board 8 » Best villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?