Summary
TheMarvel Cinematic Universeis full of plot twists, and not all of them land as hard as they should. Acrossthe many films of the MCU, the franchise has made many attempts at sneaky plot twists, keeping things engaging for audiences beyond the performances and CGI spectacle.Unfortunately, these passes at subverting expectations are sometimes easy to spot a mile away,ultimately lessening their impact in an otherwise engaging story.
There are several reasons MCU twists aren’t always as subtle as they think they are. For one, the series is constantly having to balance general audiences with comic book fans,meaning that for those familiar with the comics, certain character reveals or story beats are very much expected.Other times, the aggressive marketing of the MCU can get the better of it, with trailers or leaks frequently giving away the most exciting surprises in store forupcoming Marvel movies. Whatever the case, the MCU is a graveyard of easily-spotted plot twists.
10 Castings Marvel Fans Wanted For MCU Movies That Never Happened
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of seemingly obvious casting choices that have never panned out, from the X-Men to The Fantastic Four.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Cast
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues the adventures of Peter Quill and his eclectic crew as they navigate complex family dynamics and revelations about Quill’s mysterious heritage. Set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the film explores themes of family and identity against a backdrop of intergalactic adventure.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2places a greater emphasis on Star-Lord’s story among the spacefaring hero team’s greater ensemble, exploring his past and celestial ancestry. While Kurt Russel’s Ego seems to be a welcoming presence at first, Peter Quill and his friends quickly learn just how much of a menace the ancient living planet truly is.The reveal would hit a lot harder if it wasn’t for the fact that most viewers figured out that would be the case essentially as soon as Ego appeared on-screen.
The very structure of the story makes it almost impossible for Ego to be a good guy – With him on their side, the Guardians would have no worries about fending off the secondary antagonists of the Sovereign.Comic readers will also be familiar with Ego’s appearance as a villain or at least antagonistic force in most stories he appears in.For the plot to progress, there’s essentially no way Ego wasn’t hiding some dark secret, somewhat lessening the impact of the reveal that he was the one responsible for the death of Star-Lord’s mother.
Another villain masquerading as a hero at the beginning of their introductory film, Mysterio is the antagonist ofSpider-Man: Far From Home, manipulating Peter Parker with his illusion technology in order to secure access to some of Tony Stark’s most sensitive tech.Jakey Gyllenhaal’s phenomenal performance as Mysterio makes him closer to being a convincing hero than Ego ever gets.But in the end, the reveal of his deception isn’t especially shocking when it finally does come.
Of course, Mysterio’s villain status is also well-known by even the most surface-level Spider-Man fan, making his heroic aspirations difficult to swallow for anyone going in with pre-exisitng Spider-Man knowledge.
Mysterio’s actions atthe end ofSpider-Man: Far From Homehave some critical implications for Peter Parker in the rest of the MCU, but his status as a shady character should be easy to spot for any moviegoer. His explanation of the “Elementals” and the danger they pose is just a little too surface level, making it hard to believe that Spider-Man would buy it in the first place.Of course, Mysterio’s villain status is also well-known by even the most surface-level Spider-Man fan,making his heroic aspirations difficult to swallow for anyone going in with pre-existing Spider-Man knowledge.
Captain Marvelformally introduced the warring alien empires of the Skrulls and the Kree, two staple extraterrestrial races in the Marvel Comics. Both are depicted as being villainous in their own way in the source material, even if they do war against one another, but the beginning ofCaptain Marveltries to take things in a different direction.Early on in the film, it’s established that Carol Danvers, known to the Kree as Vers, has been fighting against the Skrull on behalf of the Kree Empirefor some time after losing her memories.
One supriseCaptain Marveldoes get away with is the assertion that the Skrull are largely peaceful, merely hiding from being hunted by the Kree with their disguises.
The ultimate reveal that the Kree are a villainous empire of colonizers isn’t a shock to any comic reader, but MCU-only fans can also see the twist coming a mile away. The mere existence of Ronan the Accuser inGuardians of the Galaxy, described as a fanatic Kree zealot, should be enough to categorize the race’s government as nefarious in nature. One supriseCaptain Marveldoes get away with is the assertion that the Skrull are largely peaceful, merely hiding from being hunted by the Kree with their disguises.
Spider-Man: No Way Home
For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the trials and tribulations of being a superhero. In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) asks for help from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) when his identity becomes a problem for the ones he loves. Unfortunately, when the spell goes wrong, Spider-Man will now have to face off with villains such as Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina) and Electro (Jamie Foxx) as Peter finally comes to terms that he can’t run from being Spider-Man. Supported by his close friends and help from an unexpected place (or multiverse), Spider-Man will go toe-to-toe with some of the most legendary foes in his storied history.
The reveal of Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s appearance inSpider-Man: No Way Homeis among themost cheer-worthy moments in the MCU. For as exciting as it is to see all three live-action Spider-Men united, there are few fans who didn’t see the reunion coming from a mile away. This is primarily due to several factors surrounding the buildup of the film’s release, although the presence of Garfield and Maguire was largely expected the moment Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock appeared on-screen.
The trailers forSpider-Man: No Way Homeattempted to keep the extra Peter Parkers under wraps, digitally editing them out of the final fight scenes.However, suspiciously empty spaces in the blocking made it obvious that more Spider-Men were being hidden just out of sight.One particularly obvious example came from a Brazilian trailer for the film, in which The Lizard gets punched in the face by a seemingly invisible force.
Captain America’s recognition of Bucky’s face under The Winter Soldier’s mask is one of the biggest emotional gut punches in his journey throughout the MCU.Thinking his former best friend and sidekick to be dead, Steve Rogers is utterly taken aback to see a familiar face in the modern age. Sadly, this reveal surprised no one upon the film’s release, for a wide variety of reasons.
Beyond that, an early cast list forCaptain America: The Winter Soldierstraight up gave away the titular villain’s identity, crediting Sebastian Stan as “Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier.”
For one, comic readers will be familiar with Bucky Barnes' status as The Winter Soldier, making the twist yet another casualty of comic lore knowledge.Beyond that, an early cast list forCaptain America: The Winter Soldierstraight up gave away the titular villain’s identity, crediting Sebastian Stan as “Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier.” It’s a shame that most audiences weren’t able to experience the shock of Bucky’s unmasking with the same level of gravity that Captain America himself did.
Not every obvious twist in Marvel Cinematic Universe movies is necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes, everyone knowing when a certain “twist” is going to happen can actually make it more satisfying, especially if the reveal the payoff to a moment set up ages ago.Such was the case with Captain America being able to wield Mjolnir in the final battle ofAvengers: Endgame.
After the party scene ofAvengers: Age of Ultronin which Captain America is able to nudge the hammer,MCU fans were expectant for the all-American hero to fully wield the mythical weapon later on in the series.Avengers: Endgamefinally fulfilled that promise years later with a surprise plot twist that may have been expected, but nonetheless generated record amounts of hype. While there are several theories explainingwhy Steve couldn’t lift MjolnirinAvengers: Age of Ultronfully, it’s very likely he could have, and simply chose not to to spare Thor’s feelings.
Avengers: Infinity War
Avengers: Infinity War brings together the Avengers and their allies to face a new threat from the cosmos, Thanos, who seeks to collect the Infinity Stones. The film, part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, unites numerous superhero characters in a battle to prevent Thanos' ambition of altering reality itself.
It’s fitting that the illusory God of Mischief would have the most attempts at faking out the MCU’s audiences of any character in the franchise.Dying and coming back not one, not two, but three separate times,Loki’s reputation as being never truly dead starting following him closesly in the series, making it hard to believe he’d ever truly bite the dust for good. His first fakeout death came in the originalThor,as he fell into space off the Bifrost Bridge.
Knowing Loki would be the main villain ofThe Avengers,this ambiguous demise was met with skepticism.This made it all the harder to believe Loki was dead once again inThor: The Dark World, quickly revealed to be a fakeout as the trickster god disguised himself as Odin to enjoy a short-lived Asgardian rule. While the original timeline Loki technically does die inAvengers: Infinity War, it would be far from the character’s last appearance in the franchise, getting his own series of solo adventures with Disney+’s excellentLoki.
Eternals
Eternals, directed by Chloé Zhao, follows a group of ancient aliens who have secretly lived on Earth for thousands of years. The film explores their reunion in the face of an unexpected tragedy and the threat posed by their age-old adversaries, the Deviants. Released in 2021, the film expands the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Yet another twist villain that was easy to see coming a mile away,Marvel’s mysterious celestialsthat guided the Eternals in their titular film had sinister plans for planet Earth. Initially, it’s explained that the Eternals were sent to Earth to protect the planet from Deviants, monstrous creatures that proliferated through the galaxy stomping out intelligent life wherever it formed. While this was half-true, their real purpose on the planet was revealed to be the heralding of a new celestial from deep within the bowels of the Earth.
Of course, this plan would destroy the Earth if completed, leaving immortal superheroes to choose between their celestial programming and their fondness for humanity after spending untold centuries on Earth.Once again, the writing on the wall was clear with this particular villainous reveal.Even worse, the minimal pop culture impact ofEternalsmeans that few fans even experienced it, leaving the half-formed celestial Tiamat to languish in the Indian Ocean without mention for multiple MCU films.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
Tatiana Maslany stars as Jennifer Walters, AKA She-Hulk in Marvel’s Disney+ TV seriesShe-Hulk: Attorney at Law.She-Hulkis a half-hour comedy series that follows the story of Jennifer Walters, Bruce Banner/Hulk’s cousin. Jennifer is an attorney who must juggle her life alongside being a 6-foot-7-inch hulk. Unlike her cousin, Jennifer is capable of managing her transformation at will. With these newfound powers, Jennifer will head-up a new superhero division at an opposing law firm while trying to learn what it means to be a hero. Additional casting includes Mark Ruffalo, reprising his role as Bruce Banner/ The Hulk, with Tim Roth joining the cast as Emil Blonsky/Abomination, the villain who originally appeared inThe Incredible Hulkfilm.She-Hulk: Attorney at Lawis a part of the MCU’s Phase 4 and originally aired in August 2022.
Movies by no means have a monopoly on obvious twists executed in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.She-Hulk:Attorney at Lawembraces the character’s comic heritage with a particularly creative scene that, while attempting to be out-of-left field, is strangely easy to see coming.From the moment Jen makes her first comments towards the camera a la Francis Underwood inHouse of Cards, an unequivocally silly sequence that fully smashes through the fourth wall is the only logical conclusion.
The scene wound up being a divisive one, with critical detractors lamenting the moment as too bizarre even for Marvel standards. Others appreciated the acknowledgment of She-Hulk’s legacy as a character that’s aware of her status as a fictional heroine. It’s clear the scene was meant to be a shock, butthe gradual increase of regularity with which She-Hulk speaks directly to the audience made it only a matter of time before more drastic measures were taken.
Iron Man
Iron Man is the first film in the long-running Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Robert Downey Jr. stars as Tony Stark, who becomes Iron Man after he is kidnapped and discovers terrorists are using weapons developed by Stark Industries. Gwyneth Paltrow stars as Tony’s love interest Pepper Potts alongside Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan and Jeff Bridges as the villainous Obadiah Stane.
Of all the twistvillains in Marvel Cinematic Universe history, one might imagine that if any of them were to be truly shocking or effective, it would be the very first. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case, andObadiah Stane’s ultimate betrayal of Tony Stark is easy to see coming a mile away. From the first small moment that Stane references some small amount of possible resentment towards Howard Stark naming his brat son the successor of Stark Industries, it’s easy to see where the story is going.
That’s not to say that Obadiah Stane is a bad villain overall. Jeff Bridges gives a solid performance, and even if he isthe first Marvel Studios villain to pioneer the trope of “evil verison of the hero,“he deserves credit as holding up his side of the excellent first entry in the franchise. It’s too bad that Stane sets a precedent for underwhelmingMarvel Cinematic Universeplot twists, wearing his unsavory intentions on his sleeve from nearly the very beginning.
