It seems like whenever a villain gets popular, they become a hero. It's almost a cliche and one that Marvel has embraced in the 21st century, as some of their greatest villains have jumped ship to the heroic side of the aisle. While some of Marvel's intimidating antagonists are perfect for a more altruistic life, there are some who will always be evil to the core.
These villains have plenty of reasons to stay evil and the Marvel Universe would feel like a strange place if they switched sides. They are the worst of the worst, the irredeemable bad guys that everyone loves to hate.
10 Baron Zemo Has Pretended To Be A Hero Before But It Was Just A Means To An End
Baron Zemo is one of the Marvel Universe's most dangerous villains, a master strategist whose tactics and leadership abilities have allowed him to defeat the Avengers and almost take over the world using the Thunderbolts. The son of a Nazi, the chances of Baron Zemo ever becoming a hero are slight, to put it bluntly.
Baron Zemo is just about impossible to redeem, as he's done some terrible things over the years. On top of that, there's no way that Zemo would ever want to be a hero himself. He doesn't care about helping others or doing the right thing, his only concern is power.
9 Annihilus Is One Of The Most Dangerous Cosmic Predators In The Universe
Annihilus hails from the Negative Zone and has long been one of the dangerous villains in the Marvel Universe. The master of the Annihilation Wave, Annihilus's whole existence is about consuming everything in his path and nothing will change that. He has no interest in altruism, desiring only control and destruction.
Annihilus is an apex cosmic predator, a being who doesn't care about more than consuming and moving on to the next thing to consume. His command of the Annihilation Wave is a perfect example of this. Even if there was a threat that would cause him to work with the heroes, he would still try to kill them all when they were at their weakest.
8 Cassandra Nova's All Consuming Hate For Everything Will Stop Her From Ever Walking The Straight And Narrow
Nowadays, all of the mutant villains of the world have joined the nation of Krakoa, foregoing their evil ways in order to work for the good of their people. One mutant who hasn't showed up there yet is Cassandra Nova, Charles Xavier's powerful twin sister. There's a good reason for that, too, as Nova is responsible for the deaths of countless mutants and hates her brother with a burning passion.
While Nova did end up joining the X-Men in one apocalyptic timeline where she had no other choice and Xavier was long dead, the chances of her becoming a hero now are pretty much nil. She's too full of hatred for everything to go that route.
7 Mephisto's Evil Is Integral To Who He Is
Mephisto isn't Satan but he might as well be. He serves a similar place in the Marvel Universe: tempting those who are pure of heart and running a hellish dimension of tortured souls and demonic servants. Mephisto never does anything for any reason other than his fulfillment. Even when one of his deals helps the person who made it, there's a loophole that will harm them and/or others.
Mephisto has no reason to help others for any reason. He enjoys being evil and doing what he does. In fact, being an evil tempter of the pure is pretty much all he is. There's no reason for him to change or become a hero.
6 Dormammu Has No Reason To Ever Join The Side Of Good
Dormammu is one of the most powerful mystical beings in the Marvel Universe. As ruler of the Dark Dimension, he's tried to subjugate the Earth many times but has always been stopped by Doctor Strange. This rivalry with the good doctor has made him even less likely to become hero, which was something that already had very long odds against ever happening.
Dormammu's entire purpose is gaining more power and destroying anything that resists him. There is just about nothing that would make him become a hero and if he did, it would only be a ploy to allow access to Strange so he could backstab him.
5 Nimrod's Goal Of Mutant Genocide Can Never Be Cleaned Up
Sentinels are some of the dangerous robots in the Marvel Universe but there is one who is more powerful and feared than the others: Nimrod. Nimrod units are the end goal of the Sentinel program and are the heralds of mutantkind's destruction. Whenever a Nimrod unit exists, things get very bad for mutants and the only thing that can change that is its complete destruction.
Nimrod is the ultimate in mutant killing technology. It exists to commit genocide on a wide scale and that can't be gussied up. There's no way to change its programming and once it's live, even destroying it only slows it down. Basically, there is nothing that can make a Nimrod a hero.
4 Dracula's Entire Life Is Fueled By Killing And He's Not Going To Stop Feeding On Whoever He Wants
Dracula is the most well-known vampire in fiction and the king of vampires has haunted the Marvel Universe for centuries. While some vampires have used their thirst and power for good, Dracula is not that type of bloodsucker. He's the apex of vampire society and doesn't believe that he has to follow rules. As a king, he feels like everyone should answer to him.
Dracula will never even attempt to be a hero. Recently, he's decided to try and create a vampire kingdom much like the mutant nation of Krakoa. To him, all who aren't vampires are prey and all vampires are meant to be his subject.
3 Carnage Enjoys Killing Too Much
Before he ever gained his symbiote, Kletus Casady was a monstrous serial killer. Killing was the only thing he enjoyed and once he got his symbiote, he took it to the next level. Carnage's body count rose significantly and unlike his "father" Venom, there is no reason for him to ever become a hero of any kind. Venom is a lethal protector; Carnage is just lethal.
There's nothing good or productive in being a hero for Carnage. He just wants to kill, indiscriminately. There's nothing stopping him from only killing villains but he wouldn't want to limit his killing because that's not his style.
2 Ultron Wants To Destroy Humanity Not Protect It
Ultron was meant to be a helper of humanity but things went very bad with the android after he was created. Hank Pym, fearing his sentience, tried to destroy Ultron and that would transform the one-time robotic lab assistant into one of the Avengers' greatest foes. Ultron's hatred of the Avengers extended to the rest of the human race and now he desires nothing more than the destruction of all biological life.
Ultron's quest precludes him from ever becoming a hero. He's a monstrous villain and his entire existence is about two things: destroying the Avengers and ending all biological life on Earth.
1 Red Skull Is A Nazi
Red Skull is a Nazi and not a fair-weather one. Johann Schmidt believes wholeheartedly in the ethos of Nazism and even though WWII is long over, he never stopped fighting it. He's committed atrocities in the name of his all-consuming hatred and his evil is absolute. Not only is Red Skull irredeemable, he doesn't believe he needs to be redeemed at al.
There is no world where Red Skull becomes a hero. He's a monster, a terrible relic of a despicable regime. There is nothing heroic about him and there's no way that anyone would believe him if he tried to be one.