Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, claimed that he wants to keep Deadpool R-Rated when he inevitably joins the MCU. He elaborated by saying that Wade Wilson could open the door to an R-Rated corner of the MCU, a sect of more adult Marvel superhero films.

Related: 10 Marvel Characters Who Need The Old Man Logan Treatment

Joker proved that R-Rated superhero films have as much potential at the box office as any other movie in the genre, as long as they are marketed well and have the right appeal. With that in mind, here are ten characters that could quite easily thrive with that more freeing rating in mind.

10 Blade

Mahershala Ali has been brought on by Marvel Studios to play Blade in the MCU, with his own solo film underway. However, there is no word just yet on whether this movie will be R-Rated like the Wesley Snipe trilogy or PG like the upcoming Moon Knight show on Disney+.

Nonetheless, Blade is a character that needs an R-rating. He's a vampire-hunter and these aren't your Twilight sparkling romantics - these are monstrous villains that lurk in the night, feeding off of mortals before finding themselves at the wrong end of Blade's blade.

9 Deadpool

Iger claims he'll keep Deadpool R, but that Christmas re-edit with the PG-13 rating looks as though it was testing the waters for potential PG-13 Deadpool flicks, which is simply absurd. The merc's appeal is his morbid humor and violent antics and, while he works in crossovers that are PG, that's because of his interactions with other heroes.

In the MCU, he needs to keep that R and be as free as he was under Fox. Otherwise, we could end up with another X-Men Origins tragedy. There's a market out there of people who want these more adult films, and Deadpool's box office proves that he scratches that itch. When he does (and he most definitely should) cross over with the other heroes, then they can tone him down.

8 Sentry

The Sentry vs Iron Man

Moving onto characters that aren't already confirmed to be coming to the MCU, Sentry is regarded by many as Marvel's own Superman, alongside others such as Captain America and Hyperion. Robert Reynolds' powers are the result of an attempt to recreate the Super Soldier Serum, which is in-line with a lot of the MCU's origin stories, just like in the Ultimate universe.

Bob, undergoing the Sentry alias, was one of the most beloved heroes in the Marvel universe, and he was so intelligent that he deduced Spider-Man's identity with ease. However, there was something within him, something dark that paralleled his good nature - the Void.

It was supposedly a force of evil that slaughtered millions in Manhattan and so, to nullify the danger he presented, he wiped everyone's memory of himself and brainwashed his own mind. In reality, the Void was a result of his mental illness; Sentry is simply too violent and too morbid for a PG-13 rating.

7 Magneto

We've had two Magneto's now thanks to Fox with their films, and so, going forward, Marvel is going to have to shake things up a bit to keep the character fresh. One way they could do that is with an R-Rated solo film to introduce the villain into the wider universe. First Class was nearly an origins film for Magneto, which bled into the final cut.

RELATED: Omega: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Magneto

However, if they ever did do a Magneto film, it should be based on the comic run called Magneto Testament. In this story, we don't see Erik in his red costume being a maniacal bad-guy as we instead see a young boy surviving in Nazi Germany throughout the rise of Hitler and the ongoing conflict of World War Two. It's tragic, it's dark, and it's very real. The awareness that it could bring is limitless.

6 Thunderbolts

Warner Bros. is bringing a second Suicide Squad film to the big screen with James Gunn at the helm, and if successful, Marvel Studios should definitely take note. They have a similar team called the Thunderbolts, who are a government-run squad of supervillains and anti-heroes, not too dissimilar to DC's own line-up.

They already have a fair few surviving villains to draw out of a hat to make this work. While they could push for a Dark Avengers film (which would be amazing), the Thunderbolts would work best for the R-Rating as they can truly act as the Black Ops equivalent to the main-line superhero team. It would also be a fantastic way to integrate more of General Ross into the MCU.

5 Wolverine

X-Men Hugh Jackman in Logan

Hugh Jackman finally got his R-Rated Wolverine film in 2017 through Logan. If Marvel Studios do make another film for the yellow-spandex claw-happy animalistic anti-hero, anything but an R-Rating would be a massive step back for the character.

Logan was a testament to just how much this hero benefits from having an R-Rating, as the claws suddenly have more tangibility, and the action can go to entirely new places. If Wolverine went back to being PG-13, all of this new ground would be lost, and the progression of this character's time in cinema would come to a standstill.

4 Punisher

Jon Bernthal as The Punisher

Jon Bernthal is incredibly passionate about his role as the Punisher, but unfortunately, Netflix axed the show, and Marvel Television was shut down. This means that a revival on Hulu will only happen if Feige gives the green light, and a revival on Disney+ would be a terrible idea as the platform will only be hosting PG-13 and under content as of right now.

As such, the logical move would be for Feige to bring the Punisher to the MCU through film, with Jon Bernthal returning. However, with Mahershala Ali being re-cast from Cottonmouth to Blade, it seems as though the shows place as canon is fickle, so a soft reboot may be in order.

3 Hulk

The Incredible Hulk has had his fair share of exposure in media, with a television show, a fairly mediocre 2003 film and an unfortunately underrated MCU debut with Ed Norton. However, none have truly explored the Hulk’s monstrous nature quite yet.

An R-Rating could help with that, but just telling another plain old Hulk story wouldn’t work, so why not finally give the fans a World War Hulk? For those who don’t know, following his exile by the Illuminati and his subsequent adventures in Planet Hulk, the jolly green giant returns to Earth and begins to brutally attack the heroes that inhabit it – it’s brutal, and definitely not for kids.

2 Sabretooth

Sabretooth

Sabretooth nearly appeared in Logan but was replaced with a Wolverine doppelganger, so this wonderful villain has never had that sweet R-Rated treatment in the live-action realm. However, this is something that Marvel Studios could (and should) remedy now that they have access to Fox's properties.

RELATED: 10 Things That Make Sabretooth More Dangerous Than Wolverine (And 10 That Make Wolverine More Dangerous)

His past is very twisted, with his father being abusive and locking him in the basement. He's even more animalistic than Logan and more twisted and violent. There's plenty of potential for a deep-dive like Joker to show why he's such an unforgiving and rash villain by the time of the modern-day in the MCU.

1 Thanos

Thanos MCU Josh Brolin

Yes, Thanos died in Avengers: Endgame, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a rich past to the character that Marvel Studios can further explore. For those who love to ask, "what would that add to the MCU?", they can introduce Thane, Starfox, Death, and others in this film if they so desire.

Thanos' backstory in the comics is incredibly simplistic and typical maniacal villain stuff, but the films showcased that there's more to him than in the comics, as we found out that he proposed something to the government of Titan that could've potentially saved the planet. They can deep dive into the catalyst that kickstarted his obsession with decimating populations and his need to build a family around him, potentially through the neglect of his parents and the rejection from his son, Thane.

NEXT: 10 Marvel Characters That Could Defeat Dr Manhattan In Battle