WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Loki Episode 5, "Journey Into Mystery," streaming now on Disney+.
During the early years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios developed a bit of a reputation for killing -- or otherwise disposing of -- their villains after just one movie. This led to most of the MCU’s early baddies feeling underdeveloped and fairly one-note. Recently, Marvel seems to have learned from this, and some of their antagonists have been confirmed to come back for future outings in the MCU. Here’s a breakdown of every previous villain that has been confirmed to return in Phase Four, with the exception of appearances in What If? due to its exploration of alternate timelines.
The Mandarin
In Iron Man 3, Aldrich Killian enacted a plan to take down Tony Stark using a formula called Extremis. The serum was unstable and frequently caused its users to explode, so Killian pinned the explosions on a fake terrorist called the Mandarin. Stark discovered this when he met Trevor Slattery, the actor that Killian had hired to portray the warlord, and the Mandarin was ultimately dismissed as a fictional character. Slattery later discovered that the Mandarin was real when he was kidnapped by agents of the Ten Rings organization.
The Mandarin has been leading the Ten Rings from the shadows since 2008’s Iron Man, and the villain will finally make his first physical appearance in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. He will be identified by his real name, Wenwu, and will be portrayed by acclaimed actor Tony Leung.
Abomination
Emil Blonsky was a soldier who was desperate to take down the Hulk in The Incredible Hulk. He ended up being administered a serum similar to his opponent’s, and transformed into a monstrous creature. Blonsky was defeated after a brutal showdown with the Hulk and was taken into government custody. He was portrayed by English actor Tim Roth.
The second trailer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings surprised viewers by including an appearance by the now much more comic-accurate Abomination. This came as a shock, as Blonsky hadn’t even been rumored to appear in the martial arts film, but Kevin Feige confirmed that it was indeed him. Following his appearance in Shang-Chi, Blonsky has also been confirmed to return in Disney+’s upcoming She-Hulk series.
Yelena Belova
Natasha Romanoff’s adoptive sister, Yelena Belova, is one of the standout characters of Black Widow. Her relationship with Natasha was a high point of the film and Florence Pugh’s performance was almost universally praised. While she served as one of the film’s protagonists, Yelena was also a graduate of the Black Widow program and a deadly efficient assassin.
Yelena is confirmed to return in the Hawkeye Disney+ series. Black Widow’s post-credits scene saw Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine sending Yelena after Clint Barton, with de Fontaine lying to her and claiming that Barton killed Natasha. With this setup in mind, it stands to reason that Yelena will be serving in a far more antagonistic role than in her previous appearance.
Doctor Octopus and Electro
The main villain of Spider-Man 2 was Doctor Octopus, a scientist with four mechanical arms attached to his body, while The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s main threat was the sinister Electro. Ock planned to build a giant fusion reactor, and faced off against Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. Electro was working with Harry Osborn to take revenge on Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man for perceived slights against them.
Both Doctor Octopus and Electro were seemingly killed at the end of their respective films, but it has been confirmed that they will be appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home, portrayed by their original actors Alfred Molina and Jamie Foxx. Considering they’re from separate series that had nothing to do with the MCU, their inclusions have raised a lot of questions about the multiverse, and the potential presence of their respective Spider-Man actors.
Karl Mordo
Karl Mordo didn’t turn villainous until the end of Doctor Strange. Throughout most of the film, he served as Stephen Strange’s mentor and a faithful student of the Ancient One. However, once he found out that his master had been drawing power from the Dark Dimension, he began a campaign to cleanse the world of its sorcerers.
Mordo has been confirmed to return in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness by actor Chiwetel Ejiofor. It has also been confirmed that one of the reasons Ejiofor joined the MCU in the first place was to play Mordo’s transformation into a villain.
Yellowjacket
Ant-Man’s villain Darren Cross was a former apprentice of Hank Pym’s who took over his company and tried to create his own version of the Pym Particles. Scott Lang worked with Pym and his daughter Hope to foil him, which led to Cross donning a shrinking suit dubbed the Yellowjacket to battle Scott. He was seemingly killed when Scott shrank to subatomic levels and destroyed the Yellowjacket suit, causing Cross to shrink uncontrollably.
Despite Cross’ seemingly fatal shrinking, his inclusion in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania had been rumored for quite some time. The rumors were seemingly confirmed earlier this month, when Vanity Fair reported that actor Corey Stoll will indeed return for the film. In addition, a giant version of Yellowjacket’s helmet was seen in the Void in Episode 5 of Loki.
Ayesha
Ayesha was one of the several antagonists of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. She is the leader of the alien race known as the Sovereign, who declared war on the Guardians after Rocket stole several Anulax Batteries. After her forces were beaten, Ayesha decided to create a being capable of defeating the Guardians, and called him “Adam."
Shortly after the release of Vol. 2, director James Gunn confirmed he planned to bring back Ayesha actor Elizabeth Debicki for the third film. Ayesha’s creation has been heavily rumored to become the MCU’s adaptation of Adam Warlock, who in the comics is one of the most powerful beings in the universe. It will be interesting to see what role Ayesha herself will play in the series’ third installment.