There have been quite a few movies in the MCU, but not every film has been made by the same creators. When different writers come together in a franchise like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, each of them has their own unique idea about what they want to bring to the universe.
Of course, some of these ideas are realized better than others. Countless characters from the comics have debuted in-universe just to be tossed to the side like yesterday’s garbage. While characters like Loki and Bucky Barnes are being explored in more depth than fans originally thought possible, other characters have been introduced to the MCU only to subsequently be completely wasted.
10 Pietro Maximoff Died As Soon As He Was Introduced
Rights issues are a complicated problem for Marvel movies. The MCU didn’t have the rights to the X-Men when they made Avengers: Age of Ultron, but they could, technically, introduce Pietro Maximoff and his twin sister, Wanda, also known as Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch respectively.
However, unfortunately, the MCU could not mention that they were mutants, nor could they reference the X-Men or the twins’ famous father, Magneto. Even more unfortunate, Pietro Maximoff died as soon as he was introduced, and has not returned. For such an important character to die essentially instantly was nothing less than a slap in the face to Quicksilver fans watching Age of Ultron.
9 The Other Pietro Maximoff Was Used As A Terrible Fake-Out
When it seemed that Pietro Maximoff had returned to the MCU, things were a little strange. The MCU had come to an agreement that meant the X-Men could appear in the MCU, and so Evan Peters was brought onto the Disney+ show WandaVision to reprise his role as Quicksilver from Fox’s X-Men movies —or so it seemed.
Instead, the show pulled back on everything and instead made Quicksilver nothing more than a crude joke. The MCU could have introduced the X-Men and the multiverse in a majorly interesting way that actually made sense there. However, as always, the MCU dropped the ball and went for the short-term bad joke rather than the long-term success story.
8 Black Widow Was Never Used To Her Full Potential
The original six Avengers should have all gotten the same amount of space and time to be introduced, but this, of course, did not end up being the case. Steve Rogers and Tony Stark got the most space, followed by Thor. After them, Bruce Banner got one movie to himself —and a half, if one counts Thor: Ragnarok.
While Hawkeye and Black Widow should have gotten just as much space, neither of them is ever used to their full potential. Black Widow is even getting her own movie now —but it’s years late, and is happening after she’s already died in the franchise. The MCU has only ever wasted Black Widow, and now it’s too late to redeem the terrible mess they’ve made, as well as what this has revealed about the company’s values.
7 Aaron Davis Has A Blink-And-You’ll-Miss-It Appearance
The MCU has quite a few appearances that they call Easter eggs, but are really there to plant seeds that taunt the fans more than anything. One of these appearances was Donald Glover as Aaron Davis in Spider-Man: Homecoming, who is perhaps better known to Marvel fans as Uncle Aaron —or the Prowler.
He appeared in this film and even mentioned his nephew, but does not reappear. His nephew, who fans know to be the famous Miles Morales, does not appear or get mentioned again, either. After the incredible success of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, it’s a shame that the MCU has only since wasted this opportunity.
6 War Machine Barely Makes Appearances Anymore
Speaking of characters who rarely appear in order to keep things neat, fans were incredibly disappointed that Rhodey only made the one appearance on The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.Â
As Rhodey (also known as James Rhodes or War Machine) is Tony Stark’s best friend, many fans hoped that he might have as much of a presence in Tony’s films and the Avengers movies as Bucky did in Steve’s movies and other team films. Unfortunately, this did not end up being the case, and War Machine’s appearances have dwindled considerably since Iron Man 3, and especially since Captain America: Civil War.
5 Battlestar Was Killed Before The Show Even Ended
Some fans didn’t know that John Walker and Lemar Hoskins were pre-existing characters in the Marvel Comics canon when The Falcon and the Winter Soldier began. However, they quickly found out —especially when John Walker became Captain America, and then U.S. Agent.
Unfortunately, though Lemar is a character from the comics, he’s killed in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and didn’t get to survive on to continue his story. The MCU, in this way, continues its tragic pattern of killing off characters it doesn’t feel it has the space or time to keep using in a meaningful way, just to keep things neat.
4 Annette Bening Played Mar-Vell & Immediately Died
Marvel has a few unfortunate habits, one of which is casting incredible actors to play very small roles, or roles that are killed off quickly, or both. In this case, Mar-Vell was a victim of both. The franchise cast Annette Bening in the role, reimagining the character and turning her into a female role model for Carol Danvers’ Captain Marvel in the MCU.
Of course, as the MCU needs to keep things neat and kill off their characters, Yon-Rogg kills Mar-Vell before the movie ends. Carol Danvers loses another mentor, and yet another minor character who should have gotten more space is erased from the franchise.
3 Hawkeye Was One Of The Founding Avengers But Feels Like A Minor Character
Like Black Widow, Hawkeye is supposed to be one of the founding Avengers. There were only six members that formed that original team, but, of all six of them, Hawkeye has arguably received the least character development.
Not only that, but Clint Barton is practically unrecognizable in his transition from the pages of Marvel Comics to the MCU’s silver screen. He feels like a minor character in the MCU, and very unlike his true self. Ultimately, Hawkeye has been wasted and is now passing on the torch to Kate Barton in the hopes that she might be able to salvage the Hawkeye name.
2 Betty Ross Hasn’t Been Seen —Or Really Even Mentioned— Since Her Introduction
The Incredible Hulk has been ignored in its entirety in many ways by the MCU. Edward Norton was recast, and Mark Ruffalo took over without even an acknowledgment that Bruce Banner may look slightly different. Thunderbolt Ross was brought back into the franchise —though his daughter is hardly mentioned.
This is strange, of course, because she is not only General Ross’ child, but the love of Bruce Banner’s life, and his primary love interest. She is never brought up or shown again, despite her importance in the universe, as well as to two important characters within the franchise.
1 Bruce Banner’s Arc & Character Are All Over The Place
Betty Ross isn’t the only character introduced in The Incredible Hulk who has ultimately been wasted in the MCU. While Mark Ruffalo’s portrayal of Bruce Banner is excellent, the franchise has never known quite what to do with him, his arc, or his character development.
He is one of the founders of the Avengers but gets nowhere near as much space as Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, or even Thor. Now, he is one of the characters who has been around the longest, but nobody would know that based on the amount of space, time, and energy he has been given thus far.