Summary
Be it within theMarvel Cinematic Universeor the various other franchises based on Marvel Comics, several forgettable movies have been crafted that have been saved by specific casting choices. While the MCU is often praised for its casting decisions, it remains the case that most projects based on Marvel properties have succeeded in finding great actors to portray iconic superheroes. This is no more evident than in theMarvel movies releasing in 2024, with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine and Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool headlining a film as two of the best superhero casting choices in history.
Thankfully, it does not seem as though the studio’s casting strengths will dwindle inupcoming MCU movies. First-time MCU appearances by Harrison Ford, Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Mahershala Ali are all expected in the coming years. This is without mentioning theupcoming Spider-Man moviecastings from Sony Pictures. Over the decades, however, Marvel movies have not always eclipsed the quality of casting decisions. Some forgettable Marvel outings have often been saved by well-cast heroes who have elevated films beyond their storytelling capacities.
10 Best MCU Casting Choices Since Avengers: Endgame
The MCU has been endlessly divisive since Avengers: Endgame, unfortunately overshadowing some perfect casting choices for the franchise since 2019.
10Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky/Abomination
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Undoubtedly, the most forgettable MCU movie in Phase 1 of the Infinity Saga isThe Incredible Hulk. Coming only five years after the last theatricalHulkmovie did not increase anticipation, and the film has since faded from conversations with some even incorrectly dubbing it non-canon to the MCU due to recasts and the absence of story points in subsequent movies, until thestory ofCaptain America: Brave New World,that is. Overall,The Incredible Hulkis simply a solid, enjoyable, if forgettable movie for the most part, though with one casting choice standing the test of time.
Tim Roth has been theorized to appear in the upcoming MCU movie Thunderbolts* which centers around a team of anti-heroes.
The best character inThe Incredible Hulkis Tim Roth’s Emil Blonsky. Roth’s one-man-army vibe inThe Incredible Hulkmakes him an entertaining villain, and his performance elevates the character of Blonsky above somewhat boring side characters like Betty and Thunderbolt Ross.Roth’s performance was so impressive that he is one of the few characters fromThe Incredible Hulkto return to the MCUin projects likeShang-ChiandShe-Hulk.When looking back onThe Incredible Hulk, Roth’s Abomination is what most people think of first, a testament to the casting choice.
The Incredible Hulk
Cast
The Incredible Hulk (1977): In this film, scientist David Banner suffers a gamma radiation overdose, triggering a transformation into a giant, muscular green creature whenever he becomes angry. This condition compels him to undertake a journey to understand and control his monstrous alter ego.
9Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Iron Man 2is not only counted as the weakest in the trilogy but also one of theworst-ranked MCU moviesoverall. It is fun and has great action sequences and performances, but its plot is forgettable thanks to a poor central villain. However, the secondary antagonist of the film is what allows the villainous presence ofIron Man 2not to fall completely flat. Sam Rockwell’s Justin Hammer is a bright spot ofIron Man 2and is similar to Roth in that his performance is what stands out amid several unmemorable aspects.
Rockwell’s Hammer has an overwhelming charisma, making him a hilariously corporate evil in the MCU. No matter who Hammer shares the scene with, the chemistry is evident and Rockwell’s many scenes are often marked as highlights ofIron Man 2. While Rockwell is yet to return to the MCU, the fact that audiences have been clamoring for his return only proves how he aidedIron Man 2to be somewhat memorable.
Iron Man 2
The third film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man 2, is an action-superhero film that occurs six months after the original film’s events. After outing himself as the heavy metal superhero known as Iron Man, Tony Stark goes to great lengths to avoid demands from the government for his tech. But, unfortunately, the technology Tony used to save his life is beginning to impact his health inversely - just in time for a man named Ivan Vanko to arrive, who creates his version of the Iron Man tech to settle a decades-long score with Howard Stark’s son.
8Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
The Amazing Spider-Manis not a bad movie and has many great elements. However, some narrative similarities and rehashed plot points from Sam Raimi’sSpider-MancauseThe Amazing Spider-Manto be more forgettable than the Maguire films, as does the latter series' inability to go past a second installment. That said, one aspect that no one has forgotten aboutThe Amazing Spider-Manand its sequel is Andrew Garfield as the titular web-slinger.
Garfield’s performance as Peter Parker often sees him counted among thebest live-actionSpider-Manactors. From his strength in Peter’s emotional moments to the much-improved quippy, sarcastic nature of Spider-Man from the Maguire movies, Garfield embodied everything about the character from Marvel Comics. Garfield’s return inSpider-Man: No Way Homesolidified this, with his reminder of how perfect he was as Spidey causing calls for the canceledAmazing Spider-Man 3story to be revived. Amid familiar thus forgettable plot points,Garfield’s casting as Spider-Man is what remains a bright spark to this day.
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man follows high school student Peter Parker as he uncovers the mysteries of his parents' disappearance. As Peter discovers new aspects of his father’s past and faces the dangerous Lizard, he must make significant decisions about his identity and role as the superhero Spider-Man.
Why The Amazing Spider-Man 3 Was Canceled
Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker emerged as an MVP of Spider-Man: No Way Home, but here’s why he never starred in The Amazing Spider-Man 3.
7Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy
Although it remains true that Garfield is one of the most memorable aspects of the slightly forgettableThe Amazing Spider-ManandThe Amazing Spider-Man 2, he would not have gotten far withoutEmma Stone as Gwen Stacy. The many Spider-Man stories that have been told across all mediums have included iconic relationships. Despite the pressure of surpassing these relationships and making Spider-Man’s latest love interest a good character in her own right, Emma Stone managed both easily.
While she did not appear in the film, Emma Stone’s casting as Gwen Stacy was so good that her legacy and connection to Garfield’s Spider-Man was one of the strongest aspects of No Way Home.
Stone’s performance as Stacy is brilliant, and she is widely regarded as the strongest love interest for Spider-Man ever put to screen. This is primarily because she works as a singular character with her own dreams, ambitions, and arcs separate from Peter Parker. Even still, Stone’s chemistry with Garfield is electrifying in both movies. The duo is possibly the best on-screen couple in Marvel movie history, and the emotional investment in their relationship aidsThe Amazing Spider-Manand especiallyThe Amazing Spider-Man 2to overcome a forgettable story by being utterly heartbreaking.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
The Amazing Spider-Man 2, released in 2014, continues Peter Parker’s journey as he balances life as Spider-Man and his relationship with Gwen Stacy. Facing new challenges, Peter encounters the formidable Electro and is reunited with Harry Osborn, while uncovering significant revelations about his past.
6James Spader as Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
WhileAvengers: Age of Ultronis great fun in its own right, there are several elements that make it the most forgettable of the fourAvengersmovies. For one, it spends a lot of time setting up future Phase 3 MCU films, meaning that the more memorable elements of the story actually tie to other projects. The film itself therefore has less memorable moments thanThe Avengers, Avengers: Infinity War, andAvengers: Endgame. However,the most memorable parts ofAvengers: Age of Ultronsurround the titular villain, played by James Spader.
Spader’s voice work for Ultron is incredible. Not only does he switch from menacing and threatening to sarcastic and witty with ease, but it never feels out of character. Ultron’s physical presence is easily matched by Spader’s voiceover, allowing the villain to remain memorable in a film that has several forgettable aspects.
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron, released in 2015, follows Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man and Captain America, as they contend with Ultron, a rogue AI with plans for global annihilation. This Marvel sequel sees The Avengers form uneasy alliances and embark on a perilous global adventure to thwart Ultron’s schemes.
Every Avengers Movie, Ranked Worst To Best
Each of The Avengers' four cinematic outings so far in the MCU is well worth watching, but some stand above others as particularly iconic.
5Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock/Venom
Venom (2018)
Sony’s Spider-Man Universe has been admittedly rocky. Only theVenommovies have had any kind of commercial success and the critical reception to each installment has been severely lacking. WhileVenomandVenom: Let There Be Carnageare the most enjoyable movies the SSU has to offer, they are still highly forgettable, especially the former.
The final Venom movie, Venom: The Last Dance, will be released in October 2024.
Despite that, Tom Hardy’s casting as Eddie Brock/Venom is the most memorable part of both films. Hardy is borderline unhinged in the SSU, imbuing Brock and Venom with the split personalities that make his scenes in each entry engaging. Hardy’s commitment to such a taxing role is impressive, especially considering the stories that house them never quite warrant such a strong performance. In a series full of forgettable villains, thinly written scripts, and mind-numbing action, Hardy constantly stands tall as Eddie Brock and his symbiotic friend.
Venom
Venom is an action sci-fi movie that stars Tom Hardy as the titular Marvel anti-hero. When the Life Foundation begins experimenting on alien lifeforms they find on a comet that landed nearby, Investigative Journalist Eddie Brock begins to investigate them. When an infiltration goes wrong, Eddie finds that one of the aliens has bonded to him, forcing him to learn to live with his new uninvited host. Giving him superhuman powers, the two begin to work together to stop the rest of the symbiote’s invasive species.
4Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury
Captain Marvel (2019)
Interestingly, Samuel L. Jackson was not cast in the MCU forCaptain Marvel. In fact,Captain Marvelwas Jackson’s ninth story in the MCU, helping make him the actor with the most franchise appearances. Regardless of his previous success, Marvel Studios' decision to cast him in the prequel film elevated it massively.Captain Marvelis fine if formulaic, with mostly uninteresting characters and a forgettable story. Nonetheless, Jackson improves every scene in which he is involved.
The Marvels
July 15, 2025
What makes Jackson’s memorability even more impressive is the de-aging CGI used to make Nick Fury look 20 years younger.Captain Marvel’s prequel nature allows Jackson to tap into a more carefree, fun side of Nick Furyfor the first time in the MCU, making him a refreshing aspect of a somber character and more serious film. Not only did Jackson improveCaptain Marvelas a whole, but his chemistry with Brie Larson allowed the titular character to have welcome moments of levity and overcome a forgettable character arc.
Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel is set in the 1990s and introduces Carol Danvers, portrayed as one of the universe’s most powerful heroes. As Earth becomes entangled in a galactic conflict between two alien races, the film explores an unseen chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
3Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova
Black Widow (2021)
Black Widow’s forgetability comes from the film being made too late. A film centering around Scarlett Johannson’s Black Widow would have been best included beforeAvengers: Endgame, with the character’s death in the latter making 2021’sBlack Widowfeel simply unnecessary. As such, this feeling made the majority of the film unmemorable, save for Florence Pugh’s performance as Natasha’s sister, Yelena Belova.
Given how big a role Yelena has had in the MCU sinceBlack Widow’s release, it is not difficult to see why she was the film’s most compelling character. Yelena had the strongest arc inBlack Widow, and Pugh delivered an expectedly great performance. Looking back onBlack Widowbrings to mind Yelena’s scenes, her relationship with Natasha, and how she was set up for future stories, proving Pugh to be a casting decision that saved the movie from being entirely unnecessary.
Black Widow
Black Widow: Released in 2021, Black Widow follows Natasha Romanoff as she faces a conspiracy linked to her past. Pursued relentlessly, Natasha must confront her history as a spy and navigate fractured relationships from her previous life before becoming part of the Avengers.
2Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Thor: Love and Thunderis a film that consists of endless sequences of immature jokes and mostly flat humor. Due to the film’s sheer unseriousness,Thor: Love and Thunderrarely has any emotional impact, making it one of the most forgettable installments in the entire MCU.The few sequences that do have any thematic, emotional, or storytelling weight, however, involve Christian Baleas Gorr the God Butcher.
Gorr is emotionally compelling in a way few other characters are in the movie. The connection Gorr has with his daughter and how Bale translates it make the flashback sequences from the beginning of the film stand out in memory. Other standout moments from the film all revolve around Bale’s scenes, such as his unhinged performance as a more villainous Gorr, the black-and-white action sequence on Gorr’s planet, and the finale in which the God Butcher meets Eternity. Without Bale,Thor: Love and Thunderwould have little redeeming or memorable value.
Thor: Love and Thunder
In Thor: Love and Thunder, the Norse god teams up with King Valkyrie, Korg, and the Mighty Thor, Jane Foster, to thwart Gorr the God Butcher’s quest to eradicate the gods. This cosmic adventure sees Thor confront new challenges as he navigates his return from retirement.
Thor: Love & Thunder’s Original Villain Design Is An Even Bigger Waste One Year Later
Thor: Love and Thunder could have been better had it stuck to its original design for Gorr, which only makes him an even bigger waste one year later.
1Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel
The Marvels (2023)
The best superhero casting choices often include Heath Ledger as the Joker, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Evans as Captain America, and so on. Up there with each of those is Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel, who has been an immensely shining light of her few MCU projects thus far. This was evident more clearly than any other inThe Marvels, which would have been forgettable without Vellani’s endearing presence as Kamala Khan.
Iman Vellani’s next MCU performance will likely be in the planned Young Avengers movie.
The Marvelsdoes not deserve the criticism or vitriol it received, but that still does not make it one of the MCU’s best movies. That said,The Marvelswas at its best when the titular trio was on-screen together, with Vellani acting as a much-needed glue between the three leads. In spite ofThe Marvels' terrible MCU villain and messy plot as a result, Vellani’s Ms. Marvel stands out and solidifies the fact that theMCU’s future should be built around her.
The Marvels follows Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, whose powers entwine with Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan and S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. As unintended consequences destabilize the universe, the trio must collaborate to navigate a new threat linked to a Kree revolutionary and an anomalous wormhole.
