Spider-Man: No Way Home made all the money its opening weekend and thrilled audiences with its live-action depiction of the Multiverse, a concept in which various iterations of Marvel’s characters exist in various forms in other universes.
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Now that Marvel has established the Multiverse, we figured it’s time to discuss other possible characters from previous films who could pop into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in some way, shape, or form. Here are our favorites:
Ben Affleck’s Daredevil
In the early to mid-2000s, studios were still trying to crack the superhero code. Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man and, to a lesser extent, Bryan Singer’s X-Men franchise, suddenly made the superhero film a viable commodity and the race was on to develop as many franchises as possible.
Unfortunately, most of these films sucked. Case in point: 2003’s Daredevil, starring Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, Michael Clarke Duncan, Colin Farrell, and, ironically, Jon Favreau. The film looks great and certainly has its moments, but never quite amounts to anything beyond B-movie material.
At this juncture in the MCU, Affleck’s Matt Murdock could have a lot of fun alongside Charlie Cox’s version of the same character and work in tandem to bring down Vincent D’Onofrio’s recently reestablished Kingpin.
Nicolas Cage’s Ghost Rider
A few years later, Nicolas Cage appeared as Ghost Rider in the first of two poorly received films, titled Ghost Rider and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. To put it mildly, both films suck and only merit a watch thanks to Cage’s typical crazy performances.
Still, seeing Cage (and, perhaps, Gabriel Luna’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. iteration) is exactly the type of random cameo that would work wonders in the MCU. Sure, it would be a little nuts, but it would be a helluva lot of fun as well.
Wesley Snipes’ Blade
After two mostly successful films, the Blade series withered away following 2004’s poorly received Blade Trinity, starring Wesley Snipes, Ryan Reynolds, and Jessica Biel. Considering the character is about to receive a reboot with Mahershala Ali in the starring role, having Snipes reappear in some way shape or form could be a great way to establish the new character and introduce the original character to modern audiences.
Plus, there’s a chance we could see Reynolds’ Hannibal King come face to face with Deadpool, which sounds like pure madness.
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The X-Men
We keep waiting for the X-Men to appear in the MCU and now it seems the Multiverse has presented the perfect way to bring in our favorite family of mutants. What’s more, Kevin Feige wouldn’t have to introduce them but could use the likes of James McAvoy’s Professor X as a bridge between the MCU and Fox’s original X-Men franchise. At this point, Hugh Jackman is probably a little too old to continue his run as Wolverine, but actors such as Halle Berry, James Marsden, and Anna Paquin could return as their respective characters.
Hell, you might even be able to bring back Taylor Kitsch’s Gambit or Liev Schreiber’s Sabertooth in order to give them a chance at redemption. Everyone deserves a second chance!
Eric Bana/Edward Norton’s Hulk
Out of everyone on this list, this one excites me the most. Eric Bana had a go at the Incredible Hulk in 2003’s Hulk, directed by Ang Lee, while Edward Norton assumed the role in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, but neither were given an opportunity to reprise their roles in future films. Now, technically, Norton’s character is part of the MCU and even features a brief cameo by Robert Downey, Jr.’s Tony Stark (to say nothing of William Hurt’s General Ross and Tim Roth’s Abomination, each of whom has appeared in recent MCU films), but you could explain that away via the unexplainable rules of the Multiverse.
As for Bana, he assumed the role as Bruce Banner/Hulk well, but wasn’t given much to do in Lee’s film. Seeing him appear alongside Norton and the MCU’s Mark Ruffalo would be a ton of fun, and certainly help the big guy achieve that second solo movie many have always wanted.
