It's always fun to see new heroes join the MCU and theorize who could show up to save the day next, but it’s way more fun to think about what villains could appear next since they’ve been a big driving force for the MCU’s narrative. Thanos’ first appearance in The Avengers’ post-credits scene offered a major looming threat the MCU built towards, Baron Zemo’s actions in Civil War caused an immense rift in the Avengers that changed the direction of personal stories, and, recently, the finale of Loki officially teased the eventual debut of the next major villain Kang the Conqueror.
However, the MCU’s narrative is splintering off in multiple directions lately with new entities forming, big villain names floating around, and the MCU trekking deeper into the Marvel cosmos. Not to mention, the upcoming debuts of Marvel heroes like Blade and The Fantastic Four opens the door for potential big baddies to also make their debut. Theories have been circulating like crazy about which major Marvel villains could be breaking out into the MCU and some of them could actually be true.
M.O.D.O.K. — A Big-Headed Organism That Kills
Marvel’s big-headed egomaniac M.O.D.O.K. might seem a little goofy to bring into live-action, but recent castings and a popular unanswered question surrounding Avengers Tower perhaps opens the door for his introduction.
It’s worth remembering that Tony Stark sold Avengers Tower to a mystery buyer that’s still unknown and this could potentially provide a resurgence for A.I.M. under the leadership of George Tarleton, who eventually becomes M.O.D.O.K. Plus, there are rumors of M.O.D.O.K. showing up in the next Ant-Man movie and that mysterious Bill Murray villain casting has gotten fans wondering if that’s who he could be playing.
Mephisto — One Hell of a Villain
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Ever since WandaVision, fans have practically been begging for the immortal demonic entity known as Mephisto to debut in the MCU and their prayers could be answered based on where the MCU is heading.
It’s no secret that the MCU is heading into darker times with some of the more horror-centric heroes, like Blade and Moon Knight, being introduced. So, it’s only a matter of time before we see Mephisto rise, and the recent rumors of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness introducing Ghost Rider make it more believable that Mephisto could enter the MCU.
Mr. Negative — Leader of the Demons
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Although the future of Spider-Man in the MCU remains unclear, there was a prominent tease in Spider-Man: No Way Home that signifies the possible existence of a popular modern Spider-Man villain.
With Aunt May formerly working at the community center known as F.E.A.S.T. and the logo prominently displayed, it’s more than likely that Martin Li, aka Mr. Negative, could appear in the MCU soon. Whether it’s in the second Spider-Man trilogy that’s reportedly being developed or in other heroes’ adventures, it’s worth keeping an eye out for Mr. Negative and his gang of Demons.
Fing Fang Foom — Does Anyone Want a Space Dragon?
The Guardians of the Galaxy’s last adventure together, at least with this roster, is nearly upon us and while we know that Adam Warlock will be joining the team, it’s unclear what villain they could be facing.
Frankly, given James Gunn’s love of lesser-known comic characters and giant monster fights, the Guardians duking it out with the giant space dragon Fing Fang Foom feels like the perfect final villain for the Guardians to face. Even if Fing Fang Foom doesn’t appear in Vol. 3, with the MCU exploring more of its cosmos, he’s surely out there somewhere.
Sub-Mariner — An Underwater Anti-Hero
For quite some time, it has been said that Namor, also known as the Sub-Mariner, will be appearing in the MCU and all signs point to his debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Back in Avengers: Endgame, Okoye mentioned having to deal with “earthquakes in the ocean” and many have seen that as a reference to Atlantis’ existence in the MCU and more importantly, Namor’s. It’s also been rumored that Tenoch Huerta will be playing Namor in the upcoming Black Panther sequel as the main villain, so all we need at this point is confirmation with a trailer.
Gorr the God Butcher — Now That’s a Villain Name
Of all the villains mentioned here, Gorr the God Butcher is the only one officially confirmed to be in an upcoming MCU film as we already know Christian Bale will be portraying the villain in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder.
With a name like “The God Butcher” fans can expect Thor to fight his deadliest foe yet as Gorr’s skills at torturing and elite combat experience make him nearly worthy of being a god himself. Add the power of the Necrosword in his hands, and Gorr will likely be one of the darkest and most powerful MCU villains to date.
Scorpion — One of the Web-Head’s Deadliest Foes
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Ever since seeing Mac Gargan, portrayed by Michael Mando, in Spider-Man: Homecoming, many have been wondering when Spider-Man will face Scorpion and No Way Home provided multiple reasons that we could see him soon.
Now that J. Jonah Jameson is officially in the MCU, he’ll likely try to put Gargan in the Scorpion suit and that tease of the symbiote goo in the MCU points to the possibility of Gargan’s version of Venom debuting in the MCU. It would certainly make sense with the Dark Avengers slowly forming.
Dr. Doom — One of Marvel’s Most Iconic Villains
After hearing that a Fantastic Four movie is in the works, one could only assume that the superhero team’s greatest villain, Doctor Doom, would also be entering the MCU.
With a lot of Marvel’s biggest villains coming from the cosmos, Doctor Doom could easily provide an Earth-dwelling villain that could be a terror equally formidable as Thanos, and given Marvel fans’ love for the villain, fans would absolutely love to see Doom’s dominance for years to come.
Dracula — Marvel’s Dracula
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Believe it or not, Marvel does indeed have their own version of the legendary vampire Dracula, and the upcoming introduction of Blade will likely bring the legendary bloodsucker to the big screen.
After all, how could we possibly have the world’s deadliest vampire hunter not eventually fight the world’s deadliest vampire? It would be a massive oversight if Dracula didn’t eventually show up, and all signs are currently pointing to his arrival being closer than ever.
Magneto — Arriving With the X-Men
After Disney purchased Fox and acquired the film rights for X-Men, it’s a no-brainer that the band of mutant heroes will eventually debut in the MCU and bring their greatest villain with them.
Much like Doctor Doom, Magneto could easily be a villain that could be a looming threat for multiple films, and with the multiverse and small teases signifying that mutants will come to the MCU sooner or later, it’s only a matter of time before Magneto becomes a major MCU villain.