The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has produced some of the biggest films and TV series of all time. For years, Marvel relied on its cartoons to keep people aware of the comic book characters that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby mainly created over the years. By creating so many legendary characters, there were endless possibilities for what to do with them. Not all of them have been brought into the MCU, but many of them have.
The ones that everyone knows, the Avengers mainly, are the characters that brought the MCU to life. There wouldn’t be a massive following of the MCU without the original Infinity Saga films. But, that doesn’t mean that every character highlighted during the MCU’s six phases of films and countless TV series has been as big of a contributor to it all as Iron Man has. There have been some pretty random characters that have shown up that haven’t quite found their way into massive roles. Here are some of those characters that were originally created by Stan Lee.
8
Sharon Carter
Played by Emily VanCamp
Sharon Carter is the grandniece of Peggy Carter, the founder of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Steve Rogers’ old flame. She’s worked as a S.H.I.E.L.D. and CIA agent in two MCU films so far, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. She is assigned to guard and watch over Steve Rogers by moving in near him and posing as a nurse. In the first film, she is just introduced. Any fan of the comics may know who Sharon Carter is, as she has held many titles over the years. From Destroyer to Agent 13, she has mainly worked to end Hydra’s reign, but also was a love interest of Rogers.
However, in The Winter Soldier, she is just a minor character. She flirts with Steve and is just kind of in the background. In Civil War, she alerts Steve to the whereabouts of Bucky Barnes, who at the time is being hunted by T’Challa for killing his father. But none of the deeper backstory, other than Steve realizing her identity by Sharon delivering her great aunt’s eulogy in Civil War, is addressed. She is then apparently killed during the Blip by Thanos and isn’t heard from again until she shows up as a criminal underworld boss in Madripoor in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. She completely has a heel turn in just one of the most random spins in MCU history.
7
Brock Rumlow / Crossbones
Played by Frank Grillo
Crossbones is kind of just tossed in there as a villain and then not expanded upon at all. Rumlow first appears in The Winter Soldier as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s counterterrorism unit S.T.R.I.K.E. He goes with Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff on a mission at the beginning of the film. Later on in the film, it’s revealed that he is a double agent who works for Hydra as well. He’s injured in a fight and then not talked about again until Civil War when the film starts off with a number of the Avengers working to stop him, as he has now become the mercenary Crossbones.
He is trying to steal a biological weapon in Lagos and the opening fight is decent enough. But he then blows himself up trying to kill Rogers and that’s that. It’s hard to even register his impact on the overall storyline as his backstory isn’t set up well in the films, the audience doesn’t really know his motives for doing what he’s doing, and then he has a fight with a number of Avengers and commits suicide. Audiences see Rumlow in What If…? in different roles as well.
6
Uatu / The Watcher
Voiced by Jeffrey Wright
A cosmic being whose job it is to just keep an eye on things, Uatu is known as The Watcher. He can observe what’s going on in different universes, but he can’t interfere. He is introduced in What If…? as the narrator of the show, as he helps audiences see what could have happened if certain circumstances played out as they might have.
He doesn’t really have any effect on the multiverse despite one episode of What If…? where he and Doctor Strange interact. It will be interesting to see if he is incorporated more as the MCU builds, although the Multiverse Saga is wrapping up with the next few Avengers films.
5
Man-Thing
Motion Capture by Carey Jones
Quite honestly, I could have picked anything from Werewolf by Night, the made-for-TV special that aired on Disney+. But Ted, as he is known in the special, is really Man-Thing from the Marvel Comics. He is a mutated human who looks like a swamp creature. In the special, he partners with Jack Russell, who turns into a werewolf, to try and beat out the other monster hunters and get the Bloodstone for Elsa Bloodstone to rule the monster hunters.
If all of this seems random, it’s because it is incredibly random and not tied to anything else that’s currently happening in the MCU. Man-Thing is incredibly fun as a character. Carey Jones provides the motion-capture performance for this large swamp creature. But seeing as the sequel to the special hasn’t come about yet, it feels very obscure at the moment.
4
Eros / Starfox
Played by Harry Styles
Another entry of the MCU that has not been expanded upon since, Eternals was a critical failure and a box office flop. At the end of the film, a few of the Eternals are greeted by a striking man played by Harry Styles named Eros. With no indication as to who he is, the scene just shows him and his companion Pip the Troll as they meet a few of the main characters in the film. It’s unclear how Marvel was going to expand on Starfox, but he is actually the adoptive brother of Thanos, according to Stan Lee’s comics.
Yet, no one from the Eternals has showed up again in the MCU. The other post-credits scene featured Dane Whitman looking at the Ebony Blade and a person (who was definitely supposed to be Mahershala Ali’s Blade) asking if he was ready to wield it as the Black Knight. Yet, with Eternals flopping and Blade stuck in development hell, nothing has evolved from this movie, making Starfox just a random cameo.
3
Korg
Voiced by Taika Waititi
Thor: Ragnarök is the best regarded Thor film as Taika Waititi took up the helm and transformed the view of the character. While trying to save Asgard, Thor frees other gladiators who were enslaved by the Grandmaster and has them come and help him. One of the gladiators who is a part of the rebellion is the alien Korg. Korg is played by Waititi in a motion capture and voice performance.
Korg is an alien made up of rocks. He’s huge and hilarious, as Waititi played him with a soft-spoken voice, making his size and stature stand out even more. He seems like a delightful companion more than anything. He’s a minor character in the comic books, making his appearances in Ragnarök, Avengers: Endgame, and Thor: Love and Thunder.
2
The Living Tribunal
Another cosmic entity similar in that regard to Uatu, The Living Tribunal is only seen in a glimpse during Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. The Living Tribunal is meant to keep an eye on the multiverse and make sure the balance of everything stays in the same order. There’s a scene in the film where Strange is falling through the Multiverse and the eyes of The Living Tribunal are noticeable.
It seems like a random tease and one that’s obscure, for sure. But it makes sense to have The Living Tribunal in the film, based on its job subscription. There is a comic book plot that highlights Karl Mordo (remember him from the first Doctor Strange?) and The Living Tribunal. But the variant first seen of Karl Mordo or The Living Tribunal has been seen again. Perhaps Marvel will revisit both of them.
1
Hercules Panhellenios
Played by Brett Goldstein
It is kind of a funny thing that Jack Kirby and Stan Lee decided to make Gods from Norse and Greek mythology into comic book characters. Hercules is the son of Zeus and appears in the post-credits scene in Thor: Love and Thunder. It is done to set up a potential meeting between Thor and Hercules, who are supposed to have similar powers to one another.
Whether we see Russell Crowe as Zeus or Goldstein as Hercules again remains to be seen. There is likely going to be a Thor 5, meaning that they could show up then. It is still a random character to have shown up, as the MCU is trying to find ways to keep Thor relevant.
