MCU: The Strongest Marvel Villains, Ranked

From a God of Thunder to a group of intergalactic outlaws, there is a litany of mighty heroes in the MCU. However, it's rarely simple for any of them to save the day. This is because they typically come up against a collection of equally sturdy villains.

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By  Matthew Kelly

By this point, there have been many of these rogues in the franchise, and they're all unique in various ways. One of those ways is their power level, as some are a lot stronger than others. While many capable villains could enter the MCU in the future, these are the most powerful ones right now. Please note that any boosts received from Infinity Stones have been ignored.

Updated on September 29, 2024, by C.M Edwards: The Marvel Cinematic Universe is an ever-expanding world of heroic stories about some of Marvel's greatest heroes. In every phase, Marvel introduces more characters and sets up entire storylines that give fans exactly what they want. Even from the early beginning of Marvel's Phase One, it was clear that something special was on the horizon. For nearly two decades, Marvel has released a plethora of content and brought some of the biggest bads to life on screen. Marvel has already reached its fifth phase and has a slew of new projects scheduled for release, having announced a new Blade film, a Young Avengers project, and a reboot of Fantastic Four. With a smorgasbord of new villains to oppose the world's mightiest heroes, the current roster of villains should be remembered. The villains of the Marvel Universe encompass renegade soldiers and primordial beings who can devour planets. Countless times, the earth's mightiest heroes, and other heroes of the sort must face insurmountable odds against foes who have designed themselves to take anyone in their way down. Here are some of the strongest villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, updated to feature more of the MCU's baddest.

31 Mysterio

Fought Spider-Man Using Illusions

• Spider-Man Far From Home
• Played by Jake Gyllenhaal

Quentin Beck is a disgruntled former Stark Enterprises employee who proves that one's strength of mind can sometimes do greater damage than actual physical force. Mysterio may not be the most powerful MCU villain; however, he causes enough chaos to get the Avengers' attention.

Beck's tricks landed him a free pair of Stark-made E.D.I.T.H. Glasses, fit with a complex AI system that allowed the devilish fiend to assume control over a hoard of combat drones, and target them towards London. Mysterio's mastery of illusions is another valuable tool on the battlefield and can easily cause mass hysteria (and the need for a "new hero").

30 Killmonger

Fought Hand To Hand Against The Black Panther

• Black Panther
• Played by Michael B. Jordan

Michael B. Jordan starred as the main antagonist to the late Chadwick Boseman's Tachala with Eric Kilmonger, a US soldier turned renegade who sought to liberate marginalized people of the world with violence and the technology that Wakanda kept secret.

Showing brilliant strategy, Killmonger found his way into the throne room of Wakanda and challenged the Black Panther to a fight to the death. Kilmonger showed extreme skill and strength in armed, unarmed, and covert tactics, placing him as a high threat in the long list of bad eggs that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has had to deal with.

29 Taskmaster

Defeated Red Guardian In A Battle Of Strength

• Black Widow
• Played by Olga Kurylenko

Black Widow may not have had quite the same impact as some of the movies in earlier phases of the MCU, but it definitely had its moments. The vast majority of those involve Taskmaster: a futuristic cyborg who was initially controlled by her deranged father, General Dreykov.

Whether or not future movies will delve deeper into the character's personality and motivations now that she's once again in control of her own destiny remains to be seen. Whatever happens though, there can be no doubts whatsoever about her raw strength and incredible combat skills, the latter of which are built around her ability to perfectly mimic her opponents' fighting styles.

28 Kingpin

Engaged In Hand To Hand Combat With Daredevil

• Daredevil Season 1
• Played by Vincent D'Onofrio

Kingpin is not necessarily the most powerful villain in Marvel history, however, he is certainly quite versatile, transversing superhero storylines as often as the multiverses. Hellbent on an eternal battle to reunite with his long-lost family, Kingpin has a catastrophic impact on the lives of both Netflix's Daredevil and Disney Plus' Hawkeye (as well as the iconic Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, although not technically MCU.)

This crime lord is proof that not all supervillains need to be superpowered, so long as they have enough influence over the seedy underbelly of society. Best known for his cold-blooded brutality, Kingpin doesn't always need fancy weaponry to get the job done. His personal potent army and a "simple" cane will do (although some high-end body armor can't hurt, either) Willie Fisk is not quite done with his mission and is due to return in 2024 for MCU's Echo and Daredevil: Born Again.

27 Green Goblin

Defeated Spider-Man On Numerous Occasions

• Spider-Man No Way Home
• Played by Willem Dafoe

Spider-Man has fought some of the coolest and strongest MCU villains around who often have scientific backgrounds, and No Way Home features the cream of the crop. With Doc Oc, Lizard, and Sandman as convenient distractions, Green Goblin manages to sneak past relatively unnoticed and effectively gains the upper hand over not one, but three webbed heroes (oh, and Doctor Strange, too).

When Norman Osborn loses the battle with the dark side, his antagonistic alter-ego gets to come out and play, equipped with his near-impenetrable armor, glorious Goblin Glider, superhuman upgrades, and malicious intent. Green Goblin's strategic intellect is just as dangerous, while his manipulation tactics and regenerative capabilities are top-notch.

26 Bucky Barnes

Bested Captain America In Combat

• Captain America: Winter Soldier
• Played by Sebastian Stan

This Super Soldier Serum recipient has a well of capabilities almost as deep as Captain America's, although technically still in the experimental phase of development. The genetically enhanced Winter Soldier draws even more power from his bulletproof cybernetic arm, compliments of the nefarious HYDRA.

Bucky Barnes is a trained soldier and highly capable on the battlefield, skills which are enhanced even further by his augmented body, which also ages slower than a regular human. His rapid healing often comes in handy while his speed and stamina allow him to outmaneuver even the Black Panther himself.

25 The Red Skull

Bested Captain America In Combat

• Captain America
• Played by Hugo Weaving

The Red Skull was one of the earliest villains to appear in the Marvel cinematic universe, in the Captain America origin story starring Chris Evans in phase one.

The Red Skull served as the megalomaniac that lead a branch of the Nazi regime in a different direction from the war and had also been empowered by the super soldier serum, the same as Steve Rogers. Red Skull was just as strong and fast as Captain America, but he was more brutal and used his strength to decimate his foes with no mercy.

24 Aldrich Killian

Enhanced Super Soldier

• Iron Man 3
• Played By Guy Pearce

Iron Man 3 was riddled with mystery and suspense as a strange new threat arose to claim vengeance on Tony Stark for his war profiteering. A man calling himself the Mandarin arises, who then systematically dismantles Stark's entire life with ease. Unable to get a step ahead, Tony put his all into discovering the Mandarin's location, only to reveal that the Mandarin was a ploy and the true threat was a slighted peer from the past.

Aldrich Killian had returned after being brushed off by the billionaire playboy and he brought with him a great creation called Extremis. Extremis imbued ordinary people with incredible abilities, such as Super Strength, healing from almost any wound, and the use of heat-based attacks. Killian himself could use Extremis and was on par with Iron Man's new armor.

23 Arthur Harrow

Took On Moon Knight And Scarlet Scarab At The Same Time

• Moon Knight Season 1
• Played by Ethan Hawke

The cult leader Arthur Harrow is a devout servant of the almighty devourer of souls, the goddess Ammit, who he believes will purge the world of unnecessary evil as soon as she is set free. Dr. Victoria Grail and Moon Knight do not share the "good" doctor's sentiments, although he is just one of many villains on Marc Spector's overflowing agenda.

Much like some of the strongest Marvel villains, Arthur Harrow does not have any epic, natural-born superpowers, which doesn't mean he shouldn't be feared. A genius intellect with immoral intentions is potent enough to incapacitate the world if given the chance. Fortunately for Harrow, he receives some upgrades for his MCU debut and is able to channel Ammit's magic (an ability that doesn't feature in the comics), along with a mystical staff and a nifty, highly judgmental tattoo to boot.

22 Agatha Harkness

Drained The Life From Several Witches At Once

• WandaVision Season 1
• Played by Kathryn Hahn

The launch of Disney Plus has allowed the creative minds behind the MCU to take a somewhat different approach to the way that it introduces new heroes and villains. Rather than having to rush them out to the center of the stage straight away, the long-form nature of episodic television provides opportunities for slow-burning scenarios instead, as evidenced by WandaVision.

Agatha Harkness' eventual reveal came not only as a shock but also at the perfect moment in the show's scintillating solitary season. When all's said and done, Agatha ends up being more of a foil for Wanda than a true villain, helping both her and the audience realize just how powerful she truly is. Nonetheless, the Salem Witch Trial survivor is immensely powerful and will no doubt demonstrate this further when her recently announced spinoff series eventually rolls around.