Ten Marvel Characters Who Need their Own Movies

In no particular order: 

Deadpool

 

Comic movies, Iron Man notwithstanding, tend to be too goddamned serious. Often times, this can be a great thing (Batman Begins), but others it can just be pathetic and kind of sad (Ghost Rider). A Deadpool movie would be the answer to all that: he's a mercenary who seems to know he's in a comic book, who doesn't fight for good or evil or any personal morals; he's just a douchebag with superpowers who's out to protect himself. The comic movie world could use a bit of levity, and Deadpool's fourth-wall-breaking antics just might make him the man for the job.

 

Cable

In the comics, Cable is really just used as a badass future cybernetic killin' machine. Being from the future, however, he's got a lot of untapped potential as a character that a movie could explore. Since Cable's from the future, he pretty much knows how things are gonna turn out; he makes reference to this during the Civil War, when he warns that the Registration Act will lead to a fascist, dystopian future. We've yet to have a superhero movie about a guy who knows the future, but is powerless to change it: Cable's electric-badass powers could become secondary to his limitless knowledge of the future, contrasted with his unfortunate responsibility not to screw up the timeline.

 

Ant-Man

We need a totally immoral superhero. The first Spider-Man movie was most interesting when Peter Parker was just figuring out ways to use his superpowers to get cash and girls – why not make an entire movie about that? Robert Kirkman's run on Ant-Man basically turned the "hero" into a selfish prick, interested only in the sort of hedonism and self-gain that…well, that we all want. Tell me The Irredeemable Ant-Man wouldn't make a great dark comedy.

 

Baron Zemo

Despite looking like the gayest superhero ever, Baron Zemo's got a pretty interesting history. Formerly a supervillain, Zemo formed the Thunderbolts with a bunch of other ex-supervillains in order to find redemption by protecting the people they once sought to destroy. It's not too often we get legitimately compelling redemption stories in comic movies: the closest we've come thus far was Peter Parker's destruction of his ridiculously emo, symbioted self in Spider-Man 3. While the Thunderbolts stories are usually pretty dull, the concept of a supervillain trying to completely reverse his life has the potential for cinematic greatness.

 

Hank Pym

 Hank Pym is one of the only Marvel heroes who is so ubiquitous amongst the series mythology, and has developed the technology for so many superheroes, that other characters refer to him almost solely by his real name. Hank Pym is the scientific genius behind the Giant-Man, Ant-Man, and Yellowjacket technologies, making him sort of a multi-superhero. Hank's character flaws in the comics sadly come about as a result of supernatural or extraterrestrial meddling, but what if they didn't? What if a film was made about Hank Pym, the Howard Hughes of superhero technology? What toll would his own genius have on his loved ones? Granted, we might get a lot of this if the next Iron Man looks at Tony's alcoholism, but wishing doesn't hurt.

 

Nick Fury

 Nick Fury exists in the superhero universe, but really has no superpowers to speak of – unless you consider being a huge goddamn badass a superpower. Well, that and incredibly slowed aging. Anyway, a Nick Fury movie could be something really special, if handled correctly: Fury's a smart soldier and commander who lives and works amongst superheroes, but remains more or less firmly grounded in reality. Can you imagine how badass it'd be to see a movie full of superhero supporting characters, while the audience follows the one guy who basically rules over them all? 

Oh, and that horrendous David Hasselhoff TV movie doesn't count. My god, does it not count.

 

Domino

I will be perfectly frank: I want a Domino movie because she is the single hottest superheroine ever designed. Ever. She looks like Natalie Portman mixed with a cute anime chick mixed with a punk rocker mixed with a porn star, and as a result is probably one of the sexiest – if most irrelevant – mutants in the Marvel universe. Her mutant power is so vague  (she can affect probability) as to be either worthless or waaaay too powerful, so writing a film based around her would either have to ignore her power completely or do a really, really, really good job of only using it at certain times. 

 

Venom

 

First things first: someone other than Topher Grace would have to play the titular character in a Venom movie. Grace wasn't bad as Brock, but Venom sounded way too much like Topher, which wasn't terribly frightening. 

Secondly, while Venom spends a lot of his time trying to kill Peter Parker, he also spends some time trying out his own brand of "superheroism." The problem, of course, is that Venom tends to violently kill everyone he meets if he happens to think they're a bad guy. This sort of superhero schizophrenia could make for some great onscreen conflict: Venom wants to do the right thing, but the symbiote within him searches for blood. How do you do the right thing if the creature that gives you powers won't let you?

 

Black Panther

Wesley Snipes has been trying to get a Black Panther movie made pretty much since the dawn of time, which leads me to believe it's never gonna happen. Either way, the Black Panther is interesting not only as a superhero, but as a black character in the Marvel universe. Despite blacks being a significant minority in the Marvel world, the Black Panther is probably one of the most politically powerful people in it. The benevolent dictator of Wakanda, Black Panther holds control over the world's biggest Vibranium deposit and, therefore, much of the world's wealth. He fights to keep his tribe safe from outside thieves, taking on way more responsibility than any two superheroes combined (think about it: Spider-Man and Daredevil are both fighting to save one island, while T'Challa tries to defend an entire country by himself). Apart from Luke Cage, the world needs more black superheroes in movies.

 

Multiple Man 

Multiple Man isn't a terribly interesting character in and of himself, and X-Factor isn't a great comic, but it still fulfills a desperate need in the mainstream Marvel universe – namely, a universe that's sadly short on detective noir. Superhero detective noir could be pretty goddamn cool on the big screen, and Multiple Man is already part of a series that does the same thing in a different medium. I can't speak much for the plot or the characters involved, but I do know that I want to see Marvel mutants smoking cigarettes and standing in shadows while delivering internal monologues. I want it badly.