10 Most Powerful MCU Villains Who Debuted in the Last Five Years, Ranked

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is preparing to introduce one of its most powerful villains yet: Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr. He’s close to gaining immense, almost god-like power. While the MCU has faced many strong villains, Doctor Doom poses a unique threat – he could be the one who ultimately destroys everything.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has already featured many incredibly powerful villains during its Multiverse Saga, leading up to the arrival of Doctor Doom. In the past five years, viewers have seen characters capable of planetary destruction, universal conquest, and even altering reality itself. These villains are poised to become some of the most formidable the MCU has ever seen.

Namor Has the Power of Talokan on His Side

Okay, so as a huge Marvel fan, I was so excited to finally see Namor – played by Tenoch Huerta Meija – show up in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever! He’s the king of this incredible underwater kingdom called Talokan, which is hidden beneath the waves off the coast of Central America and built on a massive source of Vibranium. Basically, the movie sets up a conflict because Namor and his people go to war with Wakanda when they won’t team up with Talokan to fight against everyone on the surface world. It’s a really cool introduction to a whole new part of the Marvel universe!

Namor is a powerful mutant with the ability to breathe underwater, fly, and possess incredible strength. He’s almost unbeatable when he’s in water, making him a formidable new villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s been confirmed he will face off against Doctor Doom, giving him a chance to prove just how strong he is.

The Red Hulk Is as Strong as His Green Counterpart

Harrison Ford will play President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in the 2025 film Captain America: Brave New World. Although William Hurt previously portrayed Ross in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2008, the character will fully become a villain as the Red Hulk. A fight between Red Hulk and Sam Wilson, who is Captain America, will cause widespread destruction in Washington, D.C., and end with a showdown among the cherry blossoms.

Though he appeared for just one afternoon, Red Hulk quickly established himself as a major threat in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Similar to the original Hulk, Red Hulk possesses immense strength capable of widespread destruction. He hasn’t faced off against the original Hulk yet, but his power appears to be comparable, making him an incredibly dangerous adversary.

The Super-Skrull Has the Powers of Multiple Avengers

The 2023 Disney+ series Secret Invasion features the Super-Skrull, an alien with the ability to change shape. He gains extraordinary powers through a hidden S.H.I.E.L.D. project called The Harvest, which used blood samples collected from the strongest heroes who fought in the Battle of Earth during Avengers: Endgame. This process essentially turns the Super-Skrull into a combination of several of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s most powerful figures.

The final episode of Secret Invasion showed the Super-Skrull with incredible powers – mimicking abilities like Captain Marvel’s cosmic strength, the enhancements from Extremis, and the raw power of characters like Groot and Drax, among others. While this combination of powers doesn’t quite add up logically, it establishes the Super-Skrull as a very powerful new character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unfortunately, the way the story ends suggests he’ll likely be forgotten in future installments.

Dar-Benn Destroyed Entire Planets to Save Her Own

In the 2023 film The Marvels, audiences meet Dar-Benn, a Kree warrior played by Zawe Ashton, who enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Driven by a desire to save her home planet—which was severely damaged years ago by Captain Marvel—Dar-Benn seeks out two ancient bracelets. These bracelets grant her the power to take resources from other planets, sacrificing them to ensure her own people survive.

Dar-Benn’s power at the end of The Marvels was actually beyond her control. The combined force of the two bangles overwhelmed her, ultimately leading to her defeat. Without realizing it, her actions disrupted the multiverse, potentially triggering the events we’ll see in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars.

Gorr the God Butcher Slayed Some of the Most Powerful Beings in the Universe

Christian Bale joins the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Gorr the God Butcher. Gorr was once deeply religious, but lost his faith when the gods didn’t save his daughter, Love. Armed with the Necrosword, he embarks on a violent quest to eliminate all gods throughout the universe.

Gorr quickly established himself as a standout villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Empowered by the Necrosword, he defeated numerous incredibly powerful gods – though many of these battles happened outside of what viewers actually saw in Love and Thunder, which was a missed opportunity. Importantly, Gorr was the first character in the MCU to actually reach Eternity, a cosmic entity essential to the universe’s existence. While he didn’t achieve his goal of eliminating all gods, Gorr remains one of Marvel’s most formidable recent villains.

Cassandra Nova Is an Incredibly Powerful Mutant

Emma Corrin plays Cassandra Nova, a powerful villain with a surprising family connection: she’s the long-lost twin sister of Charles Xavier. Like her brother, she has mutant abilities, which she uses to create a powerful empire in a timeless dimension called the Void. This empire includes an army of mutants who were removed from the timeline, such as Juggernaut, Psylocke, Azazel, and Pyro.

Cassandra Nova is an incredibly powerful mutant – powerful enough to threaten all of existence, even across multiple universes. In Deadpool & Wolverine, she almost succeeds in wiping out every universe except her own using a device from the TVA. Although Deadpool and Wolverine ultimately stop her, she remains one of the most formidable villains in the Multiverse Saga.

The Void’s Full Powers Could Destroy the World

Lewis Pullman will debut as Bob Reynolds in the 2025 Marvel movie Thunderbolts. Bob gained incredible powers – equivalent to a thousand exploding suns – through unusual scientific experiments, transforming him into the superhero known as the Sentry. But these powers come with a dangerous side effect: Bob also struggles with deep trauma, which manifests as a separate, even more powerful personality called the Void.

As a huge comic and movie fan, I’m genuinely terrified by the Void. It’s not just as powerful as the Sentry – it’s more powerful. What’s really disturbing is that it’s created this twisted, personal dimension. It imprisons people in what it calls ‘shame rooms,’ forcing them to endlessly experience their worst, most painful memories. And it did all this to New York City in seconds! Honestly, if nobody stops the Void quickly, I truly believe it could take over the entire world in a single day. It’s a seriously frightening concept.

Kang the Conqueror Is a Multiversal Threat

Kang the Conqueror was initially set up as the main villain of the Multiverse Saga. We first met a version of him, called He Who Remains, in the Disney+ series Loki. Other versions, like Immortus, Scarlet Centurion, Pharaoh Rama-Tut, Victor Timely, and the original Kang, have also appeared in Marvel projects. Although the Marvel Cinematic Universe is now focusing more on Doctor Doom, Kang remains a significant danger to the entire multiverse, even with the storyline shift.

While each Kang variant is already a powerful force, they become almost unstoppable when they work together. The Council of Kangs, with its immense weaponry and knowledge gathered from different universes, is incredibly difficult to defeat. Unfortunately, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe probably won’t get to see the Council operating at its full potential. Despite this, Kang still poses a significant threat, potentially becoming the greatest villain the MCU has ever faced.

Galactus Is a Cosmic Being Who Devours Entire Planets

Galactus, a powerful being who consumes planets, is now part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He’ll appear in the 2025 film, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, voiced by Ralph Ineson. In the movie, Galactus tries to take over by kidnapping Franklin Richards, but the Fantastic Four stop him. They ultimately use Reed Richards’s teleportation technology to send him far across the universe.

Galactus is an incredibly powerful being in the Marvel Universe. Unique across all realities, he’s as essential to the universe’s balance as fundamental forces like Death and Eternity. While we expect to see more of this ‘Devourer of Worlds’ in future Marvel Cinematic Universe stories, his introduction in First Steps immediately establishes him as one of the franchise’s most formidable new villains.

Mephisto May Be Marvel’s Most Powerful Villain Yet

After much speculation, Mephisto officially appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the 2025 Disney+ series Ironheart. Sacha Baron Cohen portrays the demonic ruler of Hell, who offers Riri Williams a deal: he’ll restore her loved ones, but the price remains a mystery. While his future role is uncertain, Mephisto could become the MCU’s most formidable villain yet.

Even though we only see a small part of Mephisto’s abilities in Ironheart, those powers are already incredibly strong. He can easily change and warp reality, and he’s even capable of giving powers to others, like Parker Robbins. As the ruler of Hell, Mephisto is one of the most powerful beings in the universe, and the heroes of the MCU should be grateful he hasn’t decided to get more involved.

2025-11-19 04:12