6 Times The Avengers Cast Perfectly Played Villains — and Nailed it
They’re supposed to be Earth’s mightiest heroes, but even the good guys sometimes go rogue. And if you’re hyped for Avengers: Doomsday, you’ll know all about that already.
See, the villain in the upcoming Marvel movie will be played by none other than Robert Downey Jr. The beloved actor spent more than a decade as the main man in the MCU, Tony Stark, AKA Iron Man. Now, he’s turned to the dark side.
Before he dons that creepy metal mask and the iconic green cloak as Doctor Doom, we’re taking a look at six other villainous performances from the core Avengers cast. Turns out, they’re just as good at being dastardly as they are at saving the day.
1. Robert Downey Jr. in Oppenheimer (2023)
Having played an incredibly dislikeable character in Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer, as Lewis Strauss, we really shouldn’t be surprised that Downey Jr. is turning heel for Avengers: Doomsday. He was so great as Strauss, in fact, that he took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2024.
Strauss is the one leading the attack on Cillian Murphy’s titular physicist in the film, pulling out all kinds of sneaky moves, legal power plays, and ruthless backstabbing manoeuvres to take Oppenheimer down. He may be a horrible man, but it’s an absolutely brilliant display from Downey Jr. If he channels even half of that nastiness into his portrayal of Doom, we’ll be in for a treat.
2. Chris Evans in Knives Out (2019)
After seeing Chris Evans play Marvel’s golden boy, Captain America, for so long, we never would have expected him to be able to play a bad guy. However, in Rian Johnson’s first Knives Out movie, he does just that, and he knocks it out of the park. At the heart of the family drama in the wake of Harlan Thrombey’s death, Evans proves himself to be a nasty piece of work as the grandson of the deceased, Ransom Drysdale.
This murder mystery is one of the best detective movies of the modern era, with a star-studded cast who are clearly having a good time. There’s a wonderful blend of comedy, thrills, and twists in this film that make for one hell of a first-time watch, while repeat viewings allow you to really pick up on the breadcrumbs Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc follows to solve the crime. Catch the clues on Netflix now.
3. Chris Hemsworth in Furiosa (2024)
He may be most famous for wielding Mjolnir and being the God of Thunder, but Chris Hemsworth, having played a few villains now, clearly has a penchant for letting his more abominable side loose. We could talk about films such as Ghostbusters, Bad Times at the El Royale, or Spiderhead, but it’s Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga where he truly excels as a bad guy.
As the eccentric and repugnant Dementus, Hemsworth quite literally makes life hell for young Furiosa. He kills her mother, keeps Furiosa captive, and even forces her to cut off her own arm to escape him. The film itself is a glorious visual ride through the Wasteland, with George Miller’s surrealist storytelling setting the stage for a wild origin tale that more than lives up to the dizzying heights of Fury Road. Strap in for the ride by logging into your NOW Cinema account if you fancy some barbaric, blistering action.
4. Scarlett Johansson in Under the Skin (2014)
Scarlett Johansson might just be the most innocent of the original Avengers cast. Trawling through her filmography, the closest we really get to a villainous role is the time she played ‘The Female’ in Jonathan Glazer’s mesmerising sci-fi movie, Under the Skin. At the start of the film, we see Johansson’s enigmatic extraterrestrial luring unsuspecting men to their doom; pretty wicked, if you ask me.
However, as the film twists and turns into more ambiguous, thought-provoking territory, her character does reveal a more complex side that we can feel some sympathy for. If you’re into movies like Annihilation and Possessor, you’ll definitely vibe with this early A24 flick.
5. Mark Ruffalo in Poor Things (2023)
Bad guys don’t always have to be particularly dangerous, and they can certainly be fun to watch. That’s the case with Mark Ruffalo’s turn as Duncan Wedderburn in Poor Things. He’s the problematic love interest of Bella Baxter in this dark comedy from Yorgos Lanthimos, and while some of the things he says are utterly reprehensible, Ruffalo’s line delivery is totally on point every single time.
I honestly don’t think I’ve laughed out loud at any movie from the last five years as much as I did while watching Poor Things for the first time. Since then, I’ve rewatched it a couple of times, including once with my fiancée; not only did I enjoy it just as much the second and third time around, but she also had a lot of fun with it. You can find this intriguing spin on the classic Frankenstein story on Disney+, but be warned: this is not the kind of film for anyone who’s easily offended or shocked by scenes of a sexual nature.
6. Jeremy Renner in The Town (2010)
Is Hawkeye the most pointless Avenger of them all? He’d certainly be the last hero I’d call if my life were in danger. But that doesn’t change the fact that Jeremy Renner is a very good actor, and one of my favourite performances he’s ever given is in The Town, where he plays Jem Coughlan, the most erratic and savage member of Doug MacRay’s criminal crew.
Ben Affleck directs this intense heist movie, bringing a gritty, grounded vibe to a more human-focused story underneath the bank robberies and brutality. It’s a fascinating tale of brotherhood and the lengths one man will go to get away from a life of crime, while the other simply cannot imagine doing anything else. The Town was one of my favourite movies when it came out, and it still slaps to this day. Fans of Hell or High Water and Heat will definitely dig what Affleck is going for here.
