5 Best MCU Characters Who Weren't In The Comics

The upcoming Disney Plus release of Wonder Man has flown under the radar, but the recent first trailer has sparked some interest for the show. The series is set to star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Simon Williams. A struggling actor, Williams thinks he has found his chance at a big break when he is invited to audition for 'Wonder Man', a remake of an in universe cult-classic movie. First, however, he has to impress the film's very eccentric Director.

Wonder Man will also see the return of Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery, a once down on his luck actor previously appearing in Iron Man 3 and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Trevor befriends Simon when they both secure auditions. Trevor is one of a number of characters original to the MCU (ie, those who don't appear in Marvel's Comics) to have become unlikely fan favourites.

Here are a few of the best MCU characters who weren't in Marvel Comics.

1. Darcy Lewis

In early drafts of the script for the first Thor film, Jane Foster's research team included a second older, male scientist alongside herself and Erik Selvig. However, the writers believed something was missing from the film. Things eventually clicked into place when the second older scientist was swapped out in favour of a younger Intern, Darcy Lewis, with Kat Dennings eventually cast in the role.

Mostly a comic relief figure in the first two Thor films, Darcy quickly became a fan favourite. When she was absent from the third film, Thor: Ragnarok, fans feared they had seen the last of the character, especially considering she had no comic book counterpart.

So, it was a welcome surprise when Darcy returned, sans any of her Thor castmates, in WandaVision. Now a qualified Astrophysicist, Darcy is part of a team recruited to study the Westview anomaly. She eventually teams up to investigate with Monica Rambeau and Jimmy Woo when the three of them begin to suspect Tyler Hayward of ulterior motives.

She later appears in a brief cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder, supporting Jane during her Cancer treatment. On top of this, multiple variants of Darcy appear across the three seasons of What If..?.

Darcy became such a popular figure in the MCU that she was eventually incorporated into the Marvel Comics universe, making her first appearance in Scarlet Witch #1, released in January 2023. This version of Darcy Lewis was originally a Journalism student, but after Wanda helps her out of a tough spot when she accidentally angers a God-like warrior sisterhood..

.. Darcy gives up her not-so-promising journalism career in favour of working for Wanda. She is now a major supporting character in the Scarlet Witch books, running Wanda's magic shop whenever various magical shenanigans drag her away. Aside from her differing backstory, the comic's Darcy Lewis perfectly matches her MCU counterpart in both appearance and personality.

2. Luis

In the comics, Scott Lang intentionally steals Hank Pym's Ant-Man suit so he can use it to rescue Dr. Erica Sondheim, the only doctor capable of performing a complex surgery on his gravely ill daughter, Cassie. The MCU's Ant-Man movie puts a slightly more lighthearted spin-on events, with Scott stealing the suit by accident during a heist on Hank's house in which he'd been hoping to find money to begin Child Support payments and earn access to Cassie.

The remixed storyline required Scott to join a crew of lovable, harmless, petty thieves. Enter Luis, Scott's former prison cellmate. Luis, with his fast-mouthed but long-winded stories, quickly became a fan favourite. Exclusive footage of Luis recapping the entire MCU up to Infinity War was apparently screened at a 2017 comic-con, but the clip has never been released publicly.

3. Trevor Slattery

Trevor Slattery, played by veteran actor Ben Kingsley, first appeared in Iron Man 3. For most of the film, we are led to believe that he is The Mandarin, a terrorist leader tormenting Tony Stark and U.S Authorities. However, in a third-act twist, it is revealed that 'The Mandarin', is actually Trevor, a drug-addicted hired actor, and that the film's true evil mastermind is Aldrich Killian.

In the Marvel-One Shot Hail To The King, Trevor is abducted from prison by Agents of the 'Real' Mandarin (later revealed to be one of many aliases of Wenwu, Shang-Chi's Father and master of the Ten Rings), as punishment for impersonating their leader.

He makes an unexpected return in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, when Shang-Chi and his allies were imprisoned with him. While Trevor was intended to be executed, Wenwu and his men found him entertaining, so kept him hostage to perform for them. On the upside, Trevor used the time to sober up, and befriended Morris, a captive creature from Ta Lo. Trevor can understand Morris, allowing the group to use him as a guide to Ta Lo.

Iron Man 3's Mandarin twist was controversial, particularly among die-hard Marvel comics fans, as they saw it as ruining The Mandarin, a well-known and iconic Iron Man comic villain, and as such, disliked Trevor. However, the character was redeemed by his appearance in Shang-Chi, with many fans now looking forward to seeing him again in Wonder Man.

4. Kahhori

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe utilised a number of original characters, none were superheroes. This changed with the introduction of Kahhori, in the season two What If..? episode 'What If.. Kahhori remade the world?'. In a timeline where Surtur triggered Ragnarok much earlier, the Tesseract is lost in a lake near the camp of a Mohawk tribe. When young tribe member Kahhori falls in, she is transported to a place called the Sky World, and gains superpowers.

Eventually, Kahhori uses her powers to change the course of history, preventing the Spanish Conquest and subsequent colonisation of the Americas. She reappears in What If's season two finale, aiding Captain Carter in battle against Supreme Strange, and again in the two-part finale of season three, as part of a revamped Guardians of the Multiverse team.

At the time of her debut, Kahhori was well received by fans, and the decision to respect the character's culture by presenting her debut episode, 'What if.. Kahhori remade the world?' was seen as a bold but mostly popular move from Marvel.

Following her positive onscreen reception, Kahhori made her comic book debut as part of the 'Marvel Voices' line.

5. Hope Van Dyne

Hope Van Dyne, played by Evangeline Lilly, made her MCU debut in the first Ant-Man film. The daughter of Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne, Hope had fallen out with her Father over his refusal to tell her the truth about the fate of her Mother, Janet, and when the film begins, have only recently been attempting reconciliation in light of Darren Cross's schemes.

In the second film, Ant-Man and The Wasp, Hope is fully reconciled with Hank, and now has her own Pym Suit, eventually taking on her Mother's codename of The Wasp. By the third film, Quantumania, she is in a happy relationship with Scott Lang and using Pym Tech for charitable purposes as head of the Van Dyne Foundation.

Technically, in the wider Marvel Comics multiverse, on Earth-982, there is a character named Hope who is the daughter of Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne. However, this Hope, Hope Pym, becomes a Supervillain known as the Red Queen, opposing a new generation of Avengers (The originals, including Hank, were killed) in the belief that they were tainting her Father's legacy.

Apart from sharing the name 'Hope', many fans argue that Hope Van Dyne is so far removed from the Earth-982's Hope Pym that the MCU's version did not exist before appearing onscreen in Ant-Man. However, while Hope may not necessarily be a comics character, she definitely inspired one.

Nadia Van Dyne, aka The Unstoppable Wasp, was created as a 'comic version' of the MCU's Hope. In fact, the name Nadia translates to 'Hope' in Slavic. The daughter of Hank Pym and his first wife, Maria, Nadia was kidnapped and raised in the Red Room after Maria was killed. Nadia escaped as a teenager to find her Father, but unfortunately, as is all too common in comics, Hank was temporarily dead at the time. She is taken in by Hank's second wife, Janet, and eventually adopted by her, both sharing the Wasp name.

It will be interesting to see whether any future original characters join this list.