When Marvel’s The Avengers hit theaters 11 years ago, we were all blown away. Suddenly, we got to see Thor and The Hulk beside Iron Man and Black Widow! It was a huge novelty to see characters from a number of different films appear alongside each other in an epic story. We’d never seen anything like it before. In my opinion, The Avengers remains the best film that Marvel has released to date. Years later, when Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame came to theaters, Marvel doubled down on the idea, and brought in even more characters for an even larger-scale adventure. Today, in 2023, our expectations have shifted, and we fully expect to see Shang-Chi alongside Moon Knight, She-Hulk, and Adam Warlock. So let’s review the current players in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where they are, and when we expect to see them next.
Adam Warlock
Adam Warlock made his appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, first appearing as a villain, as so many other now-heroes have. I hadn’t expected him to be as comedic a character as he ended up being, but I thoroughly enjoyed Wil Poulter’s performance. It seems fairly clear from the ending of Guardians that while the Guardians of the Galaxy won’t have the same roster moving forward, they will have continued adventures, and Adam Warlock is now part of the team.
America Chavez
The introduction of America Chavez in the first minutes of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was epic, and in my opinion, the character was perfectly cast. She was largely a McGuffin in the story, evading The Scarlet Witch through multiverse portals while Dr. Strange did his best to protect her, but she remains a crucial component to the multiverse saga, as outside the Time Variance Authority and Kang the Conqueror, she is the only means anyone has to travel between universes. Yeah—I’m disregarding the magical mistake Dr. Strange made in Spider-Man: No Way Home, as that doesn’t seem recreatable. Or advisable.
Antonia Dreykov (Taskmaster)
Part of the Russian contingent of The Avengers, Taskmaster has the uncanny ability to mimic the abilities of other heroes. While we saw her serving her evil father in Black Widow, she was freed at the end of the film, and is free to do as she will.
The in-development film Thunderbolts has a new team of heroes which includes much of the still-living cast of Black Widow, and I expect that this is where we’ll next see Taskmaster, filling in more of an anti-hero role.
Ava Starr (Ghost)
In Ant-Man and The Wasp, we met a villain named Ghost, who was operating under the guidance of Laurence Fishburne’s Dr. Foster. She was in constant pain, and only looking for a cure to her dimensional disease. In the end, Janet Van Dyne was able to cure her with weird quantum magic of some kind, and we haven’t seen Ava since.
Again, the in-development film Thunderbolts will have a ragtag group of would-be heroes, and it sounds like Ghost will be among them.
Bruce Banner (Smart Hulk)
Once of the last of the original Avengers, Bruce Banner is still out there in his new non-enraged form. We last saw him helping his cousin Jennifer Walters come to grips with her new form and abilities in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, but that’s likely not the last we’ll see of the big green guy.
Personally, I’d like to see him stick around to go toe-to-toe with Ben Grimm once The Fantastic Four drops.
Bucky Barnes (Winter Soldier)
Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes has been a character in more Marvel Cinematic Universe films and television programs than nearly anyone else. From the phase one Captain America: The First Avenger up to a point following The Avengers: Endgame, he’s been there all along, outlasting even his buddy Steve Rogers. We last saw him alongside Sam Wilson’s Captain America in Falcon and The Winter Soldier, so it would be natural to expect him to make an appearance in the upcoming fourth Captain America film. But I happen to know that he’ll also be on the team of heroes in Thunderbolts, which will be in theaters first. I suppose that with his history, it makes sense that he’d be joining the Russian Avengers.
Carol Danvers (Captain Marvel)
Arguably the most powerful superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Carol Danvers remains extremely active offstage, handling problems in many worlds across the galaxy. In the upcoming film The Marvels, we may get a closer look at what she’s been up to. From what I can gather by The Marvels trailer, her powers become entangled with those of Maria Rambeau and Kamala Khan, and hijinks ensue.
I love all three characters, so I’m very much looking forward to The Marvels.
Cassie Lang (Stature)
While I’d long viewed Cassie Lang as a prime candidate for some forthcoming unannounced Young Avengers film, she’s quickly aging beyond a point where she’d be eligible for the “young” moniker, relatively.
We saw Cassie finally get a suit in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, but there’s not yet any word as to whether or not we’ll see much of her in the future. Perhaps Secret War or The Kang Dynasty will bring her back.
Clea
It’s very possible that you have no idea who Clea even is. She’s only made a brief appearance in the after-credits sequence of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. I honestly don’t know where she’s from or what her powers might be, but given that they got Charlize Theron to play the character, I’ve got to think that she’s got some kind of significant future.
Clint Barton (Hawkeye)
As lukewarm as I may have been on Hawkeye in the past, the Holiday-themed Hawkeye TV series is easily my favorite of all the Marvel Cinematic Universe television shows. Between the track suit mafia, Yelena Belova’s antics, and Rogers: The Musical, it was absolute gold.
But Clint has grown fairly world-weary, and his marriage to the ex-SHIELD agent we’ve now learned is Mockingbird may take precedence over his Avengering. As much as I’d love to see a second season of Hawkeye, it’s not clear whether Jeremy Renner will be returning to the role.
Cosmo the Space Dog 
Cosmo, who made her first cameo in the very first Guardians of the Galaxy film, and her second cameo in the after-credits scene of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, finally came into her own in the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, returning as a legit team member in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
When the team re-formed after the departure of Star-Lord, Cosmo remained, so whenever we next see The Guardians, expect Cosmo the Space Dog to be with them.
Drax the Destroyer
Following his adventures in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and his epiphany regarding fatherhood, Drax is retiring from the Guardians. It’s a shame, since his idiotic misapprehensions were one of my favorite comedic elements in the movies.
Goodbye, Drax. You will be missed.
Hope van Dyne (The Wasp)
It’s all but guaranteed that we’ll see The Wasp at some point in the future, along with her parents Janet Van Dyne and Hank Pym. The most likely place for them to make an appearance is in either Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Avengers: Secret Wars.
James Rhodes (War Machine)
We’ll get to see Rhodey again in the forthcoming film Armor Wars, which I’ve only just now learned won’t be a Disney Plus show as initially planned. It’s been reworked into a feature film, and it sounds as though Walton Goggins’s character Sonny Birch, whom we met in Ant-Man and the Wasp, will be in it. Given that the film’s synopsis is “James Rhodes must confront one of Tony Stark’s greatest fears when Stark’s tech falls into the wrong hands,” I can only imagine that perhaps he gets ahold of Stark’s armor design.
Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk)
She’s more of a tongue-in-cheek character than I’d have imagined, more akin to Deadpool, but I love love love Tatiana Maslany. I’ve been a massive fan of hers since having seen Orphan Black, which remains one of my favorite shows of all time.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law doesn’t always take itself seriously, so it will be interesting to see how Jennifer Walters mixes with other Marvel characters once she smashes the fourth wall and ends up in someone else’s film.
Joaquin Torres
Don’t feel bad if you don’t recall this character—he helped Sam and Bucky in Falcon and the Winter Soldier. There have been indications that he may return, and that with Sam taking up the mantle of Captain America, Juaquin make take up the mantle of Falcon. I’d say there’s a strong chance for a return appearance in Captain America: New World Order.
John Walker (U.S. Agent)
He’s a bit psychotic, and he sure ain’t Steve, but he’s a super-soldier, and he’s eager to get involved. We’ve seen Valentina Allegra de Fontaine recruit him at the end of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and he’ll be back in Thunderbolts.
Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel)
One of my favorite new characters, Ms. Marvel is a great fangirl Young Avenger type character. She was introduced in Ms. Marvel as the first mutant in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And while this is a departure from the original comics, many MCU viewers wouldn’t even know what an inhuman is. The departure on the nature of her powers bothers me slightly more. I can only speculate that they wanted to differentiate her powers from those of Reed Richards, who will appear in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie.
Kate Bishop (Hawkeye)
My all-time favorite Disney Plus Marvel show, Hawkeye, introduces Kate Bishop, who becomes Clint Barton’s protege. I’d have placed her alongside Cassie Lang, as a prime candidate for The Young Avengers, but she also is well into her twenties, and by the time they get around to any kind of Young Avengers property, she may no longer be as young as they’d like.
Kraglin Obfonteri
Kraglin has long been a favorite of mine. Sean Gunn’s performance has made Kraglin into just a terrific and hilarious character. As of the close of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, he’s a full-fledged member of the new team, so I very much look forward to seeing him in any forthcoming appearances of the Guardians, although I understand that may not be in a standalone sequel. More likely he’ll show up along with the rest of the team in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Avengers: Secret Wars.
Loki
Season two of Loki is not far off, and we’ll get to see his adventures with Morbius, pursuing Kang variants. Personally, I’m most excited about the addition of Ke Huy Quan to the show’s cast, following his awesome performance in Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. We’ll also get to see more of Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Ravonna Renslayer, Wunmi Mosaku’s Hunter B-15, and the Loki variant Sylvie, played by Sophia Di Martino.
Mantis
Following Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Mantis has retired. Given that her sidekick Drax is also gone, it’s likely fitting. Those two characters always were best when they were playing off of each other.
Matt Murdock (Daredevil)
When the first Daredevil series came out on Netflix, I loved it. The second season was a mess, but the third season, due largely to Vincent D’Onofrio’s portrayal of Wilson Fisk, was the best thing to come out of Netflix’s various Marvel series.
Matt Murdock’s appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home was the kind of moment that made me jump out of my theater chair and cheer. Daredevil and Spider-Man have a longstanding relationship in the comics, and I loved Matt being Peter Parker’s lawyer.
His reappearance in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law made sense, and although the one-night stand with Jennifer Walters made me wince a bit, I loved the more acrobatic rendition of the character.
Daredevil: Born Again is a series I very much look forward to, despite the fact that the show is rumored to include a whopping 18 episodes. We’ll get D’Onofrio’s Kingpin and Jon Bernthal’s Punisher, and that alone is a very good sign.
Mark Spector (Moon Knight)
Although I’ll admit that Oscar Isaac’s performance in the series was phenomenal, I was far less a fan of the Moon Knight series than most other Marvel fans I know.
Given his ties to the ancient Egyptian pantheon, Mark Spector feels mostly likely to make an appearance in a Blade than anywhere else. Personally, I can’t wait to see Mahershala Ali step into Wesley Snipes’s shoes.
Monica Rambeau (Photon)
We saw her first in Captain Marvel as a little girl, hanging out with her mom Maria the test pilot, and her auntie Carol Danvers. Then we saw her return in WandaVision as a SWORD agent. She’ll be back in the upcoming movie The Marvels, sporting her fancy new light manipulation powers. I’m very much looking forward to it.
Morgan Stark
The last time we saw her, she was saying “I love you three thousand.”
But there’s every indication that she’ll be back to carry on her father’s legacy. She’s a prime candidate for The Young Avengers, and the upcoming Armor Wars movie is the most logical place for her to reappear.
Namor
The legendary Sub-Mariner, Namor, made his first appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Presumably, those bizarre wings on his ankles have grown back after Shuri tore them off, and the guy is nigh-unkillable unless he dries off. Space adventures seem a bit out of the question for Namor unless he brings a few cases of Aquafina, so I’d expect to see him more in terrestrial adventures.
Nebula
Following Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Nebula has retired. The queen meanie got a huge power upgrade in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in her nano-arm which turns into a gun amongst other things, and her crazy jet pack. So it seems that she finally got her wish of being more powerful than Gamora, if only after the two reconciled and then original Gamora died. However, Karen Gillan is out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the time being.
Okoye
Okoye’s situation changed greatly in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. She was forced out of the Dora Milaje and received her blue “Midnight Angel” armor from Shuri. It’s unclear what her role might be moving forward, but Disney Plus is planned an as-yet untitled series based in Wakanda, and we’re sure to see Okoye along with young T’Challa in that series.
Peter Parker (Spider-Man)
With the completion of Spider-Man: No Way Home, apparently wrapping a Spider-Man trilogy, the rumor mill is relatively silent. But as long-time favorite of many, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man won’t be going anywhere soon.
Avengers: Secret Wars will be the capstone of the 6th phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the end of the multiverse saga. I happen to know, since 1985 was the brief period in time when I personally purchased and read comics, that Peter Parker originally received his black suit at the end of the Secret Wars event. As you may know, this suit was a symbiote which Peter Parker eventually rid himself of. The symbiote went on to bond with Eddie Brock and become the villain Venom. Should the MCU’s Secret Wars adapt this storyline, it could finally be done well, unlike the ill-conceived 2007 film Spider-Man 3 or the lackluster Sony Venom films.
Peter Quill (Star-Lord)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 left Peter Quill in a peculiar situation: hanging out with his grandfather on Earth, eating a bowl of cereal, leaning into what appears to be a very non-heroic life.
The curious message “The Legendary Star-Lord will Return” displayed at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is an unambiguous message that we’ll see him on-screen again at some point. I can only imagine that the events at the end of the multiverse saga will draw him back in if nothing prior to that demands his attention.
Phyla
A new character introduced in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Phyla is a full-fledged member of the Guardians. her abilities remain somewhat unclear at the moment, but we see her charging into action alongside Rocket, Groot, Adam Warlock, and Kraglin at the film’s conclusion.
Created by The High Evolutionary, she is said to have unlimited stamina. In the comics, her powers are fairly similar to those of Carol Danvers, and she’s often called “Phyla-Vell.”
Only time will tell what the MCU has in store for Phyla.
Riri Williams (Ironheart)
My personal favorite character to come out of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Riri Williams is a genius inventor and apparent Iron-Man successor. She’s an America, ostensibly unaffiliated with Wakanda, although she ends up visiting that country in the film.
A logical place for Riri to make her next appearance would be in the forthcoming Armor Wars film, alongside War Machine.
Rocket Raccoon & Groot
With Star-Lord on sabbatical down on Earth, Rocket is now in charge of The Guardians. It’s all but certain that we’ll be seeing Rocket & Groot again.
Disney Plus will be releasing its second season of I am Groot this summer, in which we’ll get more animated antics from the character. Beyond that, I’d bet on seeing them in the next Avengers team-up movie.
Sam Wilson (Captain America)
If you’ve seen the events of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, you know that Sam Wilson has stepped into the role of Captain America, trying to fill the big shoes of his friend Steve Rogers. And while he doesn’t have super-soldier serum, he’s well-trained with the wings, and he’s carrying the vibranium shield Steve endowed to him.
As Captain America, Sam is likely to have a significant role moving forward in any major happenings in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Scott Lang (Antman)
After three of his own films, plus appearances in multiple other Avengers movies, Scott Lang has been around a while. And there’s no indication that he’s going anywhere soon.
The latest Ant-Man film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, was the weakest in his trilogy. But Scott has always been at his best in non-Ant-Man films, such as Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Endgame. So I’m hopeful that he’ll appear in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. I’m also hoping to see more of Luis, Kurt, and Dave.
Shuri (Black Panther)
If Marvel follows the trend of all the other heroes who got their own trilogies, we’ll eventually see another Wakanda movie, and Shuri is the current Black Panther.
My guess for now is that she’ll show up in one of the big-cast Avengers films, such as Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Avengers: Secret Wars, as well as in the upcoming Wakanda series on Disney Plus, which hasn’t yet been titled.
Skaar
Another minor character who hasn’t yet been given much of any screen time, Bruce Banner’s son, who was apparently raised on Sakaar, has a very brief introduction at the tail end of She-Hulk: Attorney At Law.
Assuming that they wouldn’t introduce a character for no reason at all, it seems reasonable to believe that we’ll see Skaar in future Marvel projects.
Starfox (and Pip the troll)
As reported by The Statesman, it looks as though Harry Styles role as Eros has fallen through. Having Thanos’s half-brother explain his background would have been fun, but perhaps it’s his role as an Eternal which doomed the character. The Eternals wasn’t the hit which Marvel had hoped.
In any event, it was fun to see Starfox and Pip appear in the post-credits scene.
Stephen Strange (Dr. Strange)
Last seen sprinting for a portal with Clea, sporting a nifty new third eye on his forehead, Doctor Strange seems to be less and less human with every appearance. The third eye would, on its surface, seem to grant Steven Strange “second sight,” or the ability to see through illusions, and into the heart of magical matters. However, given that it appeared after his exposure to The Darkhold, it may be indicative of something more sinister.
Although nothing has yet been confirmed, I’d like to see Dr. Strange in the upcoming series Agatha: Coven of Chaos on Disney Plus.
Thor
Thor has had quite the run, and as it stands, he’s looking like one of the most powerful beings out there, likely surpassing The Hulk and approaching the power level of Captain Marvel.
But after four films, it’s hard to see how much more there is for Thor to do. We’ll likely see him in the upcoming Avengers films, concluding the Multiverse saga, but I expect things to be wrapped up for Thor relatively soon.
Vision
It’s been a while since we’ve seen Vision. When Wanda Maximoff let The Hex collapse at the conclusion of WandaVision, her phantasmal husband vanished. However, The White Vision is still out there. A recreation of The Vision using the original’s body, White Vision had his memories seemingly restored during his philosophical debate with the phantasmal Vision.
Given that Wanda is currently MIA, there’s no telling what (if anything) might be in The Vision’s future.
Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch)
At the conclusion of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Wanda seems to have died. But like all things in comics, there are about a half million ways around that. She may have survived the mountain’s collapse. Or perhaps she didn’t, and we next see a variant of hers from another universe.
Wanda’s character seems to have gotten a fitting ending, so if we never see her on-screen again, it wouldn’t be the greatest let-down. However, should she show up again, I wouldn’t be shocked.
Wong
Wong is everywhere. First appearing as a stoic librarian in the original Doctor Strange film, he re-appeared in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, cementing himself as a major hero. We saw him next fighting The Abomination in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and then in Spider-Man: No Way Home, advising Peter and Dr. Strange not to use the spell which ended up fracturing the multiverse.
After his unsurprising appearance in Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness, we saw Wong again in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, having cocktails with Madisynn and watching The Sopranos. Where’s he likely to pop up next? You never know—Wong is everywhere.
Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
“Val” first made an appearance at the conclusion of Falcon and The Winter Soldier, offering to employ the newly-disgraced John Walker, giving him the moniker “U.S. Agent.”
She then reappeared in the post-credits of Black Widow to entice Natasha’s sister Yelena with a lead about the person who killed Natasha. As we learned in Hawkeye, this was a false lead. But Val will continue to be a force to be reckoned with, and we’ll certainly see her again in Thunderbolts.
Yelena Belova (Black Widow)
Sister of the late Natasha Romonov, Yelena Belova was raised with the same Black Widow training and conditioning as her sister. Her mac and cheese scene with Kate Bishop in Hawkeye remains a favorite of mine.
We’ll certainly see Yelena again in Thunderbolts, but beyond that I’m not certain. I hope to get more of her though, because Florence Pugh is amazing.
With phase five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe well underway, and the sixth phase already coming together, the MCU has a massive number of characters. I haven’t even touched on some of my favorite characters like Trevor Slattery, Jimmy Woo, or Kurt and his obsession with Baba Yaga. I hope to see them all again.
