A future Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project is set to do something completely new with a villain – a first in the franchise’s 18-year run since the original Iron Man in 2008. 2026 will be a huge year for the MCU, with the second season of Daredevil: Born Again arriving on Disney+ in March, alongside other series. Plus, two major films – Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday – will be released in theaters.
The new Spider-Man movie, Brand New Day, has a high bar to clear after the huge success of No Way Home. However, it’s getting a boost by doing something new within the Marvel Cinematic Universe: featuring multiple villains. One of these villains will be Tombstone.
Tombstone is a famous Spider-Man enemy who’s shown up in comic books, TV series like Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and video games. Interestingly, in the Brand New Day series, he’s played by Marvin Jones III – the same actor who voiced Tombstone in the popular movie Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
This marks a first for the Marvel Cinematic Universe: an actor is returning to play a villain in live-action after originally portraying them in an animated project. Previously, every MCU villain actor was either making their live-action debut (like Tenoch Huerta Mejía as Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) or reprising a role from a prior live-action appearance (such as Willem Dafoe as Norman Osborn in Spider-Man: No Way Home).
Even though Jones III is reprising his role as Tombstone, this version of the character is different from the one seen in Into the Spider-Verse. The Tombstone appearing in Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a new take on the character.
Every MCU Villain Actor Reprising Their Role in an Upcoming Project
Robert Downey Jr. – Doctor Doom
Robert Downey Jr. is returning as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, which is expected to be a massive and pivotal movie for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He originally debuted as Doom in a brief scene after the credits of The Fantastic Four: First Steps – it was actually him inside that suit!
Ian McKellen – Magneto
Fans were thrilled to hear that Ian McKellen will be reprising his role as Magneto in the upcoming MCU film, Avengers: Doomsday. Having famously played the character in the X-Men movies for Fox, this could be McKellen’s final performance as the powerful mutant.
Ian McKellen appeared in a promotional video for the film Doomsday, though the filmmakers, the Russo brothers, clarified it wasn’t a traditional trailer.
Rebecca Romijn – Mystique
On the same day Ian McKellen’s return was announced, Marvel Studios also confirmed Rebecca Romijn will once again play Mystique in Avengers: Doomsday. Romijn previously played the character in the original X-Men trilogy from Fox, and this will be her first time portraying Mystique since 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand.
Tenoch Huerta Mejía – Namor
Let me tell you, Tenoch Huerta Mejía really delivered as Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It was the first time we’d ever seen this character brought to life on screen, and honestly, he was fantastic. And get this – he’s coming back! Huerta Mejía is set to reprise his role in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, which I think is incredibly exciting.
Similar to McKellen, Huerta Mejía has already appeared in promotional content for Doomsday, having been included in one of the film’s trailers.
Michael Mando – Scorpion
I’m really excited to see that post-credits tease from Spider-Man: Homecoming finally come to fruition! It looks like Michael Mando is returning as Scorpion in 2026’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and from what I’m hearing, he’s going to be a major villain this time around. It’s great to see them building on that earlier story thread – it promises a really compelling conflict.
Recent photos and videos from the set of Brand New Day show Mando, but his part in the movie is still unclear, and fans are unsure of his character’s fate. It appears he’ll escape the prison he was last seen in during Homecoming and will be relentlessly pursuing Spider-Man.
Jason Schwartzman – Spot
A lot of viewers thought Spot would die in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, but he survived! Jason Schwartzman, who voices the character, will be back for the next film, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Details about Spot’s role in the next movie are still scarce, and it’s unclear how Miles will defeat him. However, he’s anticipated to be the main villain, possibly with a plan to destroy many different universes.
Jharrell Jerome – Miles Morales
The movie Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse finished with a surprising revelation: Shameik Moore’s Miles Morales discovers he’s actually in a different universe. In this alternate reality, his father is deceased, but his Uncle Aaron is still alive – and this universe’s version of Miles Morales is the villain known as the Prowler.
Jharrell Jerome voiced Miles in Across the Spider-Verse and will reprise the role in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Oscar Isaac – Miguel O’Hara
I’m so glad Oscar Isaac is coming back as Miguel O’Hara! He’s played a bunch of bad guys in the Marvel universe, but it seems like the only villain he’ll be revisiting is the one from Across the Spider-Verse, which is awesome because I loved his performance in that movie.
In Across the Spider-Verse, Miguel clashed with Miles, and it’s likely he’ll remain an antagonist in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Mahershala Ali – Aaron Davis
While fans are hoping to see Mahershala Ali return as Blade in a future Marvel Cinematic Universe project, there’s currently no confirmation of that happening. However, he will be back in the Marvel universe, playing Aaron Davis in the upcoming animated film, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.
When the trilogy is complete, Ali will have been featured in all three films in that franchise.
Vincent D’Onofrio – Wilson Fisk (Kingpin)
Wilson Fisk, played by Vincent D’Onofrio, has become one of the most formidable villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He was already a frightening and brutal character in the Netflix Marvel shows, but his portrayal in the MCU has made him even more menacing.
Okay, so Vincent D’Onofrio totally nailed the Kingpin, and I first saw his version of the character in the Daredevil series on Netflix. Thankfully, Marvel didn’t forget about it! They brought him into the main MCU timeline with Hawkeye on Disney+, and he’s popped up in Echo and the new Daredevil: Born Again too. And get this – there’s even a Season 2 of Born Again coming out on March 24th on Disney+, so we’ll be seeing more of his Fisk soon, which is awesome!
Wilson Bethel – Bullseye
Wilson Bethel, similar to Erik D’Onofrio, initially portrayed his villainous character, Benjamin Poindexter (also known as Bullseye), in the Netflix series Daredevil. He reprised the role in Season 1 of Daredevil: Born Again, and it’s confirmed he’ll also appear in Season 2.
James Spader – Ultron
James Spader is reprising his role as Ultron, the villain from the movie Avengers: Age of Ultron, but this time in live-action. While he’s continued to voice the character in animated projects since Age of Ultron, this new appearance, part of VisionQuest, marks his return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a live-action character.
Faran Tahir – Raza
You know, it’s fascinating to think about the history of Marvel villains. I realized recently that Faran Tahir, who played the leader of the Ten Rings group that captured Tony Stark way back in the first Iron Man, is actually the oldest original villain still connected to the MCU! It’s easy to forget with everything that’s happened since, but he really kicked things off for the entire universe.
After nearly 20 years, Tahir is coming back to the film series with VisionQuest, and he’ll be playing the same character he portrayed in Iron Man.
Ross Marquand – Apocalypse
Ross Marquand, known for his work with Marvel, provided the voice for Apocalypse in the first season of X-Men ’97. Marvel has confirmed he’ll return for Season 2, with Apocalypse set to be a key character. The new season will feature a confrontation between some of the X-Men and Apocalypse hundreds of years in the past.
Colman Domingo – Norman Osborn
As a huge Spider-Man fan, I was really excited to hear Colman Domingo was the voice of Norman Osborn in the first season of Disney+’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. He played a great mentor figure to Peter, and it seems like that relationship will continue next season. But honestly, everyone’s buzzing about whether we’ll finally see the Green Goblin show up – and whether it’ll be Norman or Harry Osborn who takes on the role. I’m really hoping for a good Green Goblin arc in Season 2!
Roger Craig Smith – Chameleon
Roger Craig Smith voiced the character Chameleon in the first season of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. He’s set to return for season two, though he probably won’t be a major villain compared to characters like Tombstone and Scorpion.
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2026-03-16 09:08