Marvel Studios recently welcomed another member to the exclusive club of actors who've portrayed multiple characters in its MCU.
Throughout the MCU's evolution, a handful of actors have taken on the challenge of portraying two distinct roles. Some of these are natural transitions for the actors, but others are surprising re-utilizations of someone's talents.
As MCU continues to push through Phase 5, a new addition will mark the 14th actor to join this unique roster, solidifying their place in Marvel Studios' history.
Loki Season 2 Reuses Werewolf by Night Actor
Richard Dixon played the role of Ulysses Bloodstone in Marvel Studios Special Presentation Werewolf by Night.
Ulysses was a deceased character (seen in a casket) in the story. His powerful Bloodstone became the focal point of a competitive hunt between a group of monster hunters and his estranged daughter, Elsa.
Dixon recently returned to the MCU and portrayed Blair/Robber Baron in Loki Season 2, Episode 3. As Mr. Blair, he chased Victor Timely (Jonathan Majors) through Chicago after being swindled by the inventor.
Marvel Studios has made a habit of reusing actors for different roles, creating an exclusive club. Here are the others who have had such a privilege:
Paul Bettany
Paul Bettany began his journey in the MCU by voicing JARVIS, Tony Stark's AI, in 2008's Iron Man. This is a role he reprised four times before transforming into the live-action Vision in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
In total, Bettany has made a remarkable eight appearances in the MCU depicting these two characters. He even took on a new version of Vision in WandaVision. However, the White Vision has yet to be re-introduced since leaving to somewhere unknown at the end of that Disney+ series.
Benedict Cumberbatch
While Benedict Cumberbatch's most prominent MCU role is Doctor Strange, he also provided motion capture and voice work for Dormammu in the first film.
This resulted in an intriguing showdown between his characters in the Dark Dimension. Some could view this as symbolic of Stephen Strange's internal battle of fighting his own demons throughout Doctor Strange.
Sean Gunn
Director James Gunn's brother, Sean Gunn, played a key role in the Guardians of the Galaxy MCU trilogy, both on camera and behind the scenes.
Gunn primarily portrays Kraglin, the leader of the Ravagers. Additionally, he plays a crucial role in the CGI department, serving as the on-set reference for Rocket Raccoon.
While Gunn's on-screen appearances are limited to the Guardians trilogy, in the background of Avengers: Endgame, Thor: Love and Thunder, and the team's Holiday Special on Disney+, his contribution as the reference for Rocket is essential for guiding the on-set actors when filming.
Laura Haddock
Laura Haddock played a supporting role as Peter Quill's mother, Meredith, in the initial two Guardians of the Galaxy films, but her MCU debut was a brief appearance in Captain America: The First Avenger.
In the latter, she had a cameo as a young woman seeking Captain America's autograph, sharing a friendly moment with Steve Rogers which sparked theories about a family connection between Captain America and Star-Lord, which was later proven false.
Seth Green
Seth Green, known for his voice-acting portrayal of Howard the Duck in the MCU, made a brief cameo appearance in Iron Man 2 during Tony Stark and Happy Hogan's departure from the Stark Expo.
Howard the Duck was recently in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, seen playing poker with the likes of Kraglin and Cosmo.
Kenneth Choi
Kenneth Choi portrayed two members of the same family from two different generations in the MCU. He began as the Howling Commando Jim Morita in Captain America: The First Avenger and later played Jim's grandson, Midtown High School Principal Morita, in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
This was one of the more clever uses of one actor taking on separate roles, as Principal Morita had a photo of his grandfather on his office desk.
Damion Poitier
Damion Poitier briefly portrayed Thanos during the famous mid-credits scene in The Avengers. This was before Josh Brolin assumed the role of the Mad Titan.
Making his second appearance in the MCU, Poitier appeared as one of Crossbones' henchmen in Captain America: Civil War before being defeated by Redwing in Nigeria. Maybe next time he'll get to play a hero for Marvel Studios.
Imogen & Isabella Poynton
Twin actors Imogen and Isabella Poynton made their debut in the MCU as Duranna, the daughter of Nova Corps agent Rhomann Dey, in Guardians of the Galaxy. The following year, they played Lila Barton, Hawkeye's daughter, when his family was introduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Lila Barton has been portrayed by director Joe Russo's daughter Ava since Avengers: Endgame. She also appeared in the Hawkeye Disney+ series.
Joe Russo
The Russo brothers, Joe and Anthony, directed four major MCU films, with Joe being featured in acting roles in two of them.
He appeared as Nick Fury's SHIELD medic in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and as a support group member (with Chris Evans' Steve Rogers) in Avengers: Endgame.
In Captain America: Civil War, although he didn't have any lines, he played Dr. Theo Broussard in a scene where Tony Stark learned of the doctor's death.
Michelle Yeoh
Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh initially entered the MCU as Aleta Ogord, the leader of the Ravagers, in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, appearing prominently at Yondu's funeral and later teaming up with the original Guardians in a mid-credits scene.
Four years later, she played Shang-Chi's aunt in Ta Lo, Ying Nan, in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Interestingly, neither of these characters is known to be dead, and there's a slim chance Yeoh could return as both.
Gemma Chan
Gemma Chan made her MCU debut as the Kree warrior Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel in 2019, with Maria Rambeau ultimately defeating her by shooting down her ship in the final battle.
Two years later, she returned to the MCU, but this time in a far more significant role in Eternals. Sersi was the leading character of the film, discovering the Eternals' true mission to prepare Earth for the birth of a new Celestial. Chan is expected to return as Sersi within the MCU.
Dave Dastmalchian
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania saw Dave Dastmalchian return for his second MCU role after portraying the ex-con Kurt in the initial two Ant-Man films.
In Ant-Man 3, he took on a voiceover role as Veb, a gooey Freedom Fighter residing in the Quantum Realm; his slime possesses the unique ability to grant understanding of the Quantum language to anyone who comes into contact with it.
BONUS: Stan Lee
Stan Lee was the ultimate cameo-maker in any and all Marvel movies, including every MCU movie until Avengers: Endgame.
These memorable cameo roles included portraying characters such as Hugh Hefner and Larry King in the Iron Man franchise, a FedEx driver in Captain America: Civil War, and Thor's barber on Sakaar in Thor: Ragnarok.
In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, it was revealed that some of these roles were interconnected, as he appeared as an informant to the Watchers.
