10 MCU Villains Who Deserve Their Own Prequel Movie

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has built some of modern cinema’s most explosive villains, but many of them only got a single film before being defeated, sidelined, or turned into a plot device. A prequel can do for a villain what the main film did for a hero: give context, texture, and the quiet human (or cosmic) logic behind their choices. 

The best prequels often interrogate motive and method, showing how environment, trauma, ideology, and betrayal catalyze a person (or being) into monstrous action. They can humanize without excusing, deepen stakes for future crossovers, and make audience sympathy or moral revulsion feel earned. Some of the MCU’s most popular villains, in particular, would benefit from this treatment, as revisiting their origins could further deepen their arcs.

MCU Villains Who Deserve a Prequel

Thanos

First Appearance: The Avengers (2012, mid-credits scene)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: While the Infinity Saga built up his ultimate plan, Thanos’s backstory, specifically his life on his doomed home world of Titan, was only revealed in brief, powerful flashbacks in Avengers: Infinity War. A prequel film could explore Titan’s decline in detail, showing the political and environmental factors that led to the societal collapse he predicted. It would transform his horrifying snap from a simple act of evil into a tragic climax of his unwavering philosophical conviction. 

The film could focus on his early life as a Cassandra-like figure, his exile, and the brutal cosmic conquests that forged him into the Mad Titan before he even began collecting the Infinity Stones. A prequel would flesh out his evolution from a concerned citizen to a mass-murdering zealot, deepening his already compelling presence.

Hela

First Appearance: Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Why She Deserves a Prequel: As the firstborn of Odin and the original Goddess of Death, Hela offers a direct window into the darker, more brutal history of Asgard that Odin famously hid. Her prequel film could be a sprawling war epic, depicting her as Odin’s loyal, bloodthirsty enforcer during the Viking age of conquest, laying waste to the Nine Realms and beyond. 

Viewers could witness the campaign that led to her eventual imprisonment, the moment her lust for power became too great for even Odin to tolerate, the forging of her formidable Necrosword, and her battles with ancient, world-ending threats. 

This narrative would not only give Hela the screen time her immense power warrants but also dramatically re-contextualize the entire history of Asgard as a peaceful kingdom built upon a foundation of genocide and conquest.

Wenwu (The Mandarin)

First Appearance: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: Wenwu is arguably the longest-lived and most historically influential villain in the MCU, having wielded the Ten Rings for over a thousand years. A prequel would be an epic, generational saga that explores the full scope of his immortality, ambition, and global impact. 

We could see the Ten Rings organization evolve from a small, unstoppable army into a global crime syndicate, influencing world events from the medieval period through the modern day. 

The film could detail his early conquests, his eventual attempts to retire, his initial, tumultuous romance with Ying Li, and the numerous heroes or ancient masters he had to overcome to maintain his dominance, providing a comprehensive history of the Ten Rings.

Dormammu

First Appearance: Doctor Strange (2016)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: Dormammu is a literal, inter-dimensional force of nature, the ruler of the Dark Dimension, a being whose hunger consumes entire realities. While his appearance in Doctor Strange was visually stunning, it was brief and focused on his defeat through trickery. A prequel wouldn’t need a linear narrative but could be a visually ambitious, non-Euclidean horror film that explores the Dark Dimension itself, detailing how Dormammu came to rule it and how he corrupted, consumed, or banished other beings from different realities. 

This film could also explore his attempts to breach other dimensions, showcase his influence over other beings and his methods of offering dark power in exchange for worlds, and set him up as a cosmic terror on an unimaginable scale.

Ronan the Accuser

First Appearance: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: Ronan is introduced as a fanatical Kree extremist obsessed with the destruction of the Xandarians following a peace treaty with the Kree Empire. A prequel could be a political war drama detailing the events of the Kree-Xandarian War, which lasted for a thousand years. It would show Ronan as a decorated, ruthless Kree warrior who saw his people’s cultural integrity being sacrificed for a fragile peace. 

The film could explore the trauma of the war, the betrayal he felt upon the signing of the treaty, and the moment he broke away from the Kree Empire to become a radical extremist, justifying his hatred and his desire for vengeance against Xandar. This would give his final act of defiance a much greater emotional weight.

Baron Mordo (Karl Mordo)

First Appearance: Doctor Strange (2016)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: The eventual villain arc of Karl Mordo, who survived Thanos' snap, was seeded throughout Doctor Strange, but his disillusionment with the mystic arts was only fully realized in a post-credits scene. A prequel could delve into his life before Kamar-Taj, exploring what led a man of discipline and immense martial skill to seek out the mystic arts in the first place. 

More importantly, it could focus on his time before Stephen Strange arrived, showcasing his faith in the Ancient One and the devastating, gradual realization of her ethical compromises. 

This film would be a tragedy about a true believer whose devotion is shattered, leading him down a path of radical zealotry where he attempts to 'fix' a system he sees as fundamentally corrupt.

Justin Hammer

First Appearance: Iron Man 2 (2010)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: As a comedic but capable counterpoint to Tony Stark, Justin Hammer’s ambition and spectacular failures offer a great premise for a corporate espionage comedy-drama. A prequel wouldn’t need an epic scope; instead, it could focus on his aggressive, morally flexible rise as the head of Hammer Industries. The film could depict his cutthroat business practices, his attempts to steal intellectual property, and his decades-long, pathetic envy of Stark Industries. 

It would be a story about a desperate, charismatic businessman trying to prove himself in a world dominated by geniuses, showcasing his shady dealings with various global contractors and the moments that led him to collaborate with the dangerous Ivan Vanko in Iron Man 2.

The Leader (Samuel Sterns)

First Appearance: The Incredible Hulk (2008, cameo)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: Samuel Sterns, whose transformation into the super-intelligent villain The Leader was teased in a brief scene in The Incredible Hulk and later introduced in Captain America: Brave New World, has a history ripe for a mad-scientist thriller. His prequel could explore his life as an unappreciated, brilliant academic with an almost pathological need to be recognized. 

The film could follow his work in desperate attempts to cure Bruce Banner while secretly experimenting on himself, leading to the infusion of gamma radiation that granted him his massive, world-class intellect but also irrevocably warped his mind. 

Dreykov

First Appearance: Black Widow (2021)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: As the architect of the Red Room, the brutal, shadowy program that turns young girls into deadly assassins known as Widows, Dreykov is a chilling villain whose backstory represents the darkest side of Cold War-era espionage. A prequel would be a gritty spy thriller detailing the founding and expansion of the Red Room. 

It could show his rise within Soviet military intelligence, his initial philosophical justification for creating the Widows as necessary 'tools,' and his ultimate moral corruption that led to his becoming a sadistic, controlling warlord. The film could also explore his relationship with early Black Widows and the political maneuvering required to keep his horrific operation secret from the world’s superpowers.

Malekith

First Appearance: Thor: The Dark World (2013)

Why He Deserves a Prequel: Malekith, the leader of the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim, a character almost played by this famous MCU star, and his quest to plunge the universe into eternal darkness was the central conflict of Thor: The Dark World. However, he suffered from shallow characterization. A prequel could be an ancient, epic fantasy chronicling the war between the Dark Elves and the Asgardians thousands of years prior. It could reveal the deep-seated grievances of the Dark Elves, who were fighting a war of survival against Bor (Odin’s father). 

The film could explore the cultural history of Svartalfheim, showing Malekith’s initial nobility, his devotion to his people, and the tragic circumstances of his race’s near-extinction, which led to his maniacal, all-consuming desire to use the Aether (the Reality Stone) for universal destruction.