Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’

The Big Picture

The MCU faces hurdles partnering with Sony and Universal for rights to characters like Spider-Man, Hulk, and Namor.
Not all Marvel characters have joined the MCU due to complicated rights issues, like Conan the Barbarian and ROM: Spaceknight.
Some Marvel characters, such as NFL SuperPro and Almighty Dollar, are unlikely to appear in the MCU due to lackluster appeal.

Deadpool & Wolverine has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to Marvel characters, several of whom, including Wolvie himself, have never graced an MCU film. There are characters that appear in films that predate the MCU, like Jennifer Garner’s Elektra from 2003’s Daredevil and her own film, and Wesley Snipes from the Blade franchise. Then there are Marvel characters that have never been depicted on film at all, including the film’s big bad Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin), Lady Deadpool (voiced by Blake Lively), and Gambit, which finally realizes Channing Tatum’s attachment to the hero on film after years of failed attempts for his own feature. And with The Fantastic Four: First Steps slated for release in July 2025, surely the MCU has every Marvel character ever imagined in-house by now, right? Sorry, but not quite. Some Marvel characters remain elusive, and may never join the MCU at all.

Deadpool & Wolverine Wolverine joins the “merc with a mouth” in the third installment of the Deadpool film franchise.Release Date July 26, 2024 Runtime 128 minutes

The MCU Still Has to Play Nice With Sony and Universal
It’s no secret at this point that the movie rights to Spider-Man and his assortment of friends, family, and foes are the property of Sony, and that the web-slinger exists in the MCU on the strength of a mutually beneficial deal between the studios. The original deal, which saw Tom Holland’s Spider-Man first enter the MCU in Captain America: Civil War, was reached in February 2015, and saw Holland appear as the character in two MCU films, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home. But a standoff between Disney and Sony in August 2019 threatened to unravel the web, until cooler heads prevailed, and a deal was reached that kept Spider-Man in the MCU in September of the same year. Yet despite a mid-credits scene featuring Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock/Venom in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Sony still holds the lion’s share of Spider-Man characters, and continues to move ahead with their Sony “Spider-Verse Without Spider-Man” slate of films featuring those characters, for better and, far more often, for worse, thanks to films like Morbius and Madame Web.

Another well-known fact, although less publicized, is that two characters that have appeared in the MCU, Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía) in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), who has appeared repeatedly, have movie rights that are held by Universal Studios. The relationship between Disney and Universal is a little more convoluted, but in a nutshell, Universal holds the rights to solo films for the two characters, meaning any solo film would have to be distributed by Universal which, in turn, means they get the money. Even though The Incredible Hulk is now on Disney+, Universal still owns the rights to the character. Outside of the films, though, there is an even more convoluted situation that involves the two studios and Marvel characters. In 1999, Universal Studios bought Marvel IP licensing rights to coincide with the opening of its Islands of Adventure theme park at Universal Orlando resort, rights they keep so long as Universal keeps Marvel Super Hero Island at their host of theme parks alive. The Orlando Islands of Adventure is the only one still intact, which means Disney can’t use the Marvel characters Universal uses at their park east of the Mississippi River, which is why Avengers Campus is in Disneyland but not Disney World.

A Space Knight and a Barbarian Lead the List of Marvel Characters Hands-Off to the MCU

As for Marvel characters that Disney does not have the film rights to, they are, for the most part, a largely unspectacular group, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some notables there. At the top of that list is Conan the Barbarian, who was in Marvel Comics for a number of years, initially from 1970 to 1993, and then again from 2018 to 2022, when the publishing rights were sold to Titan Comics. Having appeared in Marvel Comics with the likes of Wolverine and Elektra in Savage Avengers, Conan would seem to be a logical shoo-in for the MCU, but it’s those darn movie rights. As confirmed by Arnold Schwarzenegger himself, those film rights are owned by Fredrik Malmberg and Cabinet Entertainment.

ROM: Spaceknight is another well-loved Marvel Comics property, with the one-time Hasbro toy recently returning to the publisher in 2023 after its original run between 1979 and 1986. But, like Namor and the Hulk, ROM’s film rights are complicated. Being first and foremost a Hasbro toy, ROM is part of the partnership between Hasbro and Paramount Pictures for film, with Zak Penn once pegged to write a script. But as James Gunn explained to Screen Rant, ROM stories are owned by Marvel Comics, while the character and toys are owned by Paramount, which creates a paradox where the Spaceknights are not available to Marvel Comics, and Paramount can’t have access to any of the Spaceknights stories, meaning the deep history created in the comics can’t be explored on screen. That partnership, by the way, nixes any chance of other Hasbro toys that have been in the pages of Marvel Comics, including Micronauts. G.I. Joe, and Transformers (who will next be on screen – as a Paramount release – in September 2024 with Transformers One).

There Are Other Reasons for Marvel Characters Not Appearing in the MCU

Besides the rights issues, there are other reasons for Marvel characters not appearing in the MCU. Universal has an advantage with their Marvel properties, and are unlikely to partner up with Disney, especially if it means it affects their take on a solo film. Characters like Conan and the Transformers already have an established cinema presence, even despite the lackluster reception to 2011’s Conan the Barbarian with Jason Momoa, as does Godzilla, who appeared in Marvel Comics between 1977 and 1979. Most people may remember Doc Savage’s time as a Marvel Comic, but the character was only briefly associated with the publisher in 1972 (there are rights issues with that character as well). Then there are the costs associated with bringing the Marvel characters home. It would take an extremely sweet deal for Universal to relinquish their rights to Namor and the Hulk, and while the return on investment for a solo film might work out for the Hulk, it’s highly unlikely that a Sub-Mariner film could justify the expense.

Then there’s the fact that the rest of the list pretty much sucks. 1990s superhero NFL SuperPro is one such character. Created in collaboration with the NFL, SuperPro never made a touchdown with the public. Given the money involved, the NFL would perhaps consider allowing Marvel the rights, opening the door for Phil Grayfield and his indestructible football uniform to appear in the MCU, but the MCU can’t work their magic on every Marvel character, and NFL SuperPro would need a major upgrade. That would also go for CPA J. Pennington Pennypacker, aka Almighty Dollar, who can shoot pennies from his wrist, who is an ally of… you guessed it… NFL SuperPro. 3-D Man, Doctor Bong, Hindsight Lad, Fluff… The list of lame Marvel characters is long, and even though the MCU has access to most of their film rights, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Deadpool & Wolverine & Paste-Pot-Pete.

Deadpool & Wolverine is now playing in theaters.

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