Vanishing Heroes: 10 Marvel Disney+ Characters Who May Never Return

However, with the onset of Phase Four, the MCU branched into Disney+ streaming series starring major cinematic figures. This shift introduced three to four live-action TV series each year, intricately connected to their film counterparts, which dramatically expanded the MCU’s character lineup to an overwhelming degree. The rapid expansion into streaming was arguably one of Marvel’s significant post-“Avengers: Endgame” missteps, leading the studio to scale back its ambitions for Disney+.

Despite this, the initial wave of Marvel Studios series remains available on Disney+, showcasing a plethora of characters who may never reappear. Various factors contribute to why these characters won’t be part of “Avengers: Doomsday” or other future MCU projects. This change highlights how far the franchise has evolved from when teased characters were almost certain to become key players.

“Captain America: Brave New World” was filled with nods to past MCU narratives, especially its villains tied to “The Incredible Hulk” tales. It also included a major sequence building on “Eternals”‘ conclusion, and mention of Adamantium hinted at Wolverine’s emergence. Yet, conspicuously missing were several central elements from “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” such as characters and storylines. While Isiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) made a return, others like Sam Wilson’s sister Sarah (Adepero Oduye), Baron Zemo (Daniel Brühl), and any trace of the Flag-Smashers were absent.

“Captain America: Brave New World” was jam-packed with references to older MCU lore, particularly its two adversaries rooted in “The Incredible Hulk” storylines. There was also an extensive set piece following up the finale of “Eternals,” while a reference to Adamantium teed up Wolverine. However, strangely absent were several key “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” characters and plotlines. Though Isiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) returned, others like Sam Wilson’s sister Sarah (Adepero Oduye), Baron Zemo (Daniel Brühl), or any traces of the Flag-Smashers were M.I.A.

Frustratingly, that also included Bradley’s grandson Eli (Elijah Richardson), who appeared in multiple “Falcon and the Winter Soldier” episodes. Despite his grandfather getting framed for a presidential assassination attempt, Eli was never seen or even referenced during “Brave New World’s” runtime. In the comics, Eli Bradley becomes a superhero named Patriot who joins the Young Avengers. In live-action media, though, it’s doubtful he will ever be seen again. The first “Avengers: Doomsday” teaser shined a spotlight on Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) once more, which makes it unlikely that deep corners of Sam Wilson’s lore will resurface anytime soon.

Likewise, the various young superheroes introduced across Phases Four and Five such as Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) have gone nowhere. With that track record, if Eli Bradley couldn’t make it into “Captain America: Brave New World,” what place does he have in the grander future of the MCU?

Across her two major MCU appearances, Alaqua Cox (making her acting debut) received widespread praise for her turn as Maya Lopez/Echo. It’s no surprise that her “Hawkeye” co-star Vincent D’Onofrio had great things to say about Alaqua Cox and her solo show “Echo.” That program initially seemed to be paving the way for more Maya Lopez appearances, perhaps tied into Daredevil and his more grounded MCU exploits. However, even though her inaugural showcase involved her duking it out with one of the original six Avengers members, it doesn’t look like Lopez is a priority for this franchise going forward.

Part of that is simply a byproduct of Marvel Television’s drastically reduced output, meaning fewer chances for Lopez to return. Marvel Television also appears to be emphasizing characters established from the Marvel/Netflix days like Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones coming back for “Daredevil: Born Again’s” second season. Meanwhile, none of the imminent Marvel Cinematic Universe movies seem like logical places for the character to reappear. 

As the MCU streamlines its priorities, a supporting character from “Hawkeye” largely disconnected from the broader MCU, unfortunately, looks to be getting shelved for now. What a shame given the immense chops Alaqua Cox displayed in the role.

In the years since “Moon Knight” hit the airwaves, questions have hovered over whether or not Oscar Isaac would ever reprise the titular role. Save for a third season “What If…?” voice appearance, Isaac’s version of Moon Knight has been M.I.A. from the wider MCU. While vague comments from Marvel brass hint that Moon Knight will reappear in live-action media someday, this character is clearly not a current high priority for the franchise. Among those suffering from this trajectory is May Calamawy’s “Moon Knight” character Layla El-Faouly/Scarlet Scarab. 

Initially debuting as Marc Spector’s wife, El-Faouly was given the identity of Scarlet Scarab in the show’s finale. Though she helped save the world alongside Moon Knight and Khonshu (F. Murray Abraham), the Scarlet Scarab has yet to be called for further adventures. This may be because of one attribute that initially seemed to be an asset for “Moon Knight.” At the time of its release, critics praised “Moon Knight” for offering a standalone experience largely divorced from other MCU properties. However, that quality has ensured that the MCU can easily ignore “Moon Knight” as it slims down its annual slate of movies and TV series.

Thus, the program’s original characters have not become recurring fixtures of this franchise. If the future of Oscar Issac’s Moon Knight is uncertain, then Scarlet Scarab certainly isn’t reappearing in any MCU projects anytime soon.

G’iah, the daughter of Skrulls Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) and Soren (Sharon Blynn), debuted as a child in the ’90s-set “Captain Marvel.” In the 2023 miniseries “Secret Invasion,” which is set in the present, G’iah (Emilia Clarke) has grown into a bitter figure whose joined the nefarious Gravik’s (Kingsley Ben-Adir) Skrull army in the hopes that she and her people would finally have a planet of their own. G’iah functions as a co-lead for “Secret Invasion,” right down to her starring in the finale, “Home,” where she becomes a Super-Skrull who dukes it out with Gravik.

Having Emilia Clarke be such a significant player in “Secret Invasion,” not to mention playing an older version of a character from a movie that grossed $1.1+ billion worldwide, would seem to guarantee her as an MCU fixture moving forward. Instead, she completely vanished. Unfortunately, “Secret Invasion” went over like a lead balloon with the general public. The finale episode featuring her so prominently especially came under heavy critical fire. A permanent toxic air now hovers over everything G’iah and “Secret Invasion-” related.

The MCU seems keen to act like “Secret Invasion” never even happened, which seems to be working out just fine for general audiences. Thus, G’iah’s journey has been ground to a halt.

Olivia Colman begged her agent to land her a role in the MCU, resulting in her prominent “Secret Invasion” role as morally chaotic espionage figure Sonya Falsworth. That’s not exactly the kind of part one would assume an Oscar-winner famous for “The Favourite” and “The Father” would take, but it made Colman’s MCU debut that much more exciting. In “Secret Invasion,” she fights back against Skrulls that have infiltrated Britain before forming an alliance with G’iah in the show’s cliffhanger ending.

It’s easy to imagine Sonya Falsworth returning to the MCU whenever a story called for a secret agent. Perhaps she could’ve been Phase Six’s equivalent to Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), while her union with G’iah’s could’ve driven other future projects. None of those, though, looks likely to ever happen. As we already mentioned, “Secret Invasion” was a calamity and, despite Colman’s immense talent, there’s been little outcry for her to show up again. Years after her debut, there’s been nary a hint of Sonya Falsworth even existing in this franchise.

It doesn’t help that Olivia Colman is a tremendously in-demand performer with lots of projects to juggle. Potential scheduling conflicts have likely made it even easier to put this character on the back burner, despite Colman’s initial passion for getting involved in the MCU.

When Christopher McDonald was first announced to be playing blowhard TV reporter Chris Stearns in “Secret Invasion,” it was rumored that the role would span across further franchise entries. A conspiracy-prone anchor could be an organic and entertaining way to unify seemingly disparate MCU properties subtly. J.K. Simmons can’t play J. Jonah Jameson everywhere all the time, so why not have Chris Stearns as a backup option? 

While an experienced character actor like McDonald would’ve been a welcome presence in the MCU, the character’s “Secret Invasion” role turned out to be surprisingly fleeting. That alone made it hard for the newcomer to cultivate any demand for his return. Meanwhile, in the years since “Secret Invasion’s” debut, the MCU has begun emphasizing pre-2020 characters, like Steve Rogers or the 20th Century Fox X-Men. 

If super-powered Disney+ characters like She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) have gotten the cold shoulder, then a grounded news anchor seems destined to become a one-and-done, a contrast to the initial grand, multi-installment plans for Chris Stearns in the MCU.

“Werewolf by Night” is the epitome of a project that could’ve only existed in the earliest days of Marvel Studios Disney+ programming. For one thing, it’s a TV special, a format previously unexplored before Disney+ demanded regular doses of MCU content. To boot, its polished visual effects work and audacious cinematography would never have been possible if it had aired as a ’90s or 2000s-era ABC/CBS TV special. This Michael Giacchino directorial effort was truly something that could have only materialized in the streaming era circa. 2022.

Those qualities also informed “Werewolf by Night’s” deeply positive critical reception. Many of these upbeat reviews emphasized the largely disconnected nature of “Werewolf by Night” from other MCU properties, a trait Giacchino emphasized throughout his creative process. While its place in the larger MCU mythos was solidified behind-the-scenes, it’s doubtful this horror-tinged character will return in any major capacity. “Werewolf by Night” was so drastically detached from other characters in this universe, it’s hard to imagine the titular lead appearing in “Daredevil: Born Again.”

With no forthcoming MCU endeavors playing around in the scary ambiance “Werewolf by Night” thrived in, there doesn’t seem to be any room for more the character to appear. But the fact that this oddball TV special exists at all is still worth celebrating.

Among the ways “Ironheart” tried setting up the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was through the introduction of Alden Ehrenreich’s Ezekiel “Zeke” Stane, the son of “Iron Man” villain Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges). Introduced as a secretive figure helping Riri Williams/Ironheart (Dominique Thorne) with some shady business, the two develop a friendship that eventually blows up when Stane is incarcerated for owning illicit weaponry. By the end, he receives a powerful technological upgrade granting him mechanical superpowers, and explicitly vows vengeance on Williams.

“Ironheart” was one of several Marvel shows for Disney+ that had their releases heavily postponed thanks to the 2023 labor strikes. Debuting three years after it began principal photography, the lengthy gap between when “Ironheart” was written and when it finally debuted in June 2025 was always going to be a problem (for context, “Ironheart” was filming back when “Avengers: Doomsday” was still “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty”). These changes would’ve made it difficult to incorporate any of the show’s cliffhangers into future MCU projects. 

In the specific case of Zeke Stane, though, there isn’t much demand to follow up with the character. Given Ehrenreich’s recent emphasis on smaller dramas, it’s also doubtful he’s eager to reprise his “Ironheart” role in later MCU entries.

After functioning as a dark mentor figure to Riri Williams/Ironheart throughout “Ironheart’s” six episodes, Peter Robbins/The Hood’s (Anthony Ramos) origin is revealed in the show’s finale. Turns out, he’s been working with Mephisto (Sacha Baron Cohen) the entire time. That dark lord gave Robbins his powers and Mephisto subsequently takes them away as he tries luring Williams over to his side. After losing so much, though, Robbins isn’t down for the count yet. In “Ironheart’s” final epilogue, it’s revealed that Robbins has tracked down a Chicago-based sorcerer to inquire about training in the mystic arts.

This indicates that Robbins is gearing up to maybe visit Kamar-taj in preparation for revenge against Williams. But with no word on the show getting renewed for additional seasons and no near-upcoming MCU projects dabbling in the mystical side of this franchise, there’s no easy spot to slide in Robbins and his quest for revenge.

Marvel also emphasizing a greater divide between its small and big screen projects following the disappointing responses to “The Marvels” and “Captain America: Brave New World” further suggests that a Disney+-originating villain like Robbins isn’t going to randomly show up in an “X-Men” or “Black Panther” movie. For now, Parker Robbins/The Hood isn’t a major player on the MCU board.

“She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” had its fair share of highs and lows. On one hand, “She-Hulk” deftly committed to a zany depiction of John Byrne’s fourth-wall-shattering She-Hulk from the comics while reveling in its episodic format. On the other hand, the production struggled nailing a distinct, consistent comedic voice. Then there was the show’s finale, which indulged in too much lampshading about flawed writing and widely-criticized MCU tropes. This episode was also excessively overcrowded, as seen by one character’s awkward debut in its final minutes.

In this climactic scene, Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) returns to Earth to introduce his son, Skaar (Wil Deusner). MCU fans were less than impressed by this new character’s design, but just as distracting was the uncertainty over whether Skaar’s debut was meant to be taken seriously. Was this a parody of MCU productions introducing new characters in their final scenes? That’d fit “She-Hulk’s” aesthetic, but the sequence’s restrained tone suggests it was a genuine unveiling of Skaar in live-action.

Whatever the intent, Skaar seems to have returned to his home planet of Sakaar. Hulk’s forthcoming “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” presence hasn’t remotely teased that he’s a father, while almost all “She-Hulk” lore has vanished from the broader MCU. For now, Skaar and his terrible haircut are M.I.A.