Key roles in the MCU were recast with new actors since the inception of the Marvel Universe. While it can be jarring when a familiar character shows up with a new face, Marvel found talented performers who made these parts their own. And all this happened without making the audience feel any different.
Let’s take a look at a few of the most significant Marvel character recastings over the years and see how the new actors measured up.
| Actor Replaced | Character Played | New Actor | First Movie | Last Appearance | Reason for Recasting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terrence Howard | James Rhodes/War Machine | Don Cheadle | Iron Man (2008) | Iron Man (2008) | Howard had financial disputes with Marvel over salary |
| Edward Norton | Bruce Banner/Hulk | Mark Ruffalo | The Incredible Hulk (2008) | The Incredible Hulk (2008) | Norton’s acting approach didn’t fit Marvel’s style |
| John Slattery | Young Howard Stark | Dominic Cooper | Iron Man 2 (2010) | Ant-Man (2015), Agent Carter (TV) | Slattery had scheduling conflicts |
| Abby Ryder Fortson (child Cassie), Emma Fuhrmann (teen Cassie) | Cassie Lang | Kathryn Newton | Ant-Man (2015) | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) | Recast to portray older version of Cassie |
| Joshua Dallas | Fandral | Zachary Levi | Thor (2011) | Thor (2011) | Dallas had scheduling conflicts |
| Jonathan Majors | Kang Variants | TBD | Loki (TV 2021) | Loki (TV 2023) | Legal Issue/Contract Terminated by Marvel |
| Damion Poitier | Thanos | Josh Brolin | The Avengers (2012) | The Avengers (2012) | Poitier was a temporary stand-in for an early cameo |
| Hugo Weaving | Red Skull | Ross Marquand | Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) | Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) | Weaving had salary disputes with Marvel |
| Miley Cyrus | Mainframe | Tara Strong | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) | Cyrus had scheduling conflicts |
| William Hurt | Thaddeus Ross | Harrison Ford | The Incredible Hulk (2008) | Black Widow (2021) | Recast after Hurt’s passing in March 2022 |
James Rhodes
After Terrence Howard’s exit, Don Cheadle stepped in to play James Rhodes/War Machine.
Why did Howard hang up War Machine’s armor after the first Iron Man film?
Reports cite financial disputes – Howard claimed Marvel failed to pay him his full salary, while Marvel said he asked for too much money for future films.
Either way, Cheadle slid seamlessly into the role starting with Iron Man 2, making Rhodey one of the MCU’s most indispensable players. Don Cheadle was last seen in Secret Invasion season 1 and is expected to get his own movie, Armor Wars.
New Hulk
Edward Norton played Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk, but by 2012’s The Avengers, Mark Ruffalo became our newest jade giant.
Rumors indicate Norton’s serious, method approach to acting clashed with Marvel’s looser style. For his part, Ruffalo brought a twitchy, intellectual energy and always-imminent anger that meshed perfectly with the MCU’s Hulk. And fans loved it.
Howard Stark
When the time came to portray Tony Stark’s father Howard in his younger years, John Slattery tagged out and Dominic Cooper took a turn as the elder Stark in Captain America: The First Avenger. Slattery reportedly had scheduling conflicts that prevented him from reprising the role.
Luckily, Cooper exuded the same clever charm while showing Howard’s early days as an ambitious inventor and ally to Cap.
Cassie Lang
Abby Ryder Fortson portrayed Ant-Man’s daughter Cassie in her younger years. But the Avengers’ timeline-jumping brought an older Cassie, played by Emma Fuhrmann, into the fold in Endgame. This let Cassie evolve alongside the MCU’s timeline shifts.
But Marvel didn’t stop just here. Cassie was recast for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie and this time Kathryn Newton took over the role for good.
While Abby Ryder Fortson portrayed a child, Cassie, Fuhrmann had a few scenes in the Endgame. However, Kathryn Newton did a great job as Cassie in the Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie. Cassie Lang is also said to be a part of upcoming Young Avengers movies.
Kang
When iconic villain Kang the Conqueror entered the MCU in Loki, Jonathan Majors anchored the role. He played different variants of Kang in Loki (season 1 and season 2) and also appeared in his Kang role in the Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie.
However, after a setback in a legal battle of his life, Jonathon Majors was declared guilty by a jury in a case that later led Marvel to fire him from his Kang role. Marvel hasn’t announced a new Kang actor casting yet, but it’s likely that a new actor will take over the role in the upcoming movies.
A major setback for the fans however, there were already rumors that MCU might shift focus from Kang, especially after the poor reception of his appearance in the Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie.
Thanos
Marvel had been building Thanos’ character since The Avengers movie but it wasn’t Josh Brolin who first played the character.
When the casting for Thanos wasn’t finalized, Damion Poitier was playing the role physically with his first appearance in post-credits of The Avengers movie, after Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston failed to do the task.
Later, Josh Brolin was picked to play Thanos who not only voiced but physically played (using CGI) Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame.
Red Skull
Hugo Weaving originated Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger. But after pay disputes, Ross Marquand took over the voice role in later films. Red Skull was last seen in the Avengers: Endgame and his last interaction was with Black Widow. He’s expected to make further appearances in the MCU.
Fun fact about Ross Marquand is that he
Mainframe (GotG)
Miley Cyrus voiced Mainframe in a Guardians 2 credits scene but scheduling issues led Tara Strong to take over the role in the sequel.
Thunderbolt Ross
After William Hurt’s tragic passing in March 2022, Harrison Ford inherited the role of Thaddeus Ross starting in Captain America 4. Ford was seen on the set without typical Ross’ famous mustaches.
The MCU marches on, and more casting changes likely await around the bend. But Marvel has shown they can pull off these transitions and keep fans happy with fresh faces under the iconic masks.
The hardest one yet would be recasting Kang. There are also rumors that Marvel will be moving away from Kang and putting in Dr. Doom as the future Thanos-like villain but it’s too early to say anything.
Let’s see how this transition moves forward.