Starting with Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk in 2008, Marvel Studios has since then become a behemoth in the film industry, having produced 32 Movies in the span of 15 years, which grossed billions of dollars for the company. After the imminent success of the Infinity Saga and the ever-expanding MCU, the studio has been attracting more and more big stars to play their iconic characters. However, they are not the only studio that brings Marvel comics to the big screen.
Besides Marvel, Sony and 20th Century Fox are also two large studios that hold the right to multiple Marvel characters, like the Spider-Man universe and the X-Men. With the overwhelming number of characters, it is normal to have the same actor playing multiple roles from different studios, such as Chris Evans, who portrays both Human Torch and Captain America. Let’s take a look at these 10 Hollywood actors below who have played more than one Marvel character from the comic, to see how talented and versatile they are in portraying such different heroes and villains.
#1. Chris Evans (Captain America/Human Torch)
Of course, the most notable example would be Chris Evans himself. Before taking on the Captain America mantle, the 42-year-old actor starred as Johnny Storms/Human Torch in the 2004 version of Fantastic Four and its 2007 sequel.
Portraying a nonchalant and less serious hero in the team, Evans’s performance is one of the few saving graces of the franchises, which received mixed reviews from critics. Years later, he got the role of Steve Rogers, one of the leading characters in the MCU, and the rest, as we always say, is history.
#2. Hailee Steinfeld (Kate Bishop/Gwen Stacy)
Before taking the iconic role of Gwen Stacy/Spider-Woman in the animated Spider-Verse franchise, Steinfeld already portrayed the young talented archeress Kate Bishop in the TV series Hawkeye, who’s expected to take the mantle from Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) in future Marvel projects. While the 1996-born actress did a fine job portraying Bishop, a lot of Marvel fans would be sad not to see her taking the live-action role of Gwen again, should this character get introduced into the MCU.
#3. Josh Brolin (Thanos/Cable)
Brolin seems to have a knack for playing badass Marvel villains, portraying not just one, but two important antagonists in different franchises. First, we know him as Thanos, The Mad Titan that caused the Avengers a lot of trouble in the Infinity Saga. And then, he’s also Cable, who’s Deadpool’s nemesis in Sony’s titular sequel. Though, with Deadpool being included with the rest of the X-Men in the MCU in later projects, this is probably the last time we’ll see the actor as Cable again.
#4. Ryan Reynolds (Hannibal King/Deadpool)
And of course, we cannot rule out the main who plays Deadpool himself. After an awful spell with DC’s Green Lantern, the 46-year-old actor got another chance in the superhero genre, playing the foul-mouthed Wade Wilson in Deadpool series. With Marvel earning the right for X-Men characters, fans are looking forward to seeing the Merc with a Mouth and his hilarious antics once again, this time in the MCU.
Before taking the Deadpool helm, Reynolds also played a Marvel role in the past, portraying Hannibal King in Blade: Trinity back in 2004. He also starred as a different version of Deadpool in X-Men Origins, but only for a brief moment, fighting Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in the process.
#5. Jon Favreau (Foggy Nelson/Happy Hogan)
Besides being the filmmaker/co-producer in Marvel Studios, Favreau is also quite an actor, having played two Marvel roles in his career. In the 2003 cinematic version of Daredevil, he portrays Franklin “Foggy” Nelson, the hero’s best friend and legal partner. Years later, he directed MCU’s Iron Man and Iron Man 2, while also playing the role of the loyal yet awkward Happy Hogan in multiple Marvel projects. Truly a man of many talents.
#6. Gemma Chan (Minn-Erva/Sersi)
An interesting fact about Gemma Chan is that both of her Marvel roles are all from the MCU. First, she played the prideful Kree warrior Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel (2019) and then had a more prominent role in The Eternals (2021) as Sersi, the current leader of Earth’s Eternals, who has the ability to alter physical matter at will using her cosmic powers.
#7. Michael B Jordan (Human Torch/Killmonger)
The 2015 Fantastic Four reboot was a forgettable one, and Jordan’s performance was as subpar as the movie overall. However, he got another chance in another superhero movie, but this time, as a villain. Portraying the fierce and complex Killmonger, the actor’s performance was so good, the antagonist was considered one of Marvel’s best villains ever by fans.
#8. Oscar Isaac (Apocalypse/Moon Knight/Spider-Man 2099)
Unlike the others, Isaac has made an all-time Hollywood record this year, as the first actor ever who plays not one, two, but three Marvel roles in 3 different universes. First, he’s known as the powerful El Sabah Nur/Apocalypse in the X-Men franchise, then plays the anti-hero with multiple personalities Moon Knight in the titular series.
And in 2023, the actor rocks his third Marvel role, and continues to star Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099 in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, one of the major characters in the animated film. Some might say, Isaac’s Marvel performance is truly a spectacular canon event.
#9. Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Quicksilver/Kraven the Hunter)
Many were devastated by Pietro Maximoff’s death in Avengers: Age of Ultron (Wanda included), as Taylor-Johnson was a rising star back then, so people would expect him to stay in the MCU a bit longer. Eventually, fans have to wait nearly a decade later for the actor to take another Marvel role, this time portraying the charismatic Kraven the Hunter in Sony’s upcoming titular movie. The initial trailer looks pretty promising, and fans are looking forward to seeing Taylor-Johnson’s character battling against Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in future projects.
#10. Russell Crowe (Zeus/Nikolai Kravinoff)
Kraven the Hunter also features another actor who has played a Marvel role before, Russell Crowe, who stars as Nikolai, Kraven’s ruthless father. Fun fact, this is the third time the veteran actor plays a dad role in superhero movies, having portrayed Superman’s father in Man of Steel, Zeus (Hercules’s dad) in Thor: Love and Thunder, and finally Nikolai.
Quite a feat, if I daresay. The actor even joked about this himself on Twitter, capping this hilarious response: "Fertile. Across time and space …" Enough with the dad jokes, Russell!
Can you think of any other Hollywood star who plays more than one Marvel role? Let us know in the comment.