Many characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have proven themselves to be highly-skilled and very impressive fighters. It’s hard to be a superhero in the MCU without having some hand-to-hand combatant skills, especially since some of the most terrifying and sinister villains in the franchise are also very experienced fighters. Many of Marvel’s heroes started out in the military, including the likes of Captain America, The Winter Soldier, Captain Marvel, and War Machine, while others have gone through comprehensive training to improve their fighting styles.
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Since 2008’s Iron Man, dozens of superpowered heroes and villains have been adapted from the pages of Marvel Comics into the live-action MCU. Most of them have taken part in scenes involving incredible fight sequences, usually following months of professional training. While some characters use their smarts, intelligence, or brute, unrefined strength to take down their villains, including the likes of Iron Man, Bruce Banner, and Star-Lord, others have delivered some of the best fight sequences in the franchise.
10) Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
Trained from a young age in the Red Room to be a formidable Black Widow assassin, Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) was continually the most skilled, confident, and refined fighter on the MCU’s original Avengers team. Her fighting style is the same as her Black Widow sisters, including Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), who has taken over from her following her death in Avengers: Endgame. Even so, her impressive skills during fights against the likes of Clint Barton, Bucky Barnes, and Proxima Midnight, to name a few, earn her a place among the MCU’s best fighters.
Natasha Romanoff received the same training as the other Black Widows, which means her fighting skills are not unique in the MCU. Rather, the same techniques, tricks, and surprises can be seen during fights with other Black Widows in projects such as Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Hawkeye, and Thunderbolts*, which featured Yelena Belova as a leader of the New Avengers. Because of this, Belova will be able to continue Romanoff’s legacy in the MCU perfectly as the new Black Widow.
9) Clint Barton/Hawkeye
Natasha Romanoff’s best friend during her time in the MCU was Clint Barton’s Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). As an elite SHIELD operative, Barton’s fighting skills are incredible, but these are enhanced by his natural marksmanship talents. Barton has impeccable aim, which means he seldom misses when using projectile weapons, such as arrows. His hand-to-hand combat skills are just as clean and impressive, however, presumably thanks to years of training as a SHIELD agent. Barton could even keep up with Yelena Belova in Hawkeye on Disney+, proving how good he is.
8) Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier
After falling from the train during World War II in Captain America: The First Avenger, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) was taken captive by HYDRA, given a super-soldier serum, and transformed into the cold and calculated Winter Soldier. Quick, unpredictable, and unbarred, the Winter Soldier was one of the most aggressive and brutal fighters in the MCU. Even though Barnes has now turned to a life of heroism as a member of the New Avengers, he is still putting these brilliant fighting skills to work, most recently by battling the Void (Lewis Pullman) to save New York City.
One of the things that helps Bucky Barnes be such a powerful fighter in the MCU is his vibranium arm. Initially made of titanium – this version was destroyed by Iron Man in Captain America: Civil War – Bucky received a vibranium prosthetic arm by T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) after spending some time recovering in Wakanda. Bucky’s vibranium arm proves helpful in many situations as an addition to his super-soldier enhancements, though it’s also often used to make other characters appear stronger when they tear off the arm or use it against Bucky.
7) Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
Antonia Dreykov (Olga Kurylenko) clearly wasn’t a good enough fighter to go toe-to-toe with Ava Starr’s Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) in Thunderbolts* – although she isn’t featured on this list. Even so, the Taskmaster first seen in 2021’s Black Widow, despite being very different from her Marvel Comics counterpart, was a very skilled and unique soldier who could perfectly mimic the fighting style of others just by watching. This meant she was able to copy Captain America, Hawkeye, and Black Widow’s techniques, making her a formidable opponent, though this ultimately didn’t help save her from a bullet in the head.
6) Steve Rogers/Captain America
Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) was just a skinny kid from Brooklyn before being given the world’s first successful super-soldier serum during World War II, which transformed him into Captain America. Rogers’ military training turned him into a very skilled fighter, however, even before becoming Captain America. Although, the muscles certainly helped. Prior to becoming Captain America, Rogers’ determination during a fight was clear, notably through his catchphrase, “I could do this all day,” and he has since proven his actual physical skill in battles against the Red Skull, Loki, the Winter Soldier, Crossbones, Thanos, and more.
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One of the most exciting displays of Captain America’s fighting skills was shown in Avengers: Endgame, which saw Steve Rogers travel back to 2012’s New York on the Time Heist, where he battled his past self. This scene showed how much he’d grown as a fighter, as the styles of his past and former selves were quite different, while he also wasn’t afraid to fight a bit dirty. Sam Wilson’s new Captain America (Anthony Mackie), despite not having super-soldier serum, is also a gifted fighter, meaning Rogers’ legacy is safe in the right hands.
5) Wade Wilson/Deadpool
As a former operative in the Canadian Special Forces, Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) has a background as a skilled and aggressive fighter. He used these skills after leaving the Special Forces to become a respected mercenary working out of Sister Margaret’s School for Wayward Girls, and later to become the mutated antihero Deadpool. Deadpool’s unabashed, no-holds-barred fighting style is made more impressive and entertaining by his comedic and fourth wall-breaking antics, and he has put these skills to the test in fights against Ajax, Cable, Wolverine, and even variants of himself. His regenerative healing factor is also a huge advantage.
4) Matt Murdock/Daredevil
Matt Murdock’s (Charlie Cox) blindness has never held him back, and has in fact enhanced his other senses to incredible levels, allowing him to become the crime-fighting vigilante Daredevil. The son of boxer “Battlin’ Jack” Murdock, Daredevil uses a blend of boxing and martial arts in his fight sequences, which allows him to get the upper hand on villains such as Nobu, Kingpin, Leapfrog, and Bullseye, though he is often messy and unrefined, too, which sometimes leads to mistakes. Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 will provide more opportunities for Matt Murdock to show off his sometimes-brutal fighting skills.
3) Okoye
For most of her career, Okoye (Danai Gurira) was the General of Wakanda’s Dora Milaje, the elite all-female army that protect the Wakandan royals, including T’Challa and Shuri (Letitia Wright). She was a formidable warrior even just as a member of the Dora Milaje, but after 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Okoye is now a Midnight Angel, kitted out with an even more empowered suit. This makes her an even stronger fighter alongside Aneka (Michaela Coel), and one of Wakanda’s most respected figures.
2) Shang-Chi
Bringing the Master of Kung Fu from Marvel Comics to life, Simu Liu engaged in some of the MCU’s best fight sequences yet in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Shang-Chi is a martial arts expert, especially after learning the ways of his ancestors in Ta Lo and after acquiring the mystical and formidable Ten Rings. Shang-Chi was trained in many different kinds of martial arts by his father, Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung), the Mandarin, so it almost unmatched when it comes to fighting. It’s exciting to see where Shang-Chi will be taken next in the MCU.
1) Robert Reynolds/Sentry
One of the newest characters introduced to the MCU is also one of the strongest. Lewis Pullman’s Robert Reynolds was a deadbeat who signed up to be a test subject in Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and OXE’s experiments with a new super-soldier serum. He was initially thought dead, but soon returned as the superpowered Sentry. Unfortunately, the serum also unlocked his dark alter ego, the Void, who posed a significant threat to the Thunderbolts – who became the New Avengers team – and the whole of New York City.
The Void didn’t just attack the Thunderbolts emotionally, but Reynolds also had the chance to show off some of his incredible new skills. He tore through the future New Avengers team, including super-soldiers Bucky Barnes, US Agent, and Red Guardian, Quantum-empowered Ghost, and Black Widow assassin Yelena Belova, while using barely any of his strength. His telekinesis, superhuman reflexes and durability, and flight abilities make him a keen and unmatched fighter, despite him not having any professional training. Sentry – if he manages to get his Void under control – will surely be a fighter to watch in the MCU’s future.
Who are your favorite fighters in the MCU? Let us know in the comments!
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