The MCU Continues To Forget About One of Marvel’s Biggest Villains With 2nd Major Change in a Year

Many MCU projects are defined by their villains, but Wonder Man proves that Marvel has forgotten about one of its biggest villains twice in one year. The MCU is populated with tons of recurring villains, with these antagonists being some of the most complex characters in the franchise. However, one of the most important MCU antagonists is having his importance scraped from several adaptations of comic book stories, which is a real shame.

The MCU’s Wonder Man show is great, but it is a far cry from what the character typically is in the comics. The series follows a superpowered individual named Simon Williams, a struggling actor who hopes to make it big. After teaming up with Trevor Slattery, the duo attempts to land roles in an upcoming remake of an in-universe Wonder Man movie. However, there is one catch: it is illegal for superpowered actors to work in Hollywood.

Zemo Keeps Being Left Out Of MCU Stories

Daniel Brühl’s Helmut Zemo first made his debut in Captain America: Civil War, bringing the beloved comic book villain to the MCU for the first time. However, the character was incredibly different from his comic book counterpart, lacking many of the most iconic aspects of the character. Luckily, his return in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier made him closer to his comic book counterpart, giving Zemo his purple mask and his more regal attitude.

Despite him being brought back for the Disney+ series, Zemo hasn’t appeared since. This is a shame, as the character is incredibly important to the Marvel Comics universe. He is a key player in many of the biggest Marvel stories, especially those centered on Captain America. However, MCU adaptations of stories involving Zemo keep scrubbing the character from the arcs, as can be seen in Wonder Man.

In the comics, Zemo is incredibly important to Wonder Man’s origin story, with him being the one who created him. After being busted for embezzling funds from his company, Simon Williams is sent to prison. Simon makes a deal with Zemo and the Enchantress, agreeing that, if Enchantress pays his bail, he will help Zemo infiltrate the Avengers. So, Simon is freed, and Zemo transforms him into Wonder Man. As the story progresses, Wonder Man turns against Zemo and saves the Avengers, with him later becoming a true superhero.

None of this is included in the Disney+ Wonder Man series, with the show never even explaining where Simon got his powers from. Presumably, this origin isn’t canon to the MCU, as surely somebody would have mentioned it due to all of the big players involved. So, despite the fact that Zemo is one of the most important villains in Wonder Man’s life, he wasn’t included in the show at all.

This isn’t the first time that this has happened, however. Less than a year ago, Zemo was left out of another major project that he should have been involved in: Thunderbolts. In many Thunderbolts storylines, Zemo forms the team, using the fake heroes in order to grow his criminal empire. However, the members later turn on Zemo, becoming actual heroes.

This doesn’t happen in the MCU’s Thunderbolts. Instead, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine plays the role of Zemo, being the one who forms the titular team with villainous intentions. Zemo is again completely left out of his own story, which is a shame for fans of the character.

When Will Zemo Return In The MCU?

At the end of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Zemo is taken to The Raft, with him presumably still being imprisoned there. There is no clear path for Zemo to return in the MCU, as it doesn’t seem like he will appear in any of the officially announced projects like Avengers: Doomsday.

The most likely place for his appearance would be a potential Thunderbolts sequel. It would be fun to see a story where the New Avengers take on a comic-accurate team of supervillains pretending to be heroes. Zemo could be the one who forms this new team, meaning that the MCU can have its cake and eat it, too.

Another option would be a future Captain America movie. The MCU’s mainline Zemo has exclusively appeared in Captain America projects, so it wouldn’t be surprising for him to turn up in an unannounced fifth movie. He could even appear in a Black Panther film, as the Dora Milaje are the ones who arrest him and take him to The Raft.

However, Zemo actually did appear in a Marvel project last year. The character had a role in the animated Marvel Zombies series, which takes place in a different universe than the mainline MCU. However, this Zemo was voiced by Rama Vallury, meaning that it has been a while since Brühl has played the role. Hopefully he MCU corrects course and gives Zemo the focus he deserves sometime soon.

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