The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)
may stand out as the most successful franchise of superhero films ever made, but many of the Marvel heroes who populate it had their feature debut many years earlier. Marvel Comics was founded in 1939 under the name Timely Comics. And interestingly, the company first launched with a comic тιтled Marvel Comics, which became a regular series for the brand.
It wasn’t until the 1960s that Timely rebranded and officially adopted Marvel as the name of the company, and by that point, many of the most popular characters to come from Marvel were already created. And while Marvel trailed behind the compeтιтion such as DC, which was already making movies about their characters from the early 1940s, Marvel began to make moves with getting their characters on the big screen in a much more proactive way during the 1970s and 1980s. But their first appearance on the big screen actually came much earlier in 1944.
9
Captain America’s First Movie Was During WW2 (1944)
Captain America debuted in a Timely Comics publication тιтled Captain America in December 1940. At this point, World War II was in full swing, and the comic book reflected that, with early versions of the hero frequently facing off against the dreaded Nazis. With the character being one of the more popular heroes from Timely Comics, Republic Pictures, the same studio that produced a set of serials featuring the hero Shazam, then known as Captain Marvel, and several others featuring heroes like Zorro and The Lone Ranger, opted to make a serial about Captain America.
The serial consisted of 15 parts, and featured a significantly different version of the character from the comics. Rather than portraying Steve Rogers, the film followed Grant Gardner, a District Attorney who secretly fought crime as the vigilante, Captain America. In addition, the serial chose to not have Grant Gardner receive a super soldier serum, like in the comics, but instead portray a much more grounded version of the character. Despite this, with his costume pulled straight from the comics, this was the first appearance of Captain America on the big screen.
8
Spider-Man’s First Movie Was In 1977
Spider-Man was a sensational hit from the moment the character debuted in 1962. With a hero who connects with the readers, and a wonderfully emotional and insightful set of stories, Spider-Man rapidly became one of the most popular heroes ever made. However, when CBS tried to capitalize on the success of the character in 1977, the results were mixed. In the hopes of launching a successful television series, they commissioned a 90-minute feature movie for TV to launch the live-action show.
However, the movie failed to really capture the spirit of the comics, which led to creator Stan Lee being deeply upset with the production. The ratings were solid, but viewers complained about a lack of recognizable characters from the comics, and the show failed to grab the attention of a more mature demographic. CBS also had concerns about the number of superhero productions on their slate, having already featured shows about Hulk, Captain America, Wonder Woman, and more.
7
Dr. Strange Was One Of Marvel’s First Movie Heroes (1978)
Another effort from CBS yielded even less impressive results when the network released a Doctor Strange TV movie the following year, in 1978. However, it does appear that the film was made with a more mature audience in mind, and it even featured a Marvel villain from the comics, Morgan le Fay, which previous superhero films avoided doing. And while the movie did manage to maintain more comic book accuracy than many previous entries, it did not launch a series as CBS intended.
Despite the film’s lack of success, it is an important moment in the history of the Marvel movies. Up to this point, studios frequently pushed back against the comic book source material, changing names, powers, villains, and integral parts of the story. If anything, Dr. Strange was seen as being held back by the source material, as the film dedicated a chunk of the runtime to following Stephen Strange before he acquires any mystical powers, working in his chosen profession as a doctor. Then, it brings a comic book villain to the screen, which was a milestone for Marvel movies.
6
Howard The Duck Made History For All The Wrong Reasons In 1986
Despite the steps forward that Dr. Strange took in adapting comic book stories accurately, the first ever theatrical feature film released in ᴀssociation with the Marvel brand was an obscure character known as Howard the Duck. This remains one of the weirdest and lowest points in comic book movie history due to the bizarre nature of the story, and the choices taken to have Howard, an alien duck, get into a romantic relationship with Lea Thompson, fresh off of her success in Back to the Future.
Howard the Duck was a weird movie, and it presented a version of this character that leaned into the cheeky and off-piste comedy of the 1980s. However, with the character’s relative obscurity, it wasn’t all that recognizable as a Marvel movie. Since then, Marvel has featured Howard the Duck in What If…?, and included them in brief cameos in cinematic releases.
5
The Incredible Hulk Graduated From TV To TV Movie In 1988
However, back on the small screen, Marvel’s most successful series to date was thriving. The Incredible Hulk show which aired between 1977 and 1982 proved a hit which succeeded because of the innovative and creative approaches to adapting the Green Giant. Before CGI advanced to the point of creating entire characters, this series brought the Hulk to life with the aid of Lou Ferrigno, an exceptionally large and muscular man who played the role of the Hulk opposite his alter ego, David Banner.
While the series did make changes to the narrative, including changing Bruce Banner’s first name, the show was a success that led to several feature-length adventures. The first film was тιтled The Incredible Hulk Returns, which was released in 1988, and began a three-film saga that concluded in 1990. With the characters having been established years earlier, and fans of the show tuning in en mᴀsse, the film was a huge success for the network, and remains one of the most popular Hulk films ever made, despite not having a theatrical release.
4
Thor Also Appears In The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988)
The Incredible Hulk Returns was primarily a movie about David Banner and his alter ego. However, it also marked the feature debut of another Marvel hero, Thor. When David Banner got close to finding a cure for his gamma-fuelled transformation, a former student, Donald Blake, recognizes him and threatens to put a stop to his progress. Blake has come into the possession of a magical hammer, which he uses to summon the god of thunder, Thor.
This iteration of the character had some differences from the comic books, namely in regards to the character of Donald Blake. In comics, Blake was often a vessel that Thor inhabited, or even a name Thor used in order to disguise himself. In The Incredible Hulk Returns, Blake is a young man who can summon Thor by holding his hammer and shouting Odin’s name. Despite the character being turned into a kind of genie, Eric Kramer’s performance in the role of Thor was memorable and thoroughly exciting.
3
Ivan Drago Played The Punisher In 1989
In 1989, the next attempt at a Marvel movie highlighted the character of The Punisher, a violent vigilante who viciously puts down criminals. With a darker, more mature hero at its core, the film focused on creating intense action and appealing to an audience for that genre specifically. And the result was casting Dolph Lundgren as Frank Castle’s Punisher.
While the film was criticized widely at the time of release, sometimes for the lack of accuracy in adapting the comics, and others for the narrative feeling too much like a comic book, the movie has gone on to enjoy a level of cult success. However, due to the movie only getting a video release in the US, it struggled to gain major notoriety in 1989. But the years have been kind to the film, and there is a growing fanbase that celebrates the debut of Frank Castle in live-action.
2
The Fantastic Four Had An Entire Made For 1994, But It Was Canceled
One of the most disappointing moments in Marvel’s early history came with the creation of the unreleased The Fantastic Four movie in 1994. Marvel had been trying to sell the film and TV rights to several of it’s most popular characters for years in order to keep the comic book side of operations afloat. However, the rights to The Fantastic Four were held for a long time by Constantin Film. However, when the rights were due to expire, the studio sought to retain them by way of making a low-budget film that would allow them to hold on to the rights.
The budget was set at $1 million, and the film hired actors, a crew, costume designers, and so on. From all accounts, it appears as though most of the individuals involved in the production put in incredible efforts to ensure that, despite the lower budget, this would be the best version of the movie that it could be. However, with work on a film allowing the studio to extend their contract, they chose to cancel any planned release in order to avoid criticism about the low-budget film. Today, the unreleased movie is readily available online.
1
Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Was An Early Take From 1998
Last, and possibly least in terms of critical response, Fox produced a TV movie starring David Hᴀsselhoff in the role of Nick Fury, a character who went on to become the driving force behind the Avengers in the MCU. Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. was an ambitious film which was intended to launch a TV series with the incredibly popular Hᴀsselhoff, but things did not go exactly according to plan upon the film’s release.
The movie received widespread negative criticism, which pointed to the writing, the execution, and generally, everything in the film coming across as weak and uninteresting. And coming just a few years before the X-Men movies, and in the same year that Blade would grace the big screen, Nick Fury’s TV movie faded into obscurity. Today, Marvel has found great success in taking the reins for their story adaptations back in-house, and it’s paid off in a big way, but that doesn’t mean the movies that paved the way should be ignored.
Upcoming MCU Movies
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Captain America: Brave New World
- Release Date
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February 14, 2025
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Thunderbolts*
- Release Date
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May 2, 2025
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The Fantastic Four: First Steps
- Release Date
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July 25, 2025
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Avengers: Doomsday (2026)
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Spider-Man Homecoming 4
- Release Date
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July 24, 2026
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Avengers: Secret Wars
- Release Date
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May 7, 2027
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