Jude Law’s Captain Marvel villain felt like a wasted opportunity, but at least the MCU managed to salvage the character 4 years later. Although the film ended up receiving mixed reviews, Captain Marvel was still a monumental achievement for the studio and the actors. One of these actors was Jude Law playing Yon-Rogg, Carol Danvers’ Kree mentor on Hala. Seemingly trustworthy at first, Yon-Rogg turns out to be the film’s main villain as the Kree’s true motives are revealed. Yon-Rogg had the makings of a decent villain, but his potential was ultimately wasted on limited screen time.
Despite Yon-Rogg surviving the events of Captain Marvel, he was limited to one film because of a one-picture deal and did not appear in The Marvels. In a 2024 interview with Variety, Law talked a bit about his MCU experience, saying, “I don’t think there was much more they could get out of Yon-Rogg. That, for me, was the height of Marvel.” He was ultimately satisfied with his time but wished he could’ve done a bit more with the role. Luckily for Law, he got to reprise his role as Yon-Rogg in season 2 of What If…?
Jude Law’s Captain Marvel Role Didn’t Fully Flesh Out The MCU Villain
Marvel Has A Habit Of Wasting Villains
Law’s Captain Marvel role fell victim to a recurring MCU villain trend. A character can’t really develop if they’re only limited to one appearance, especially villains who need fleshed-out motives. Marvel tends to use death as a consequence for the MCU’s villains which is perfectly fine, but some consequences are more interesting when the villain stays alive. For those who do make it past one project, their character development is often thrown to the wayside and wasted. Yon-Rogg managed to survive Captain Marvel, but it doesn’t matter as he hasn’t appeared in the MCU since the 2019 film.
Yon-Rogg was a somewhat interesting twist villain because the Kree are introduced as Carol’s ultimate allies. It’s only until she uncovers the truth about her human origins that she realizes their true motives, and the film should’ve spent more time focusing on Yon-Rogg’s specific role in that betrayal. He killed Carol’s original mentor and weaponized her newfound powers for the very cause she was helping to fight. Spending more time on him could’ve made him feel more sinister, but his characterization was pretty underwhelming.
Jude Law’s Comments About Yon-Rogg Make It Clear He Would Have Liked To Add More Humor To The Role
Leaning Into Humor Could’ve Made Yon-Rogg Stand Out
In the Variety interview, Law said that his time in the MCU was a good experience, but he wished he could have taken the character in a slightly different direction. He said, “I wish I’d been allowed to have a bit more fun with the part. I wanted him to be more arch. I wanted to lean into the humor more.” Although there are a lot of genuinely terrifying MCU villains, some do best with a little bit of humor, especially if they aren’t made out to be a top-tier vicious threat.
Marvel obviously had a clear direction that they wanted to take Yon-Rogg and that seemingly didn’t leave much room for Law to play around.
Yon-Rogg could’ve done with a comedic touch because, while he was a villain, the overall tone of his character wasn’t exactly dark. Making his character’s personality stand out in some way would’ve made it clearer to the audience that he was the main villain of the film, but he unfortunately fades into the background. Marvel obviously had a clear direction that they wanted to take Yon-Rogg and that seemingly didn’t leave much room for Law to play around, but it’s interesting to hear the actor’s insight into his character even all those years later.
Yon-Rogg’s What If…? Season 2 Appearance Let Jude Law’s Movie Wish Come True In A Different Way For The MCU
Law Voiced Yon-Rogg In The Disney+ Show
Law eventually did get to reprise his role as Yon-Rogg, though not in the Captain Marvel sequel as some expected. He voiced the character in episode 1 of What If…? season 2 which explored an alternate universe where Nebula joined the Nova Corps. This version of Yon-Rogg was freed from prison to aid Nebula, though he eventually turned on her. Nebula is able to regain control of the mission and Yon-Rogg meets his demise. Although it’s not the main MCU version of Yon-Rogg, it was fun to see Law return in some capacity.
The tone of What If…? leans toward humor, so Law did get his wish in a way. It’s especially notable since it doesn’t look like Marvel has any intention of bringing his character back at all. The fact that he got to portray Yon-Rogg one more time and incorporate some of his desired creative liberties is a better deal than most MCU characters get. The Captain Marvel villain may have been wasted originally, but Marvel has managed to make up for it in a different way.
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