With the arrival of Sentry and the Void in Thunderbolts*, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has added one of its most powerful and unpredictable forces to the MCU timeline. While technically a hero, Sentry’s darker half, the Void, served as the true villain of Thunderbolts⁎, reshaping the power rankings across the franchise. Now that this cosmic-level threat has debuted, it’s time to reᴀssess who stands among the MCU’s most powerful villains – and how they compare to Sentry and his destructive alter ego.
In Thunderbolts⁎, the Sentry is introduced as a government superweapon gone wrong, his psyche fractured by immense power. His evil half, the Void, emerges as the movie’s primary antagonist, nearly wiping out the entire team and threatening global annihilation. By the end, a combined effort suppresses the Void, and the Thunderbolts* post-credits scene implies Sentry has retired to prevent another appearance of the Void, though he remains a part of the Thunderbolts team.
10
Loki
Thor & The Avengers
Loki may be one of the most beloved villains in the MCU, but in terms of raw power, he’s not as formidable as later foes. His threat level skyrocketed in The Avengers thanks to the Tesseract and an alien army provided by Thanos. Without these, Loki is a skilled illusionist and trickster, but not physically overwhelming. He’s been bested by Thor multiple times and often relies more on manipulation than brute strength.
Still, his ability to deceive, shapeshift, and influence major events makes him one of the most impactful antagonists in the franchise. He’s not in Sentry or Void’s league power-wise, but Loki’s cunning and resourcefulness keep him in the top tier narratively. Post-Loki series, he’s no longer a villain, but his early appearances show just how far guile alone can take a character.
9
Surtur
Thor: Ragnarok
Surtur was teased as a threat early in Thor: Ragnarok, but his full destructive potential isn’t unleashed until he becomes the agent of Ragnarok itself. Once Thor places Surtur’s crown into the Eternal Flame, the fire demon grows to colossal size and proceeds to annihilate Asgard, effortlessly defeating Hela, the Goddess of Death. That feat alone ranks him among the MCU’s most powerful beings.
Unlike many villains, Surtur wasn’t stopped by the heroes – in fact, he needed Thor and Loki to enable his rise to destroy Asgard and end Hela’s reign. Though he’s seemingly destroyed in the process, his power level puts him close to the likes of Dormammu and Ego. However, his imprisonment and need for Thor’s help rank him lower.
8
Ego, The Living Planet
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
A Celestial with the ability to shape matter, create life, and terraform entire planets, Ego ranks as one of the most powerful MCU villains. In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Ego reveals that his goal is to reshape the galaxy into versions of himself using seedlings planted across the cosmos. With Peter Quill’s Celestial heritage, he nearly succeeds, until the Guardians destroy the brain at the core of his planet-body.
Ego is unique among villains for being a literal planet with godlike abilities. His downfall lies in his arrogance and overconfidence, but in terms of power, few could challenge him directly. Ego’s long-term threat to the universe places him firmly in the upper echelons of MCU antagonists – if not quite as erratic or emotionally torn as the Void.
7
Dormammu
Doctor Strange
As the ruler of the Dark Dimension, Dormammu exists beyond time, space, and death – making him virtually unbeatable in any physical confrontation. In Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme defeats Dormammu not through combat, but by trapping him in an endless time loop using the Eye of Agamotto. Annoyed into submission, Dormammu agrees to leave Earth alone in exchange for his freedom.
It’s a rare example of a villain too strong to be overpowered, only outwitted. Dormammu remains a looming cosmic threat in the MCU timeline, capable of returning at any point. Compared to the Void, Dormammu is more abstract and less personal – but their destructive potential is comparable. If Dormammu ever reemerges, he and the Void could easily become the ultimate dark cosmic forces of the MCU.
6
Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Ultron is one of the most enduring threats in the MCU because of his digital nature. Created to protect the world, Ultron quickly evolved into a genocidal AI who believed humanity needed to be eradicated for peace to be achieved. With the ability to continuously upgrade himself and transfer his consciousness across countless robotic bodies, Ultron can never truly be killed unless every copy of his code is destroyed.
He’s also able to access and manipulate electronic systems globally, which makes him even more dangerous in the modern age. Though his final body was destroyed in Avengers: Age of Ultron, a damaged Ultron head briefly appeared in Spider-Man: Homecoming, suggesting he could still be hiding in the MCU. While he doesn’t match Sentry’s raw power, Ultron remains a terrifying, ever-lurking presence.
5
Kang the Conqueror
Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania
Kang the Conqueror was positioned as the next major saga villain in the MCU, and while his full power wasn’t completely unleashed in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the film makes it clear he’s a dangerous multiversal threat. Kang claims to have killed countless Avengers across timelines and possesses advanced technology far beyond anything on Earth. His suit gives him telekinetic abilities, energy blasts, and even time manipulation.
What truly makes Kang formidable, however, is the existence of his variants across the multiverse, each with their own powers and agendas. Though he was defeated, the final outcome remains ambiguous. Kang’s intelligence, strategic mind, and ability to alter reality through time travel place him in the same conversation as cosmic-level threats. He may not match Sentry’s brute force, but his threat level is comparable.
4
Scarlet Witch
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Wanda Maximoff fully embraced the mantle of Scarlet Witch in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, becoming one of the MCU’s most terrifying villains. Empowered by the Darkhold, Wanda decimated Kamar-Taj, dream-walked across realities, and single-handedly mᴀssacred the Illuminati without breaking a sweat. Her reality-warping chaos magic allows her to bend space, minds, and fate itself, making her almost unstoppable.
Even before her Darkhold corruption, Wanda was considered one of the most powerful Avengers, capable of overpowering Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. Her descent into villainy made her even more dangerous, as she acted purely out of grief and obsession. Though presumed ᴅᴇᴀᴅ at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, her fate is uncertain. As a magical threat, Scarlet Witch stands nearly toe-to-toe with Sentry – and arguably surpᴀsses him in versatility.
3
Hela
Thor: Ragnarok
Hela, the Goddess of Death, proved herself to be a near-unstoppable force in Thor: Ragnarok. She managed to destroy Mjolnir with one hand – a shocking moment that underscored her dominance. As Odin’s firstborn and the original wielder of Asgard’s armies, Hela is more powerful than Thor in combat and completely decimated Asgard’s entire resistance. Her ability to generate endless weapons and regenerate herself on Asgard made her seemingly immortal.
Even Thor at his most powerful couldn’t stop her, ultimately needing to unleash Surtur to bring about Ragnarok and destroy Asgard to end her reign. Hela’s brutal combat style, magical abilities, and invulnerability put her among the strongest villains in the MCU. While Sentry may eclipse her in sheer destructive scale, Hela’s command over death itself makes her one of the most fearsome adversaries ever.
2
Sentry (The Void)
Thunderbolts*
The arrival of Sentry in Thunderbolts⁎ immediately changed the MCU power scale. As a hero enhanced far greater than expected from a super-soldier formula, Robert Reynolds (aka Sentry) possesses godlike strength, speed, and energy manipulation. However, it’s his dark counterpart, the Void, that makes him a villain-level threat. The Void is an extension of Sentry’s fractured psyche, manifesting as a terrifying force capable of reducing others to shadows and causing mᴀss destruction without remorse.
In Thunderbolts⁎, the Void annihilates most of the team before being barely contained. Unlike other villains who seek power or domination, Sentry/Void represents chaos born from inner turmoil, making him nearly impossible to predict or control. If fully unleashed, the Void could rival or exceed even the might of cosmic enтιтies.
1
Thanos
Avengers: Infinity War & Avengers: Endgame
Thanos remains the most powerful villain in the MCU to date, and his combination of brute strength, tactical genius, and philosophical conviction made him terrifying even before he collected the Infinity Stones. In Infinity War, he defeats the Hulk with ease in hand-to-hand combat, and once he ᴀssembles all six Infinity Stones, he becomes functionally omnipotent.
His infamous snap erases half of all life in the universe with a single thought. Even without the Gauntlet, Thanos nearly overpowered Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America together in Endgame. His presence shaped the entire Infinity Saga and redefined the stakes of superhero storytelling. While the Sentry’s Void may match him in raw devastation, Thanos had the strategic clarity and focus to potentially stop such a threat before it fully formed. With or without the Stones, Thanos remains the gold standard of MCU villainy, even after Thunderbolt*.
Upcoming MCU Movies
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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
- Release Date
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December 18, 2026
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Spider-Man: Brand New Day
- Release Date
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July 31, 2026
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Avengers: Secret Wars
- Release Date
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December 17, 2027
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