Since the franchise's inception, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has introduced a veritable bounty of Marvel characters into its shared universe, although the studio's timing isn't always perfect. As inarguably the biggest franchise in cinema, the MCU features a truly staggering roster of characters. Since its inception in 2008, it has adapted a number of iconic Marvel heroes and villains into live-action, as well as a few more obscure figures for good measure. However, it doesn't always introduce these characters at the optimum moment.

In many cases, the poor timing of the MCU can be attributed to behind-the-scenes issues. There are a number of characters that Marvel has long been unable to adapt due to rights issues, and others saw production delays that prevented a more timely introduction. However, some characters were simply not introduced in the way they deserved, wasting their narrative potential and making sure the MCU cannot use certain storylines simply by introducing them too late. With that in mind, here are 10 MCU characters that were introduced at the wrong time.

10 Ironheart

Introduced to the MCU in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Riri Williams' biggest inspiration is Tony Stark. However, introducing the character after Stark's death in Avengers: Endgame is a clear missed opportunity. Whereas the comics see Stark act as something as a mentor for the brilliant young engineer, the MCU can explore no such relationship between the two. Seeing Ironheart work alongside the hero who inspired her would have been a touching moment, but it's not something the MCU will ever be able to facilitate.

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9 Namor

Namor is one of the few MCU characters that was somehow introduced both too late and too soon. One of the Marvel Universe's most prominent mutants, Namor the Sub-Mariner is a key figure in the comics but wasn't introduced into the MCU until Phase 4's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. However, he's one of the first mutants formally introduced into the franchise, which is also more than a little odd considering the X-Men's continued absence. From a narrative perspective, it would have made more sense to introduce Namor alongside the rest of the MCU's mutants (or at least after).

8 The Mandarin

In the comics, the Mandarin is a major Iron Man villain, but his status as Tony Stark's nemesis never came to pass in the MCU. Though Iron Man 3 involved a controversial Mandarin twist, it was later revealed in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings that the mystical villain did in fact exist. Sadly, he was introduced too late to ever fulfill his potential as an Iron Man villain, marking a severely missed opportunity for the MCU.

7 The X-Men

The issues with introducing the X-Men into the MCU are well-documented, and the poor timing of their impending introduction was ultimately unavoidable. Having sold the rights to Fox decades prior, Marvel found themselves unable to introduce their iconic mutant heroes into the franchise during its earlier stages, drastically altering the landscape of the MCU's potential story. The timeline of the X-Men's introduction renders multiple comic storylines unusable due to the death or retirement of other MCU heroes before they ever so much as appeared in the franchise.

6 ​​​​​​Wasp

Despite being a founding member of the Avengers in the comics, Wasp wasn't properly introduced into the MCU until Phase 3's Ant-Man and the Wasp. Not only did this fail to do justice to the character's prominent role in the comics, but it actually failed the traditional Wasp, Janet van Dyne. The MCU's Wasp is her daughter Hope, and it's retroactively revealed that Janet had actually been the Wasp prior to the founding of the Avengers before getting lost in the Quantum realm. Wasp deserved to be one of the MCU's original Avengers, but she was simply introduced far too late.

5 Ultron

In the comics, it's fair to say that Ultron is one of the most dangerous Avengers-levels threats the heroes have ever faced. He appeared as a villain in Phase 2's Avengers: Age of Ultron but was ultimately introduced far too early to carry the significance he deserved. As he was introduced before the MCU fully established its formula of major villains, Ultron was ultimately far less important a character than he deserved to be. He was also introduced before Hank Pym, meaning that his backstory was revised to have Tony Stark create him instead, further undermining his character.

4 The Eternals

Introduced in Phase 4's Eternals, the titular team seems distinctly out of place in the MCU. In the continued absence of iconic Marvel teams such as the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, the inclusion of the Eternals seems more than a little odd, as it subtly implies that they are more important than the much more well-known heroes yet to be introduced. What's more, the cosmic-level threat of the Celestials and the Deviants hadn't been appropriately set up, further contributing to the general feeling that the characters were brought into the MCU too early.

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3 Ant-Man

In the comics, there are few Avengers as important as Ant-Man/Hank Pym, who was one of the team's founding members. However, not only was Ant-Man not introduced into the MCU until long after the Avengers, but Pym himself was skimmed over in favor of Scott Lang. Pym's impact on the Marvel Universe as a scientist as well as a hero was therefore played down significantly for the MCU, and his past as Ant-Man was chronicled as little more than an afterthought. The late introduction of Hank Pym and Ant-Man into the MCU remains one of the franchise's biggest failures of a key hero.

2 Daredevil

The eventual introduction of Charlie Cox's Daredevil into the MCU was a welcome one, but it still came about far too late. As one of many actors from Marvel TV shows to be brought into the MCU, it seemed as though Cox's Daredevil would capitalize on the success of Netflix's Daredevil. However, the MCU's Man Without Fear was brought into the franchise much too late to adequately cash in on the character's Netflix popularity, as confirming his presence in the MCU earlier would have created a great deal more excitement for the character.

1 Reed Richards

Though it took a significant amount of time for Marvel to gain the rights to the Fantastic Four, the MCU has suffered without Reed Richards in the meantime. As the leader of the Fantastic Four and one of Marvel Comics' brightest minds, his absence from the MCU was particularly notable throughout its earliest stages. As he's set to be introduced long after the deaths and retirements of similarly important Marvel heroes, there's a subtle but undeniable sense that Reed Richards isn't as important a figure in the MCU as he is in the comics, making his late introduction one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's worst-timed introductions.