The MCU's 13 Greatest Heroes

Saving the world (or the universe) is a dirty job but somebody's gotta do it. Since the 1940s an ever-expanding group of people with a special set of skills have been putting their lives on the line, facing off against amoral businessmen, corrupt intelligence agencies, alien invaders, genocidal robots and intergalactic warlords, all in order to protect people who they'll never even meet. From New York to San Francisco to Wakanda, these heroes have bled and sweat to keep everyone else both safe and free. 

13. Spider-Man

Not long ago, Peter Parker just wanted to get through high school in one piece. But after meeting a one-of-a-kind spider and later, billionaire Tony Stark, the teen found himself swept up in international political squabbles and extra-terrestrial invasions. Pete fought valiantly alongside his mentor before Stark martyred himself destroying Thanos and his horde.

12. Thor

Norse deity Thor Odinson helped to fight off the Chitauri invasion in New York before going toe-to-toe with Thanos on three separate occasions. He also, somehow, found the time to stop Ultron from wiping humanity off the face of the Earth.

11. Quicksilver

After initially allying with murderous robot Ultron, Pietro Maximoff became the first Avenger to make the ultimate sacrifice (before the Vision, Natasha Romanoff and Tony Stark) when he put himself in the line of fire to save a little boy during the Battle of Sokovia.

10. Ant-Man

Systems engineer-turned-convict Scott Lang supersized his hero game after putting his brains and compulsion to stand up for the little guy to use helping original Ant-Man Dr. Hank Pym to keep his shrinking technology out of megalomaniacal hands. He was later recruited by Sam Wilson to stop Tony Stark from enforcing the Sokovia Accords and later joined the Avengers in fending off Thanos' second attack on Earth.

9. Rocket

Though he sounds like a New Yorker, the trigger-happy raccoon actually hails from a distant corner of the galaxy. After putting his greed to the side, he assisted his fellow Guardians of the Galaxy in retrieving the Power Stone from fanatical Kree leader Ronan the Accuser. Later, Rocket became the only guardian to survive a scuffle with Thanos and his forces unscathed.

8. M'Baku

As ruler of Wakanda's Mountain Tribe, M'Baku enjoyed an adversarial relationship with the kingdom's monarch, T'Challa and even challenged him for the throne in single combat -- as was his right. But after the latter was deposed, M'Baku saved his life and, eventually, helped him to fight an alien invasion. 

7. War Machine

Lt. Colonel James "War Machine" Rhodes joins the fight against the murderous A.I. Ultron in the Battle of Sokovia before going on to helping to repel an alien invasion in both Wakanda and upstate New York.









6. The Hulk

After rampaging across the U.S. in his monstrous state, Dr. Bruce Banner joined the Avengers Initiative in The Avengers and became an invaluable, albeit unstable, member of the team. Since then, he's gone on to help fight off two alien invasions, find love -- temporarily -- with Natasha Romanoff., aid in the defeat of a genocidal A.I. and return half of the universe to the land of the living.

5. Bucky

4. Iron Man

Endgame, which marks Tony Stark's final appearance in the MCU, features him making the ultimate sacrifice in order to protect the Earth from Thanos. So we probably won't be seeing the self-described billionaire/genius/playboy/philanthropist again anytime soon (if ever). But Stark's impressive Hollywood run deserves to celebrated. We've seen him go from a narcissistic arms-dealer to a selfless hero onscreen. From facing off against terrorists to surviving hostile deadly corporate takeovers to going toe-to-toe with a giant intergalactic warlord, Iron Man's big screen adventures have spanned from 2008 to 2023 and we still haven't seen him as much as we'd like.

3. The Falcon

From airman to grief counselor to Avenger, former USAF member Sam "the Falcon" Wilson has led quite a life in his short, 40-some-odd years. Along the way, he's helped to save the country from fascism, been wiped from existence and even helped to save the universe after having been reincarnated.









2. Black Panther

After ascending to the throne (following his father's murder) of the African kingdom of Wakanda -- the most technologically-advanced nation on Earth -- King T'Challa successfully wins his crown back after an insurrection. He subsequently vows to use his resources to aid members of the African diaspora around the world.









1. Steve Rogers

Endgame, which marks Steve Grant Rogers' final appearance in the MCU, features him passing both his shield and his mantle over to Sam Wilson. So we probably won't be seeing the first Avenger onscreen again anytime soon. But the original Captain America's impressive Hollywood run deserves to celebrated. We've seen him go from a sickly, pint-sized weakling to a muscle-bound living legend. From facing off against Nazis to dismantling corrupt American intelligence agencies to going toe-to-toe with a giant intergalactic warlord, Cap's big screen adventures have spanned from 1945 to 2023 and we still haven't seen him as much as we'd like.