8 Actors Who Starred In Disappointing Superhero Movies Before Landing Now-Iconic Marvel & DC Roles

Many of your favourite Marvel and DC superhero actors starred in other comic book movies before those now-iconic roles and, in this feature, we're looking at the actors who managed to turn it all around...

By JoshWilding - Sep 13, 2024 12:09 PM EST

Filed Under: Marvel Studios

Many comic book characters have been brought to the big screen over the years, but there are only so many actors willing to fill those roles.

That's why a few Hollywood stars have ended up playing multiple parts across the Marvel and DC Universes, with at least some of them using the second characters they've played to turn their careers around after those disastrous first attempts.

For example, Ryan Reynolds almost killed his career by playing Green Lantern in the 2011 flop; however, he'd more than made up for that with his role in the Deadpool franchise, with this year's Deadpool & Wolverine now the highest-grossing R-Rated movie of all time.

Today, we're looking at 8 actors who have played comic book characters in poorly received superhero movies, only to later redeem themselves with far more successful performances in movies and TV show that didn't flop with fans, critics, and at the box office.

So, to see who made the cut, simply hit the "Next"/"View List" buttons below...

8. Scarlett Johansson

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Before suiting up as the MCU's Black Widow in 2010's Iron Man 2, Scarlett Johansson played femme fatale scientist, Silken Floss, in the critically panned big screen adaptation of Frank Miller's The Spirit.

The movie was terrible and was not the right direction for the actress as she looked to break into the world of Hollywood blockbusters. Thankfully, playing Natasha Romanoff paid off in a big way, and while she's struggled with big-budget fare outside of that (while Lucy was only a moderate hit, Johansson does have Jurassic World Rebirth on the horizon), her time as this Avenger more than made up for any past mistakes.

On the plus side, Johansson at least looked phenomenal in the 2008 flop and it's easy to see why Jon Favreau saw her as the perfect femme fatale for his Iron Man sequel.

7. Josh Brolin

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Josh Brolin had mixed success over the years in the comic book movie realm, largely due to his hard-to-forget (and not in a good way) roles in the likes of Jonah Hex and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, both of which flopped.

However, 2018 was most definitely his year, as the actor played an incredible motion-capture baddie with Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, and then suited up as fan-favourite mutant Cable in Deadpool 2. He excelled in both, and his work in Avengers: Endgame was every bit as impressive.

Those films were also massively successful and cemented Brolin as one of Hollywood's top stars. If recent rumours are to be believed, the role of Hal Jordan in Lanterns could be next for him, though he has supposedly passed on the role.

6. Chris Evans

Chris Evans delivered a memorable turn as Johnny Storm in Fox's terrible Fantastic Four movies and was equally as watchable in The Losers (we're betting many of you have forgotten about that one).

However, while he'd later deliver a scene-stealing performance in Edgar Wright's Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, it was playing Captain America that proved to be a game-changing role for the actor. That role has seen him become not only an icon, but an A-Lister who is no longer having to slum it in second-rate blockbusters and romcoms. Sure, Ghosted wasn't good but look how great he was in Rian Johson's Knives Out.

Had Captain America: The First Avenger not come along in 2011, who knows what direction his career might have taken?

5. Michael B. Jordan

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There was a great deal of controversy surrounding Michael B. Jordan's casting as Johnny Storm in Josh Trank's Fantastic Four reboot. That was quickly forgotten when fans got wrapped up in all those juicy reports about what happened behind the scenes at 20th Century Fox.

With the blame lifted from them for what a mess this thing was, the cast mostly escaped unscathed, and Jordan, in particular, was able to redeem himself by taking on the role of Erik Killmonger in Black Panther.

That was an incredible performance which, after his work in Creed, proved that he's one of the best actors working today. Before DC Studios was formed, it looked like he might eventually suit up as the Calvin Ellis version of Superman.

4. Ryan Reynolds

Before finding some well-deserved success with Deadpool, Ryan Reynolds tried again and again to break into the superhero movie genre with little success. He was enjoyable to watch in Blade: Trinity, but that movie was such a disappointment after the first two films, no one really cared.

Then, there was X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Logan's first solo movie massively dropped the ball with the Deadpool character and while Reynolds was a highlight in Green Lantern, it was another critical and commercial disaster. Heck, it came close to completely destroying his career.

As a result, it wasn't until he suited up as the Merc with the Mouth that he returned to the A-List, and his star has been on the rise ever since. After Deadpool & Wolverine, we remain eager to see what's next for him as Wade Wilson on screen.

3. Brandon Routh

Superman Returns should have made Brandon Routh a household name, but Bryan Singer's insistence that the actor channel Christopher Reeve instead hurt his career in a way it was tough to come back from.

Thankfully, Edgar Wright gave him the opportunity to show off a very different side in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, and he'd later find success as Ray Palmer in Arrow and with a lead role in spinoff Legends of Tomorrow. Unfortunately, his time in the latter came to a premature end, something Routh and fans expressed disappointment over before The CW's DC TV shows were all cancelled anyway.

Before that happened, he had one more chance to play Superman in Crisis on Infinite Earths and bid farewell to the Man of Steel in an amazing and satisfying way.

2. Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson changed the MCU forever when he popped up as Nick Fury at the end of Iron Man, but the actor has made a lot of very strange decisions over the years. Honestly, The Spirit was probably his most questionable and his villain, The Octopus, was, well, terrible.

In fact, had fans known he had been cast as Nick Fury while watching this mess, something tells us that they might not have been keen to see the legendary actor as part of Marvel's shared world.

Luckily, it took little to no time for Jackson to make a lasting impact by playing Fury, a role he's since made entirely his own. All these years later, he's still playing the former S.H.I.E.L.D. Director and we love him for it. Here's hoping the remainder of the Multiverse Saga does right by him.

1. Mark Strong

Mark Strong found quite a bit of success in the likes of Kick-Ass and the two Kingsman movies, but his role in Green Lantern haunted the British actor for several years (in both good and bad ways).

While he was a great choice to play Sinestro, he looked every bit as silly as Ryan Reynolds thanks to his bright pink skin and CGI costume. As a result, what was meant to be an exciting post-credits scene proved to be an underwhelming, confusing addition to an already pretty terrible movie.

It took a while, but Strong got the chance to return to the big screen DC Universe where he played Shazam! villain Dr. Sivana, a bad guy vastly more memorable than the Sinestro we got in 2011. It's just a shame Shazam! Fury of the Gods didn't do right by him...

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22 Comments

Steel86 - 9/13/2024, 12:11 PM

Brandon Routh is a reach. I'm a fan but doesn't really seem to fit the mold for this list. I've always thought The Spirit was underrated. And with Ryan and Michael B on the list I thought you would've added how Ryan spoke you for Michael after the film bombed.

lazlodaytona - 9/13/2024, 1:27 PM

@Steel86 - I believe Brandon got screwed just as much as Henry C did in Batman v Superman.
Routh got stuck in a film that was almost identically scene for scene from the original Superman from the late 70s. and he got no super being to face off against (now, Routh saving the plane and landing it in the baseball field was epic.
Henry was given, what.... 32 small lines in a 2 & 1/2 hour movie? I believe both were screwed by the writers and directors.

Steel86 - 9/13/2024, 1:56 PM

@lazlodaytona - Oh definitely. Screwed and handcuffed by makeing a sequel 30yrs later to a film that already had sequels. Made no since.

lazlodaytona - 9/13/2024, 4:52 PM

@Steel86 - agreed completely

HermanM - 9/13/2024, 12:14 PM

Chris Evans was awesome as the Human Torch, even better than he was as Cap, and the 2005 & 2007 Tim Story Fantastic Four movies were good.

Mark Strong as Sinestro was great casting and he looked great, but he should have been the film's villain and been in his blue & black suit with the yellow power ring and should never have been Hal Jordan's mentor like the awful retcon. Sinestro should already be a renegade GL kicked out of the corps bent on revenge when Hal meets him, like the original comics did it.

Steel86 - 9/13/2024, 12:28 PM

@HermanM - Agree with everything you said and want to add. Mark's turn wasn't even earned. He did little to nothing to warrant his turn. Not to be that guy, but reminds me of Zack's MOS were Clark and Lois hook up and he shows up at the Daily Planet with a job. Assuming the audience knows the story and not taking time show how we got there.

HermanM - 9/13/2024, 12:33 PM

@Steel86 - Yep exactly. There's no logical flow to it at all. Snyder's MOS is terrible. The Superman reboot should have followed Byrne's reboot verbatim and it would have been perfect.

harryba11zack - 9/13/2024, 12:18 PM

all of them.

CerealKiller1 - 9/13/2024, 12:19 PM

How is Sivana an ‘iconic’ role?

TheVisionary25 - 9/13/2024, 12:24 PM

@CerealKiller1 - yeah

I haven’t seen Fury of The Gods but I thought he was just alright in the first one (which I liked quite a bit).

He did well but it was by no means iconic.

lazlodaytona - 9/13/2024, 1:31 PM

@CerealKiller1 - I agree, but...damn. I get 2011 GL film tanked, but Mark Strong was 1,000% perfect for Sinestro. The post-credit scene of him putting the yellow ring on his finger was the best post-credit scenes in all of the DCEU.

I hope Gunn would consider bringing him back as the character.

dracula - 9/13/2024, 12:21 PM

i wouldn't call savanah iconic

Sinestro was one of the few things people liked about Green Lantern

Shazam is great but he isn't all that interesting of a villain

TheVisionary25 - 9/13/2024, 12:23 PM

I have never seen the Spirit tbh , might have to give it a shot…

I know it wasn’t received well when it came out but has developed a cult following.

Plus it has some actors in it that I like such as Gabriel Macht (Harvey Spector from Suits)…

The dudes in his 50’s now but it would be nice to see him in another comic book property though he hasn’t acted on screen since 2019 so idk if he’s retired or not.

It would be nice if the Spirit got another shot ,maybe as a tv show?.

Steel86 - 9/13/2024, 12:42 PM

@TheVisionary25 - I've alwaysed enjoyed it. I think one of the knocks was alot of people were expecting Sin City and its not that. Its more Machete'. A crazy but fun film. I'd watch it for the way Samuel L. Jackson pronounces Hercules alone.

Moriakum - 9/13/2024, 1:29 PM

Mark Strong and Brandon Routh iconic?

ModHaterSLADE - 9/13/2024, 1:29 PM

Strong as Sinestro was damn good, shame he was wasted in a shit movie.

lazlodaytona - 9/13/2024, 1:31 PM

@ModHaterSLADE - 100% agreed sir

Arthorious - 9/13/2024, 9:36 PM

@ModHaterSLADE - I wouldn’t be mad if Gunn made Strong Sinestro in the DCU

DravenCorvis - 9/13/2024, 1:30 PM

Only 8?

It was 10 last time.

https://comicbookmovie.com/marvel-studios/10-actors-in-bad-superhero-movies-who-turned-their-careers-around-playing-different-marvel-dc-characters-a194654

lazlodaytona - 9/13/2024, 1:33 PM

"...and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, both of which flopped."

100% not Brolin's fault at all.

Cryptonautaz - 9/13/2024, 4:25 PM

They kept Wolverine around some how, I wish Strong's Sinestro could be handled the same way. He was spot on.

Tpo81 - 9/14/2024, 12:31 AM

Mark Strong looked and was a great Sinestro. His pink skin is exactly what he should look like. If anything it was the overuse of cgi. But the bright colors is what I want to see. Imo anyways

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