With 14 movies already on their slate, Marvel Studios has introduced a plethora of villains to their cinematic universe. Some of them have even become as beloved to fans as the heroes themselves, such as Tom Hiddleston’s Loki and Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin. But coming in 2018 with Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel Studios will formally introduce one of their most powerful villains yet, and his name is Thanos.

The Mad Titan's had a long, villainous history in the Marvel comics and has lurked in the shadows for several of the MCU films now. Finally, Thanos will step out of the shadows and wreak havoc on the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

He may be one of the most powerful entities in the Marvel Universe (when equipped with his Infinity Gauntlet), but did you know that there are some Marvel characters that could kill the Mad Titan in mere seconds? Today we’ll be listing the characters that could obliterate Thanos if he wasn’t wielding the Infinity Gauntlet with all six Infinity Stones. Some of these characters might even surprise you.

Here are 15 Marvel Characters Who Could Defeat Thanos In Seconds.

15. Dormammu

Doctor Strange fights Dormammu in the Dark Dimension

He is the ruler of the Dark Dimension and one of Doctor Strange’s most formidable foes. Dormammu is one of the Marvel Universe’s most powerful villains; so powerful, that he cannot be killed. As depicted in Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange and in the comics, the Sorcerer Supreme has only defeated Dormammu by trapping him in his own dimension, disabling him from ever reaching the Earth realm.

Also known as the Lord of Chaos or the Lord of Darkness, Dormammu’s powers range from harnessing pure mystical energy to interdimensional teleportation to the creation of artificial life. He is a god within his own dimension and with a flick of his fingers, Thanos would no longer see the light of day. There are infinite ways that Dormammu could kill Thanos, but to see some examples, rewatch Dormammu’s scene in Doctor Strange.

14. Legion

Legion FX Trailer David Haller Dan Stevens

The son of Professor X, and an Omega Level Mutant, David Haller/Legion could possibly be the most dangerous mutant in the Marvel Universe. In addition to his telepathy and telekinesis, Haller is able to warp reality at will, and even travel through time. His most remarkable abilities, as well as his most threatening, are his split personalities. Each personality possesses different super powers and at times are able to completely take control of Haller’s body.

There are virtually countless ways Haller could take down Thanos, but we don’t have to look far for examples. In FX’s Legion, Haller (Dan Stevens) demonstrated that he is the most powerful mutant in the X-Men cinematic universe. When he fought against Division 3-- the show’s main group of villains-- with only a thought, Haller dismembered an army of highly-weaponized soldiers by sinking their bodies through concrete.

Another instance where Haller portrayed immense amounts of power was when he created a whole different reality by linking Syd Barrett’s (Rachel Keller) mind with his. Thanos has no chance against Legion.

13. Matthew Malloy

Matthew Malloy Omega Level Uncanny X-Men

Introduced in Uncanny X-Men Vol. 3 issue 23, Matthew Malloy was described by Charles Xavier to be “the largest mutant power source Cerebro has ever registered.” His powers range from matter manipulation to telepathy and telekinesis to teleportation. Malloy is so powerful that in the Uncanny X-Men comic run, when S.H.I.E.L.D. and Maria Hill disintegrated him with an energy blast, Malloy resurrected himself and vanquished Hill and all the other agents. When the X-Men tried to kill him, Malloy destroyed them all with ease.

Malloy can even warp reality at will and not even mystical entities, like Magik and Doctor Strange, are able to contain him. The only way the heroes were able to defeat Malloy was by traveling back in time and erasing him from existence by never allowing his parents to meet. There is simply no way Thanos can stand against Malloy, as Malloy could even destroy the whole universe and still be able to come back to life.

12. Mad Jim Jaspers

Also an Omega Level Mutant, Mad Jim Jaspers was a member of British Parliament before discovering his mutant powers. He is able to warp reality and travel within the multiverse, but his abilities contribute to him going insane. Jaspers is so powerful that the Earth-238 version of himself eventually led that universe to extinction and created a machine, The Fury, that killed all of that Earth’s superheroes.

Even so, the Earth-616 version of Jaspers is even more powerful. The 616 version of Jaspers was only defeated when The Fury was able to travel to Earth-616 before the destruction of Earth-238. The only limitation to Jaspers’s powers is that he needs already-existing reality in order to warp reality-- unlike other reality warpers that can bend and create reality out of nothing. If Thanos and Jim Jaspers ever faced each other in a duel, it would be in Thanos’s best interest to have his Infinity Gauntlet on hand.

11. Vulcan

The younger brother of Cyclops and Havok, Vulcan was raised by the people of the Shi’ar empire. Upon returning to Earth to serve as a slave for Erik the Red, Vulcan escaped captivity and was eventually found by Moira MacTaggert, who later introduced him to Professor Charles Xavier.

Vulcan is an Omega Level Mutant with the ability to psionically manipulate all forms of energy, as well as the psionic powers of other heroes. He has also been shown to be able to control Cyclops’s optic blasts and even mystical spells from mystical entities. One time he even became the sole emperor of the Shi’ar empire and fought Black Bolt to the death, causing a rupture in the space-time continuum.

The way Vulcan could easily kill Thanos is by disintegrating him via his vast energy powers. This could be through fire, electricity, force fields, heat, and/or light. And since the physical body is a product of energy, it’s even possible that Vulcan could boil Thanos’s organs at will, or worse.

10. Squirrel Girl

She has defeated Doctor Doom, Wolverine, and yes, even Thanos. She may be one of the most ridiculous characters in the Marvel Universe, but over the years, Squirrel Girl has become one of the most beloved characters in comics. Her popularity has even led Marvel Television to create a show that revolves around her debuting on Freeform in 2018.

Despite the aforementioned feats, Squirrel Girl’s most remarkable accomplishment to date is not that she single-handedly defeated Thanos, but that she bested Galactus with empathy and compassion. In the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl issue 4, when Galactus was about to devour the Earth, Squirrel Girl convinced him not to, essentially saving the entire planet from ultimate destruction.

As the name implies, Squirrel Girl is able to communicate with squirrels and she uses her rodent buddies to create the most elaborate strategies. Thanos has no chance against the people’s favorite, Squirrel Girl.

9. The Living Tribunal

The Living Tribunal is the most powerful character in the Marvel Universe, after the One Above All. He exists outside the vast multiverse and serves to protect it by maintaining the cosmic balance. Due to his near omnipotent abilities, if Thanos ever faced the Living Tribunal, Thanos would die in milliseconds.

Even if Thanos wields the Infinity Gauntlet, he is no match against the Living Tribunal, as seen in The Infinity Gauntlet six-issue series. When Adam Warlock united the strongest cosmic forces of Earth-616 to kill Thanos, Warlock asked the Living Tribunal for his help, but the Tribunal refused, believing that Thanos would bring balance to the universe. If the Living Tribunal had intervened, it’s possible that the aftermath of the battle between Thanos and Earth’s heroes would have come to a faster conclusion.

8. Galactus

Galactus-Gahlaktus

He is the Devourer of Worlds, and as of recently, the Seeder of Worlds. Before Galactus was turned into the Lifebringer of the Marvel Universe after Secret Wars (2015), he was the walking apocalypse of every unfortunate planet that satisfied his hunger. He is the oldest being in the Marvel Universe, as well as one of the most powerful. He contains the Power Cosmic, a form of grand cosmic energy that allows him to perform incredible feats.

It is virtually impossible to defeat Galactus in his normal satisfied state. Only when he is deprived of food, near starvation, is he vulnerable to defeat. Even then, as in Fantastic Four issue 243, it took the combined might of the Fantastic Four and the Avengers to bring him down.

With Galactus’s vast cosmic powers, Thanos would die instantly if he ever faced the Devourer of Worlds. And if Thanos faced Galactus post-Secret Wars, then he’ll truly have no chance, since the Lifebringer version of Galactus is more powerful than the previous version; the Lifebringer doesn’t need to consume planets in order to survive.

7. Mistress Death

Lady Death smiling in the comics

She is the embodiment of the concept of death in the Marvel Universe and is famous in the comics for her various romantic relationships with Thanos and Deadpool. Mistress Death is nearly all-powerful and is also able to resurrect diseased beings, as she did with Thanos during the Thanos Quest comic run.

Unless Thanos is wielding his Infinity Gauntlet, it would be impossible for him to even challenge Mistress Death, as she could instantly kill him at will. In addition to her powers, Mistress Death has infinite knowledge of the universe, making her one of the most intelligent beings in all of Marvel. Though she is immensely powerful, she has been defeated before by the Beyonder. Nonetheless, Thanos doesn’t stand a chance against an angry Mistress Death.

6. Molecule Man

Molecule Man surrounded in energy in Marvel Comics

Owen Reese is perhaps one of the most dangerous characters in the Marvel Universe. After experiencing an accident involving Cosmic Cube energy, Reese had the ability to control matter to the molecular level on a multiversal scale. His transformation into the Molecule Man even created the interdimensional portal that allowed the Beyonder to make first contact with Earth.

At first, Molecule Man was only able to manipulate inorganic matter, but during Secret Wars issue 11, he was shown to be able to also control organic molecules. This ability essentially makes him a god, and a deadly opponent to whoever is unlucky enough to face him.

One way Molecule Man could defeat Thanos in seconds is by rearranging Thanos’s body to whatever form Reese wishes. In other words, Molecule Man could disintegrate Thanos with just a thought! So vast are his powers that in Secret Wars (2015) issue 9, it was revealed that Molecule Man exists as one within the multiverse; each version of himself in all realities are like pieces of a puzzle that together form one whole entity.

5. Franklin Richards

Franklin Richards

The mutant son of Mr. Fantastic and Invisible Woman, Franklin Richards is so powerful that he even created his own pocket universe. He is considered by most fans to be the most powerful mutant in the Marvel Universe. In addition to his reality warping and cosmic abilities, Richards is also immortal. It was with the combined powers of Richards and Molecule Man that Mr. Fantastic rebuilt the Marvel Universe after the events of Secret Wars (2015).

Thanos doesn’t stand a chance, as Richards could make him disappear with just a thought. Richards is so powerful that the Celestials, a race of god-like beings, classified him as being beyond Omega levels. He even single-handedly defeated two Celestials. The only way Thanos could defeat Franklin Richards is if he is wielding the Infinity Gauntlet.

4. Jean Grey (With the Phoenix Force)

Dark Phoenix surrounded by fire on the pages of X-Men

Jean Grey with the Phoenix Force has proved to be one of the best superheroes in all of comics, as well as one of the most famous. She was depicted in X-Men: The Last Stand and briefly in X-Men: Apocalypse, but none of those cinematic portrayals compare to the Jean Grey of the comics.

As the Phoenix she is able to to manipulate matter and even control time. She can even resurrect herself and others. In the movies, especially in X-Men: Apocalypse, she is so powerful that only she was able to defeat Apocalypse.

If Grey ever faced Thanos in a duel, Thanos would fall to the wrath of the Phoenix in seconds. Though the Phoenix Force is a sentient entity that can bond with any mortal being it desires, Jean Grey has shown to be its favorite host, making Jean Grey, even without the Phoenix Force, a very deadly foe indeed due to her cosmic link.

3. The Beyonder

As previously mentioned, The Beyonder is near omnipotent; a being of unimaginable power. He exists outside of the Multiverse and only came in contact with Earth’s heroes after Owen Reese became the Molecule Man. After observing the Earth realm for some time, the Beyonder decided to intervene and created the first Secret Wars, where he took the best heroes and villains from Earth and put them to fight against each other in Battleworld.

This version of the Beyonder was later retconned to be a less powerful entity created by Cosmic Cube energy, with all of his extradimensional feats rewritten as mere illusions created by his psyche. It was later retconned that the Beyonder was actually both an Inhuman and a mutant instead of deriving from a Cosmic Cube. Then he was later retconned to actually be a creation of the beings known as the Beyonders.

Nevertheless, any iteration of the Beyonder can easily defeat Thanos without his Infinity Gauntlet in only seconds.

2. Sentry

Sentry kills Ares in Marvel's Siege

Robert Reynolds, aka Sentry/The Void, is essentially the Superman of the Marvel Universe. He possesses superhuman strength, speed, and stamina, as well as the ability to manipulate light and to become intangible, among other abilities.

When Reynolds becomes Sentry, he also risks allowing the Void, the physical embodiment of his “dark side,” to resurface and cause havoc. During the Seige storyline, the Void took control of Sentry and killed Ares the God of War, by ripping him in half. After transforming back into Sentry, he asked Thor to kill him, and Thor later cremates him in the Sun. He didn’t die definitely, though. During Uncanny Avengers issue 9 (2013), it was revealed that while Sentry was within the Sun, he was dying and regenerating over and over again. In that issue he also became the Horsemen of Death for the Apocalypse Twins.

Given Sentry's almost unlimited powers, Thanos would instantly die in a fight against Sentry.

1. World-Breaker Hulk

Hulk vs Sentry

After Hulk’s pregnant wife died due to Hulk’s spaceship exploding, he blamed the Illuminati and set a course for Earth. When he arrived to Earth’s solar system, he first made a stop on the Moon, defeating the Inhuman king, Black Bolt. He later led his wrath of destruction to the X-mansion where he defeated the entire roster of the X-Men. He followed suit in Manhattan, where he single-handedly defeated Ghost Rider, Iron Man, and the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Red Hulk, and even a demon-possessed Doctor Strange. After all seemed lost and New York was virtually destroyed, Earth’s last hope was Sentry.

During their battle, Hulk and Sentry almost destroyed the Earth. World War Hulk is one of the most acclaimed comic book series and gave us one of the strongest and most powerful iterations of Hulk we have ever seen. If World-Breaker Hulk can defeat all of Earth’s heroes without no sign of weakness, then Thanos is a mere punching bag for the Hulk.

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Who else can defeat Thanos without his Infinity Gauntlet in only seconds? Let us know in the comments.

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