In the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the MCU will finally welcome the ultra-powerful villain known as the High Evolutionary into its ranks. However, while the High Evolutionary may be new to the movies, he has a long, long history in the comics, where the shocking true face underneath his imposing helmet has already been revealed - a disturbing visage which may soon appear on the big screen.
The High Evolutionary is Dr. Herbert Wyndham, an English doctor who - inspired by the X-Men's Mister Sinister - began experimenting with rapid evolution. Wyndham's work quickly catapulted him to godhood, and he has since become Marvel's pre-eminent expert on genetics, and arguably its most successful villain. The High Evolutionary often operates in the background of the Marvel Universe, and has had a hand in the creation of many heroes and villains, from Spider-Woman, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver to the New Men and the mysterious Maximoff sibling Luminous.
What makes the High Evolutionary so successful is that he's one of the few villains who generally avoids Earth's heroes. Despite being opposed by the likes of Thor and the Hulk - and sought out by Magneto when he lost his powers - the High Evolutionary has toured multiple dimensions and many different planets, carrying out his experiments. Indeed, Wyndham even created Counter-Earth - an alternate version of Earth existing on a different vibrational plane - which he uses as his personal testing ground. It was on this planet that - in Uncanny Avengers' 'Counter Evolutionary' arc from Rick Remender and Daniel Acuna - Earth's Mightiest Heroes confronted the villain, destroying his helmet and revealing the horrifying face beneath.
What the High Evolutionary Really Looks Like
While Dr. Herbert Wyndham was once a human, Uncanny Avengers #5 makes it clear that after years experimenting on himself and others, his body is now a mishmash of different animal forms. The High Evolutionary's favorite pursuit is to 'elevate' animals into sapient forms, and it seems his final fate is to become just like his experiments - with the caveat that unlike them, he isn't destroyed and replaced whenever his creator grows bored. The High Evolutionary has claimed in the past that his experiments are intended to fend off an unseen enemy that has still to surface, and as of his most recent appearance against the X-Men, he claimed a sample of blood from mutant power-replicator Synch, meaning his next batch of experiments are likely to be even mightier than before.
Will High Evolutionary's Real Face Appear in the MCU?
Fans already know that in the upcoming movies, the High Evolutionary will be played by Chukwudi Iwuji. In a pattern familiar to superhero movies in general, the usually-masked villain will appear without his helmet, however previews of his costume show that his 'face' itself may be a mask, with the skin bunching around the edges of the back of his head, which is entirely metallic. Because of this, it's entirely possible the High Evolutionary's self-experimentation will be revealed to have had the same effect.
The High Evolutionary Is One of Marvel's Biggest Threats
Whether the movies adapt this aspect of the character or not, revealing the High Evolutionary's true face was a genius move which showed that despite his quest for 'perfection' and godlike power, Dr. Herbert Wyndham is just another mad scientist, experimenting on himself in inadvisable ways and causing others to suffer for his own grand vision. In this respect, the Guardians of the Galaxy are the perfect team to thwart the High Evolutionary's grand plans, as there are few other Marvel teams who would treat him with the appropriate levels of disrespect.