Thanks to Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, there are now a substantial number of vacant slots in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) superhero collective. Lots of mainstay superheroes have left and that can only mean one thing: Replacements! It seems every decade or so, the MCU's Avengers become a rotating door of old and new faces, and it's high time some new superheroes join the group.
Of course, having an extensive and near infinite source material, the MCU will have no problem with reserves. In fact, the issue might be that there are too many memorable fan favorites in the comic books while the slots in the MCU are limited. So, we've compiled a list of the most popular members of the Avengers in the comic books. These are the guys and gals we hope to see next time the Avengers assemble in the MCU.
For the sake of inclusivity, we'll be omitting some of the obvious "Superman" analogs of Marvel, otherwise, they might take up the majority of this list.
STORM
Ororo Munroe (Storm) is one of the most powerful members of the X-Men; she also has had a big role in the Avengers. She's actually T'Challa's (Black Panther) canon wife and love interest in the comic books. While their union ended up in a divorce, it was still a noteworthy wedding in the Avengers timeline, as nearly everyone (who's good) was invited.
Meanwhile, as a member of the Avengers, Storm's mutant powers are irreplaceable. She can directly influence the whole world through weather or other forces of nature and basically act as a planetary defense line. Such a capability of the Avengers is needed now more than ever since the most major MCU enemies are bound to come from the darkest corners of the universe.
HERCULES
The last time we see Thor was him giving up the Avenger mantle. He also resorted to being a corpulent god of nothing; consequently, there now exists a void in the Avengers. They are in dire need of a naive, dense, and brash mythical superhero to do the weapon bashing and speaking in ye old English, thou'st! Hercules fits the bill and has been a regular in the Avengers in the comic books.
Granted, Hercules is not quite in the same ballpark as Thor. Still, Hercules possesses a similar charm and can match Thor's strength and invulnerability. There is also the fact that Hercules is basically a god and functionally immortal. Introducing him to the MCU might prove to be quite challenging as he'll probably need his own film.
NAMOR
Namor is Marvel's take on the Atlantean superhero just as Aquaman is DC's. However, he's not as clear-cut a hero as Aquaman. Namor the Sub-Mariner sometimes turns into a villain and his allegiance can be ambiguous. That didn't prevent him from being around, and Namor has both been an Avenger and an X-Man. Atlantis and Wakanda have both been at war for a long time, which may be worth exploring in the MCU.
There is no doubting Namor's power, especially when in his natural habitat, water. Like Storm, Namor can prove to be a crucial asset to the Avengers because his domain is pretty much 70% of the Earth. He can communicate with marine life telepathically and even control them. Who needs a conventional spy network when you've got Namor?
NOVA
The last time we heard of the Nova Corps (the elite army of the Nova Empire) in the MCU was Thanos wiping them out on Xandar back in Avengers: Infinity War. Actually, he just mentioned it in passing. Regardless, that can actually set up the stage for another big Avenger aptly named Nova (Richard Rider).
In the comic books, Nova only became what he is after the Nova Corps was wiped out and Richard was chosen randomly to inherit the Nova Force (the source of their power). Now, we don't know yet whether Tony snapped the Nova Corps or Xandar back to the way it ways (probably not) but they are pretty much decimated right now, meaning the Nova Force in the MCU is up for grabs. As for Nova himself, he's a respectable heavy hitter who has survived a fight with beings like Thanos and even Galactus. Naturally, the Avengers would want someone like that.
SPIDER-WOMAN
Since the Avengers lost Black Widow, it's in need of a new female spider. Okay, not really a spider but a female superhero who also does covert operations. Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew) can fill in that role and she's arguably even better than the human Black Widow. Oddly enough, Hawkeye and Spider-Woman were a thing in the comic books, just like how he and Black Widow were "close" in the MCU.
As for her powers, she's quite similar to Spider-Man, although minus the web. Instead, Spider-Woman has the ability to perform a self-propelled glide in the air which is pretty close to flying. Of course, that's in addition to superhuman strength, speed, reflexes, durability, stamina, regeneration, hearing, and wall crawling. We did mention she's also multilingual, an expert spy, and master martial artist, right?
SHE-HULK
MCU's Hulk is one of the most criminally underutilized Avengers and some of his fans are still hoping for a spotlight film with Mark Ruffalo. That's a film we might never get, and consequently, lowers the chance of She-Hulk (Jennifer Walters, Bruce Banner's cousin) appearing with the Avengers.
It's quite sad since a good way to introduce She-Hulk would be through Hulk's own solo film. She's basically Hulk but with control and poise. She-Hulk's not necessarily as powerful as Hulk but she'd still be a welcome powerful female superhero. Moreover, she's always present on Earth, unlike Captain Marvel who's too busy dealing with other planets.
MOON KNIGHT
Moon Knight (Marc Spector) is arguably the most fitting role for Keanu Reeves if he is to be ushered into the MCU. He's pretty much Marvel universe's own version of Batman but more looney. Moon Knight only comes out at night and wears a broody mask along with a dark(-ish) origin story. He only has slightly above human strength and speed but makes up for it with resourcefulness and skill.
Moon Knight will pretty much give Hawkeye a run for his money. When it comes to being an Avenger, he has an eventful history with them. Moon Knight has been a member of many different versions of the Avengers. He's even sided with the Avengers when they had to fight the X-Men. However, like Batman, he's quite antisocial and often shies away from being a team player.
HYPERION
When it comes to Marvel's own "Superman," Hyperion (Marcus Milton) is probably the closest or most familiar. He's also an alien from another planet (or reality, even) whose adopted birthplace was destroyed by a universal cataclysmic event. Hyperion was even powerful enough to hold together his own reality to keep it from breaking apart temporarily. Eventually, his reality got violently obliterated but he survived. He somehow ended up in Earth-616 or the official reality of Marvel.
Thankfully, he's a paragon superhero from his own destroyed reality and wanted to continue his job in Earth-616. Hyperion doesn't really get much spotlight in the Marvel comics and, when he does, they tend to underutilize him. Still, his powers are a lot more tremendous than stated outright; he was able to prevent two planets or universes from colliding at one point. Imagine someone as powerful as that in the MCU's good guys roster.
SENTRY
Depending on the writer (or the fans), Sentry (Robert Reynolds) can be more powerful than Hyperion. Sentry's power is equivalent to a million exploding suns, meaning he's too damn omnipotent. He's also another one of those Marvel versions of Superman. The problem is, he's not much different than the Hulk. Reynolds actually suffers from agoraphobia and anxiety disorder, making him quite unstable.
Moreover, Sentry is plagued by the Void, his own repressed persona. Every now and then, it tends to take over and cause Sentry to wreak havoc on Earth. When he's stable, he's more than useful and has even managed a draw against a World Breaker Hulk (the strongest version of the green monster). Sentry is certainly someone who would work well in MCU and could also be a good role for Keanu.
WOLVERINE
Now that Disney/Marvel has re-acquired the rights to mutants, we might very well see Wolverine alongside Earth's mightiest heroes. It's where he really should have been all along instead of bumbling about in the polarizing X-Men films. Wolverine is definitely one of the most memorable fan-favorite members of the Avenger. The volatile hero has the personality and powers to fit right in.
Wolverine is the point man in the Avengers, the guy who isn't afraid to get dirty and do what's necessary even if it means decimating himself. Whenever something difficult or surgical needs to be done, Wolverine is the go-to for Avengers. Thankfully, he might not be absent in the MCU for long. It would be interesting to see where his allegiances lie once we finally reach an Avengers vs. X-Men point in the MCU if that ever happens.