Thor: Love and Thunder has gotten mixed reviews from general audiences and critics, and one of the biggest criticisms of the movie is that Gorr the God Butcher is killed off. The movie barely showcases just how fearful and worthy of an adversary Gorr is, which is exactly how he's depicted in the comics.
However, it's hardly the first time a villain was killed before showing what they're capable of in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Redditors have been quick to debate which villains were killed off too soon, and the choices are equally predictable and surprising.
Erik Killmonger
Redditor Cbekel3618 thinks the character shouldn't have been killed off, as he could have been a villain that takes multiple movies to take down. The Redditor posits, "I think he would've made an awesome foil for the Wakandans, their equivalent to Magneto or Loki."
However, Killmonger's story in the 2018 movie is perfectly wrapped up, and the movie is just as much Erik Killmonger's story as it is King T'Challa's story, if not more so. And though it isn't properly part of the universe, Killmonger does return in the Disney+ series What If...
Hela
Hela is one of Thor's biggest enemies, and of all the family fights in the MCU, of which there are many, not much beats the epic fight in Asgard to the tune of "Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin in Thor: Ragnarok. But this Redditor thought the character's time in the MCU was too short-lived.
However, the Redditor notes that it's more than possible that she could return at some point, explaining, "Hela disappears before the sword hits her. They can easily bring her back." There's a common rule in movies and TV that if audiences don't see the death, then it never happened. And, in that respect, Hela could have some kind of role in The Multiverse Saga.
Ultron
While there are some fun scenes in Avengers: Age of Ultron, such as the party where every Avenger tries to lift Thor's Hammer, the 2015 release is one of the least watchable Phase 2 movies. But what keeps the film from being completely disappointing is the titular villain (James Spader), who is genuinely menacing, and Spader amazingly taps into the antagonist.
Reddit user MsGhostyGhost thinks Ultron deserved way more time in the universe than just the one movie. The Redditor comments, "part of Ultron's whole schtick is meant to be that he's nigh-impossible to fully kill cause he just keeps back-ups of his consciousness everywhere." Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness does feature Ultron bots as guards of the Illuminati, so there's a chance that fans could hear Spader's voice as the maniacal robot once more.
Ulysses Klaue
Klaue also appeared in Age of Ultron, but he had a much bigger role in Black Panther. However given that Klaue is one of Black Panther's biggest enemies in the comic books, his role in the 2018 movie is bitterly disappointing, as the hero and villain don't fight once.
Redditor DoILookLikeASkater thinks the character should have lived on instead of getting killed off, noting, "I'd be absolutely fine if they brought him back with some excuse like 'it was his twin brother all along.' I just want more Andy Serkis as Klaue." Serkis was chewing the scenery as Klaue, as he does with all of his roles, and he was clearly having so much fun playing the South African mercenary, but he was killed way too soon.
Ronan The Accuser
Ronan has appeared twice in the MCU, but he was wasted both times. Ronan the Accusor is supposed to be an imposing and terrifying villain, but in Guardians of the Galaxy, he was taken down by being distracted by a dance-off. And in Captain Marvel, he looked utterly harmless when he first saw the superhero, and his dumbfounded nature was simply played off for laughs.
Reddit user SmokedSpirit feels especially hard done by the character's early death, noting, "Ronan definitely was. They didn't give him enough of a back story or scenes." Ronan never got to show how much of a threat he can be, and he ultimately ended up being one of the MCU's most disappointing villains.
Whiplash
Once again, Whiplash is a much bigger villain in the comic books than his movie counterpart. In Iron Man 2, he was relegated to simply being a henchman to Justin Hammer. However, the movie still featured some great fight scenes involving the character, and his storming on the Monaco Formula One track is one of the best action sequences in Phase 1. But that just left audiences wanting much more, including Shadowman113.
The Redditor notes, "A reoccurring Whiplash would have been a perfect Iron man villain, considering he knew how to make the technology himself." Whiplash could have been to Iron Man what Loki is to Thor, but he was just a villain of the week.
Mysterio
Reddit user SmokedSpirit thinks Mysterio was killed off way too early in Spider-Man: Far From Home, noting, "Mysterio should've survived too. Fury should've taken him into space jail or something. Jake Gyllenhaal was great." Unfortunately, it would have been virtually impossible for Mysterio to return to the MCU, as Sony owns the rights to the character.
As Sony and Marvel Studios' partnership to bring Spider-Man into the MCU was messy enough, it's unlikely that either studio would have wanted to have gone through the same rigamarole again. However, the Redditor is right that the character was certainly killed off way too early, as Sony could have at least used the character in their own Spider-Man adjacent projects.
Crossbones
Crossbones is the main antagonist in the Captain America: Civil War comic book, so it was hugely disappointing to many comic book fans when that wasn't the case in the movie. However, not only was Crossbones not the movie's antagonist, but he was killed off five minutes after being introduced.
Reddit user NevroHyuga was especially disappointed that the villain was killed off so early, noting, "Dude got like no love once he was actually crossbones. Like ten minutes and BOOM, he was just gone." However, his death could also be seen as cleverly subverting expectations, as Crossbones kills Cap in the comic. But subverting expectations will always disappoint somebody.
Taskmaster
Taskmaster is one of the newest villains in the MCU, as she appeared in Black Widow as Dreykov's henchwoman. The character is a fan favorite comic book character, as the villain can imitate any of the Avenger's superpowers. But in the 2021 movie, her action sequences left a lot to be desired. Though Taskmaster doesn't die, she is given an antidote that frees her from being mind controlled and is no longer a villain.
Redditor Sadwolfe thinks that was a big mistake, noting, "She would have been great to keep around if done right. Good villain for hand-to-hand combat types." But just because she was freed doesn't mean there can't be other variations of Taskmaster in the future.
Thanos
It seems a bit far-fetched to think that Thanos needs to be explored further or that he was killed too soon. The character appeared in several MCU movies over the course of seven years, and there were two movies dedicated to him taking on the Avengers, with Infinity War ending with him wiping out half of human life in the universe.
However, Flam3emperor622 can't get enough of the purple alien, genuinely believing that the MCU needs more Thanos. The Redditor explains, "Thanos had more stories to tell as well, he's Eternal with a Deviant Gene." As Eros, Thanos' brother, appeared in an Eternals post-credit scene, Thanos being Eternal might actually be explored in the sequel.