10 Most Improved MCU Characters

8. Maria Hill

Maria Hill isn’t necessarily a character who went from a bad portrayal to a great one, but rather a character who grew with every appearance. She went from being a slightly anonymous agent, very much in Coulson’s shadow, to being a more fleshed out, relatable, and likeable character in Nick Fury’s team.

Cobie Smulders’ experience as Robin Scherbatsky in How I Met Your Mother prepared her for the dry delivery of Hill, first seen in her debut in Avengers. Her withering ‘he turns’ when Tony asked how Fury kept track of all the monitors proved she could kick it with the big guns, but there was something missing.

Avengers though was followed by more personality filled roles in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Avengers: Age Of Ultron. Her screentime still wasn’t huge, but it was what she did with it that counted. It’s not easy to define yourself in such a short space of time; look how forgettable Emily VanCamp was as Sharon Carter.

By plot necessity she largely sat out Infinity War with another backseat role, but is due to star in Spider-Man: Far From Home this summer. No doubt she’ll shine again.