10 Times The MCU Was Right To Forget The Source Material

4. Helmut Zemo's Origin - Captain America: Civil War

Korg MCU
Marvel Studios

After the Red Skull and HYDRA in the first two Captain America movies, Helmut Zemo entered the MCU for Civil War and began the trend of phase three villains being a cut above what we'd seen previously. His plan may have been too convoluted, but the character himself was both sympathetic and compelling.

It would have been easy for the franchise to use the character to continue the villainous thread from The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier, as Zemo has strong ties to HYDRA and was a protégé of Johann Schmidt in the comics. However, his origin story was modified to better suit the history of the MCU.

Rather than coming from a German background, following closely to the ideals put forward by the Nazis, Helmut Zemo instead hailed from Sokovia, and his personal motivation tied into the events of Age of Ultron rather than a wider, more generic philosophy.

Allowing Helmut Zemo a real reason to hate the Avengers, and giving him a personal and emotional vendetta against the heroes of the franchise allowed us to relate and connect to the character in a way that a comic accurate origin story never could have.

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