12 Biggest Genuine Shocks In MCU History
2. The Real Mandarin
As soon as you even mention Iron Man 3, you don’t think of Tony Stark’s PTSD. You don’t think of his retirement, the Iron Legion, or even the fact that Aldrich Killian could breathe fire. Your mind will always go straight to Trevor Slattery.
The Mandarin has been one of Iron Man’s fiercest villains for many years in the comics, and his inclusion in the MCU was a welcome one, particularly after Mickey Rourke’s Whiplash tainted the previous Iron Man movie.
Ben Kinglsey had brought the terrifying Mandarin to life exceptionally well throughout the movie, until Tony Stark infiltrated his compound and found the character to be nothing more than a drug-addicted actor from Liverpool who was being paid to play the role of the terrorist on screen.
In fairness, Kinglsey also played Trevor Slattery to perfection as well, but that didn’t stop fans from hating the twist and the film itself. Marvel Studios had seemingly brought to life a force of an antagonist from the comics, only to turn him into something of a joke completely out of left field. Even in a world where She-Hulk has twerked with Megan Thee Stallion, this is still the most divisive moment in MCU history.