Marvel Cinematic Universe: 10 Best Female Villains
Let's hear it for the evil ladies.
Let's face it: The villainous population of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is decidedly male dominated. Across the films and television shows that make up the franchise, names like Loki, Thanos, Kingpin, and Kilgrave are the ones most likely to come up when talking about memorable evildoers, but that's not to say we haven't actually had some excellent female antagonists turn up over the years.
With the back half of 2017 set to embrace female villainy with Sigourney Weaver's Alexandra going up against The Defenders and Cate Blanchett's Hela ready to make major waves in Thor: Ragnarok, now is the perfect time to look back and shine a spotlight on some of the MCU's best female villains to date.
From turning up in the movies to going toe-to-toe with the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to being a thorn in the side of Peggy Carter back in the day, they're characters who have had rich arcs of their own, have left a lasting impression on the landscape of the MCU, or - in some cases - have even bigger destinies yet to be fulfilled. But who is the best introduced so far?
10. Agent 33
Appeared In: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Debuting only a few episodes into the show's second season, Kara Palamas was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent that had been captured by Hydra, brainwashed, and forced to do the bidding of Daniel Whitehall. Eventually, robbed of her identity mentally, robbed of it physically thanks to the photostatic veil failing and leaving her with Melinda May's face, and robbed of the purpose that had been forced upon her in the wake of Whitehall's death, 33 found solace with Grant Ward, who helped restore her face and her memory.
Blaming Bobbi Morse for all that she had gone through - Bobbi had been the one to give up the safe-house Kara had been hiding in after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. in order to maintain her cover in Hydra, though had been unaware of Kara's presence - she and Ward enacted a plan to make Bobbi watch as Lance Hunter would be killed in front of her. Instead, though, when Hunter and other agents arrived to rescue Bobbi, Kara once more donned May's face, and believing her to be the real May, Ward shot and killed her before she could stop him.
What makes Agent 33 such an unforgettable villain is that her descent into antagonism was almost out of her control, with all the psychological trauma she had endured leading her down a path where she teamed up with Ward. It was a depressing arc for a tragic character, but one that sure was compelling.