MCU: 10 British Villains In Marvel's Cinematic Universe - Ranked Worst To Best

Through Marvel's expansion of the real-life Operation Paperclip, the US government received a lot more than they bargained for when trying to tap Arnim Zola's scientific expertise in the aftermath of WWII. Thanks to his cellmate Johann Fennhoff (as seen in a much-welcomed cameo in the Agent Carter episode Valediction), Zola used this opportunity to rebuild the ashes of HYDRA within the newly established SHIELD.

The epitome of German efficiency and Nazi ideology, the climax of Zola's decades-long strategy would wipe out all of HYDRA's enemies (or anyone deemed to be too 'other') in one single strike. Captain America may have been able to turn Project Insight's gunships on each other, but by this point HYDRA was rooted so deep into the core of SHIELD that the only way to defeat the neo-Nazi regime was the dismantling of the entire parent organisation itself.

And it is here where Zola really stands out. There aren't many villains who would have the patience of waiting over half a century for their efforts to reach fruition, and even less whose plans would still have such a monumental world shattering outcome. He even transfers his consciousness into a computer complex after receiving a terminal diagnosis, confirming The Winter Soldier was really just an episode of Black Mirror all along.