Ranking Marvel Cinematic Universe Villains: Worst To Best

5. Justin Hammer - Iron Man 2

What I like about Justin Hammer, apart from the fact he is played by the utterly brilliant and underrated Sam Rockwell (who is also a pretty awesome dancer) is that, like Tony Stark, he has no powers, aside from his intellect and business prowess. Therefore in Iron Man 2, which I believe is an unfairly criticised film, we have the physical threat to the hero, which is a staple of every super-hero film, and comes in the shape of Mickey Rourke€™s Whiplash. However, we also get a different kind of threat that is rather unusual for a super-hero blockbuster movie, that of Hammer€™s constant under-mining of Tony as well as their business rivalry. However, like most of the villains used in the Iron Man films, I believe Hammer is underplayed and not all that impressive, and ultimately becomes not much of a threat at all, but is rather used for comic effect. Rockwell€™s character is instantly presented like a buffoon with his embarrassing dancing and the lukewarm reception he receives from the audience at the Stark Expo at the beginning of the film. Hammer is totally outshined by Tony€™s extravagant and explosive (literally) entrance, and however hard he tries, Hammer never seems to get one over on Tony in the film. Hammer is basically the negative double of Tony, successful and smart, but not more so than Tony, arrogant and egotistical, yet not in a charming or lovable way, more in an embarrassing and deluded way. Hammer is basically the poor man€™s Tony Stark, but if it was not for Hammer, we wouldn€™t have the much bigger threat of the film, which leads us to€