15 Greatest Performances In Marvel Cinematic Universe TV Shows 

4. David Tennant - Kilgrave (Jessica Jones)

Marvel TV Performances 2
Netflix

After Daredevil, and in particular Kingpin, set the standard, Jessica Jones and Kilgrave had a lot to live up to. So, for the villain-of-the-piece, they turned to a man most well-known for playing a hero.

David Tennant was unquestionably a good actor, but could he be the level of bad that was necessary here? The answer, after 13 episodes of the best Marvel TV show, was an unequivocal yes.

Tennant's Kilgrave is the scariest kind of monster. He isn't physically intimidating, he's not going to win many fights, nor he is of superhuman intellect. What he can do, though, is control your mind, and it's that power he uses to strike fear into the hearts of characters and viewers alike.

And yet, while he has this ability and is undoubtedly cruel, he's never completely unsympathetic. And that comes from Tennant. An immensely likeable actor, he gives , at turns, a massive amount of charisma and an invitation to pity him.

Tennant was really able to open up Kilgrave's psyche, showing us the various aspects of the character: the lost little child within, the lovelorn man, the monster. He was markedly different not just to Kingpin, but all other Marvel screen villains.

Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.