Alien Races We Want To See In The MCU

The Marvel universe is obviously most known for Earth's Mightiest Heroes, but the extensive characters of the comic book conglomerate aren't limited to just one planet. In fact, there have been hundreds of extraterrestrial species that have graced the pages of Marvel comic books throughout the years, ranging from devious lizard people to horse-faced sorcerers. While earthbound super-teams like the Avengers and X-Men are more limited in their exposure to otherworldly life forms, cosmic groups like the Guardians of the Galaxy and S.W.O.R.D. really peel back the curtain on just how abundant alien beings are in the Marvel universe.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has already brought several alien races to life on the big screen. Loki's army in 2012's Avengers was made up of Chitauri soldiers, 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy introduced both Xandarians and the Kree, and even the shape-shifting Skrulls made their big on-screen debut in 2019's Captain Marvel. However, there's still a plethora of wild and weird species in comic lore that's yet to hit the MCU. Here are some of the alien races we want to see in the future phases of the MCU.

Although they might not have the name recognition of the Skrulls or the Kree, the Shi'ar are one of the most dominant alien races in Marvel lore. Descended from avians, these humanoid beings rule over a ginormous intergalactic empire headquartered on the planet Chandilar. Longtime Marvel writer Ed Brubaker once compared the Shi'ar to the Romulans of Star Trek. "They're smart and aggressive and mean as hell."

While there have been a number of notable Shi'ar warriors to date, the most significant characters are the Neramani siblings — Lilandra, D'Ken, and Cal'syee, aka Deathbird. Each one-time Shi'ar ruler has had run-ins with Marvel heroes throughout the years. Deathbird once went toe-to-toe with Hawkeye in 1963's Avengers #189, D'Ken killed Katherine Summers, the mother of Cyclops and Havok, and Lilandra was actually even married to Professor X for a brief time period.

Perhaps the most interesting facet of the Shi'ar is the Imperial Guard, an elite team of super soldiers who enforce the law within the empire. The Guard has played both friend and foe to Earth's favorite heroes over time, boasting a diverse roster of various species. How might this relate to the future of the MCU? As it turns out, Isabel Kane, better known by her Avengers teammates as Smasher, is also a Superguardian of the Imperial Guard. Kane's rural Iowan upbringing is strangely parallel to that of Peter Quill's, so the two characters could mesh well should the Shi'ar be introduced in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise.

If you're a fan of Xenomorphs, the terrifying extraterrestrial antagonists of the Alien franchise, you'll probably appreciate the Brood, a similar-looking, parasitic race that's posed a major threat to the Marvel universe on numerous occasions. These insectoid lifeforms have enormous fanged mouths, and they utilize venomous, scorpion-like stingers to attack their foes. However, the real horror is that they implant their eggs into hosts, infecting their blood and essentially stealing their bodies. Over the years, the Brood have infected some of the most powerful Marvel heroes, including Ghost Rider, Professor X, and even Thor.

While these buggy baddies have plagued alien races like the Shi'ar and the Kree, they're also commonly at odds with Earth and Earth's protectors, especially the X-Men. In 1963's Uncanny X-Men #162, the space-bound mutant team was nearly defeated by the pesky parasites. Storm and even Wolverine became infected before Carol Danvers, in her newly unlocked Binary form, came in to save the day.

Due to their close affiliation with the X-Men, it's entirely plausible that the Brood could work their way into the MCU as antagonists to the on-screen mutants. However, they'd probably have to tone down their horrific appearance a little in order to avoid giving young moviegoers nightmares!

The Badoon are one of the oldest alien races in the Marvel universe, even predating the Skrulls and the Kree. Longtime allies of Thanos the Mad Titan, these lizard people have attempted to invade Earth multiple times in their long-spanning comic history, battling the likes of Namor the Submariner, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men.

One thing that makes the Badoon particularly interesting is that they're a gender-segregated society. Male and female Badoon are independent of each other, ruling over separate planets. The Sisterhood of Badoon are pacifists, whereas the Brotherhood of Badoon are aggressive conquerors.

When speaking to Pointless Podcast, James Gunn, director of both Guardians movies, explained why the Badoon didn't appear in 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy. "Marvel only partially owns Skrulls, and also for the record, we don't own the Badoon, either." Given that Gunn will be returning to direct the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, perhaps the reptilian aliens will finally make an MCU appearance after all, since Disney finally owns the rights.

With enemies like the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the Hellfire Club, the Reavers, and the Sentinels, the X-Men have certainly faced their fair share of fearful foes throughout the years. Perhaps one of their biggest threats, however, is the Phalanx, alien cyborgs who infect others with a virus that painfully assimilates them into their hive-minded fold. They're kind of like zombies. Or robots. Yeah, zombie robots ... from space!

While a good majority of the Phalanx's Earth encounters involve the X-Men, these dastardly villains have clashed with many cosmic forces, too. During the Annihilation comic event, the Guardians of the Galaxy had an unfortunate run-in with them, resulting in Drax and Gamora's assimilation and the torture of Star Lord. The Phalanx have even wreaked havoc on other alien races, such as the time they conquered the mighty Kree Empire.

There are a slew of creative ways the MCU could incorporate the Phalanx into their future films. With confirmed cosmic-heavy sequels like The Eternals and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on the horizon, the door is always open for a new extraterrestrial antagonist. Or, one particularly interesting, albeit unlikely possibility involves an old Avengers foe — Ultron! In the Annihilation: Conquest comic arc, it's revealed that the Phalanx are actually led by everyone's favorite murder-bot. Ultron's return is a topic that's heavily theorized on MCU message boards, so if he came back with an army of Phalanx behind him, fanboys probably wouldn't be upset!

If you've seen 2018's Venom, Sony's blockbuster film starring Tom Hardy as the popular Spider-Man frenemy, you're actually familiar with at least one member of the Klyntar alien race. The Klyntar, better known as symbiotes, are a parasitic extraterrestrial species. These beings latch on to hosts, becoming one single entity. Venom was the first Klyntar to pop up in comics, but since his first appearance in 1988's The Amazing Spider-Man #300, there have been several new symbiotes introduced to the Marvel universe, including Carnage, Toxin, and Riot.

Although it remains to be seen how Venom, Carnage, and Sony's current "Spidey-Verse" could mesh with the MCU, the Klyntar would be a welcome addition to the multi-billion dollar film franchise for a number of reasons. For one, Peter Parker is historically a pivotal character in most symbiote storylines, so adding Tom Holland's Spidey to the mix just makes sense. There's also the popular Venomized comic run, wherein the Klyntar inhabited most Marvel heroes and gave them twisted new temporary personas.

Another comic factoid that could potentially link the symbiotes to the MCU is their origin. The Klyntar were created by Knull, an ancient evil deity. Knull is one of Marvel's most powerful villains, able to even decapitate a Celestial (perhaps the very head introduced as Knowhere in Guardians of the Galaxy). Now that Thanos has been defeated, could Knull be the next cosmic big bad in the MCU? With an army of symbiotes, he'd certainly be a force to be reckoned with.

Move over, Smaug! There could be a new cinematic dragon in town, and his name is Fin Fang Foom! Perhaps Marvel's deadliest monster, this enormous, scaly beast is often mistaken as a dragon. However, he's actually a Makluan – a reptilian alien from the Andromeda Galaxy.

Most Makluans are peaceful, but Foom and a group of his peers left their home planet of Kakaranthara in search of worlds to conquer, ultimately landing in ancient China's Valley of the Sleeping Dragon. Decades later, the Mandarin, Iron Man's sworn enemy, would discover the Makluan starship and all of its advanced tech, including the ten power rings that would come to be his trademark weapons.

The Makluans' connection to the Mandarin could have major meaning in the future of the MCU. While Sir Ben Kingsley's Trevor Slattery was revealed as a fraud in Iron Man 3, there is still a very real Mandarin alive and kicking in the MCU. In fact, fans will get to officially meet him when Tony Chiu-Wai Leung takes on the role in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Perhaps the film will explore the villainous character's origin, and in doing so, reveal a Makluan or two. Claws crossed!

In the comics, the Skrulls are one of the Avengers' greatest foes. They've successfully infiltrated Earth a number of times, and their shape-shifting ability is a real tricky threat to deal with. However, it turns out that the Skrulls aren't even the most evil branch in their family tree. That would be the Dire Wraiths, the deviant "red-headed stepchild" of the Skrull society. In fact, the Skrulls so feared their genetically altered cousins that they drove them out of the Andromeda Galaxy and into the Dark Nebula, where they eventually found a home on Wraithworld.

Throughout the years, the Dire Wraiths have stirred up trouble for Marvel's various super teams on several occasions. They even once invaded Earth, settling in Clairton, West Virginia, where they were eventually discovered by the likes of the Fantastic Four and Dr. Strange. They are a truly repulsive breed, stealing their victims' identities by piercing their skulls with a drill-like barbed tongue. Gross!

In 2019's Captain Marvel, the Skrulls finally made their MCU debut. However, they were surprisingly revealed to be more of a desperate ally to Earth, unlike their nefarious comic book counterparts. Perhaps they were depicted in such a light in order to differentiate them from their malevolent relatives. Some fans believe that the Dire Wraiths could be coming to the MCU soon, perhaps in Captain Marvel 2.

The Korbinites are a peaceful species of humanoid beings who once ruled a small empire of planets. They were eventually forced to flee when Surtur — the gigantic fire demon that appeared in Thor: Ragnarok – attacked the nine realms and devastated their civilization. Most of the Korbinites managed to escape in their fleet of spaceships, where they were cryo-preserved until they could find a new home. 

One member, however, was selected as champion and tasked with keeping the masses safe during their journey. You might know this champion as Beta Ray Bill. In the comics, Bill initially battled Thor and was even able to wield Mjolnir. The two eventually became allies, and the Asgardians ultimately decided to grant Bill a weapon of his own –- the powerful Stormbreaker. 

The Korbinites' homeworld was actually glimpsed in Avengers: Endgame, confirmed as the planet that past versions of Gamora and Nebula are attacking for Thanos, but there's a very good chance that Bill and his people will be more prominently featured in the upcoming Thor: Love & Thunder. While the film's director Taika Waititi has remained mum on the subject, he did mention that he's not opposed to including the character. "I love Beta Ray Bill," Waititi said (via Heroic Hollywood). "I'd love to have him in the film, but I just don't know right now, things are a little up in the air."

It's certainly not easy to kill Thor, but it has happened more than a few times in Marvel comics. On one such occasion, the God of Thunder's death came at the hands of the uber-powerful Beyonders, an alien race that resides in a distant dimension. They're not really the "little green men" type of aliens, though. Think more along the lines of omnipotent deities.

In the comics, the Beyonders are directly tied to the Time Runs Out storyline, an event that resulted with the end of the Marvel universe as we know it. Throughout the arc, the Beyonders are revealed as powerful enough to destroy the Celestials of every universe all at once. Ultimately, Dr. Doom is able to defeat the dominant beings, absorbing their powers and creating Battleworld, a single planet made of segregated domains of various realities. Yeah, it sounds weird, but no weirder than, say, Mavel's multiverse.

Given that it sounds like alternate realities could be explored in future properties like WandaVision and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it's entirely plausible that the MCU will be adapting a version of the comic's multiverse theory. So perhaps the Beyonders will play a role on the big screen, as well. Thor had better be careful!

It's no secret that Marvel and DC Comics have taken their fair share of inspiration from each other over the years. DC basically created Aquaman as their version of Namor, Marvel's Hawkeye is incredibly similar to Green Arrow, and Deadpool and Deathstroke share nearly the exact same name (Wade Wilson vs. Slade Wilson). While you could argue that several mainstream Marvel characters are Superman rip-offs, there's actually an entire alien race that is basically the Marvel equivalent of Kryptonians — the Strontians.

Residing on the planet Strontia, this noble race of powerful beings are sworn loyalists to the Shi'ar Empire. They're very similar to human beings in appearance, with the only notable exception being their purple skin (and totally rad haircuts). Strontians possess a number of gifted abilities, including super strength, speed, flight, super breath and even heat vision. Sound familiar? Unlike Kryptonians, however, a Strontian's powers are dependent on the individual's level of self-confidence. Thus, a low self-esteem is their only real weakness.

Strontians would make a welcome addition to the MCU because of one character in particular — Gladiator. Gladiator, whose real name is Kallark (a not-so-subtle combination of Kal-El and Clark Kent), is the leader of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. He's a major force in the Marvel cosmos, so don't be surprised if Kallark and his totally badass mohawk pops up in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Eternals, or maybe even Captain Marvel 2.

Surprisingly, Beta Ray Bill isn't actually the most equine-looking alien in the Marvel universe. That would be the Kymellians, a race of extremely intelligent beings from the planet of Kymellia. These horse-faced aliens are gifted with several potential superpowers, but only a select few are able to master them.

The Kymellians have a direct tie to Marvel's kid-friendly team, the Power Pack. The Power Pack is a family of four children — Alex, Julie, Jack and Katie — who are granted powers from the Kymellian Aelfyre "Whitey" Whitemane, who'd been studying Earth from a distance. Despite the Kymellian laws to not interfere with other species, Whitey intervened to help stop the kids' father, Dr. James Power, from accidentally destroying the planet.

While the Kymellians have been featured in other Marvel comics, they really only play an important role with the Power Pack. Thus, if they're to be included in the MCU going forward, it would be most appropriate if it was in either a Power Pack film or perhaps a Disney+ series. But hey, don't close the door on that option just yet, as New Mutants director Josh Boone has expressed interest in making a Power Pack movie. "I think like a kids' Marvel movie would be awesome," he told ScreenRant, "with the aliens coming and all the dueling alien races, giving them their powers and all that. That would be so much fun." Hopefully, he's not just horsing around.

The Snarks (aka the Zn'rx) hail from the planet of ... wait for it ... Snarkworld. These warlike reptilians look a lot like human-crocodile hybrids, and they're ruled by an emperor who's married to many different female Snarks, known as queens. Each queen leads her own clan, and when the emperor dies, the different groups fight each other to determine a successor.

Like their ancestral enemies, the Kymellians, the Snarks are closely affiliated with the Power Pack. The children superheroes have thwarted several Snark attempts at conquering Earth, so maybe they're not the most threatening invaders in the Marvel cosmos.

Aside from the Power kiddos, the Zn'rx have had a fairly limited impact on the Marvel universe at large. That being said, there is one Snark, Scanner, who could potentially pop up in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. In 1990, Scanner joined an intergalactic mercenary group called Force. This little-known group clashed with the Guardians on a few occasions, so perhaps James Gunn will include them in his upcoming threequel. After seeing how Gunn has really scraped the bottom of the DC Comics' barrel for characters in his Suicide Squad movie, it's not too hard to envision that the visionary director adds a Snark or two to the Guardians' rogues gallery.