This Nearly Forgotten Marvel Villain Wants Back Into The MCU

It goes without saying that some superhero villains are as iconic as the heroes they oppose. Though they may be antagonists, characters like Thanos or The Joker strike a certain chord with audiences — so much so that you might root for them in certain situations even if you don't really want them to win. Alas, not every villain has that kind of cult of personality. Even fewer are popular enough to warrant their own story, as in the case of The Joker. Still, that doesn't stop the actors who portray these villains from striving to achieve that level of mass appeal.

Case in point, one actor who portrayed a nearly forgotten Marvel villain has recently stated that he wants back into the MCU. And while his character (at least as of right now) is technically dead, such trivial things never really stopped comic book or movie writers from bringing back certain characters. Heck, if they can find a way to bring back half the universe's population after Thanos' snap, then they could probably find a way to bring back this villain.

For those who may not remember, Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) was the main antagonist of "Iron Man 3." The creator of Extremis, an experimental regenerative treatment that actually causes patients to spontaneously explode, Killian hates Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) for refusing to help him perfect the project. He tries to kill Tony, kidnaps Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and reveals himself to be the true Mandarin (not the fake one played by Ben Kingsley). And though Killian is blown to bits by Pepper at the film's climax, Pearce says he has no qualms about returning to portray the character again.

"I'd be very much interested in to see him come back," Pearce said in an interview with ComicBook.com. "And I think because of the nature of the character that he is, it's totally conceivable that he could come back. So yes, I would love to see what he is up to, as well. Because he's somebody [who] went through a sort of rapid vast change from the beginning of the story. So who knows where he's ended up."

Though it seems unlikely that Killian survived "Iron Man 3," his stable version of Extremis could potentially do the trick. As we saw with Pepper, who also got Extremis, the treatment allows one to survive some pretty unsurvivable situations. Alternatively, Killian could be resurrected or summoned from an alternate timeline. When it comes to the MCU, almost anything is possible.