While the Marvel Cinematic Universe may be known for its action-packed and lighthearted storylines,it’s no stranger to getting serious. In fact, some MCU plots are quite dark and not for the faint of heart. Sometimes, this cinematic universe can take a step back and be heartbreaking and even chilling, at times bringing unexpected yet much-appreciated gravitas to its characters and lore.
Whether it be the death of a loved one that sends the main character into a downward spiral or a devastating backstory that has audiences sobbing, these grave detoursmake for some of the most memorable plots in the universe.This list will deal with the darkest MCU plots so far, ranking them by how shocking, out-of-pocket, and tragic they can be and how impactful they are to the franchise as a whole. The stories might not be harrowing per se — this is still quite the lighthearted series — but that doesn’t make them any less dark, at least by the MCU’s standards.
10Black Widow’s Backstory
‘Black Widow’ (2021)
Black Widow’s (Scarlett Johansson) backstory was hinted at for quite some time throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it was never alluded to be anything but dark. The red in her ledger has always been hinted at, and some thought they’d never see it come to life before the soloBlack Widowfilm was announced.
But whenBlack Widowactually rolled around into theaters and on Disney+, people finally got to see what had beenhaunting the spy and Avengerher entire life. In a flashback, audiences see the events of Budapest. As a way to defect from the Black Widow program,Natasha had to kill General Dreykov (Ray Winstone) and his young daughter, an innocent bystander who had no guilt in her father’s crimes. Yeah, everyone gets it now, Natasha. Dark stuff.
Black Widow
9Project Insight
‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ (2014)
The entire idea and intention behind Project Insight inCaptain America: The Winter Soldieris eerie and uncomfortably possible. A lot of the most chilling aspects in this remarkable movie are the massive implications behind the system’s intentions and how easy it is for any institution, especially the government, to become corrupt and encourage further crimes.
Project Insight’s intention of targeting and taking out potential criminals before they even commit a crime is certainly not far off from something any real-life government might try to do. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it may have been a response tothe otherworldly attack on New YorkinThe Avengers, but it wouldn’t take much to believe a real-life superpower would try something similar. Indeed,the scariest part of Project Insight is how real it could be one day.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
8The Death of Aunt May
‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ (2021)
One of the saddest moments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Spider-Man films as a whole is the death of Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) during the multiversal events ofSpider-Man: No Way Home. It’s an incredibly impactful moment, easily the darkestinTom Holland’s Spider-Man careerand leads to a very bleak arc for the young web-slinger.
The death of Uncle Ben has defined pretty much every Spider-Man’s career, but Holland’s Spider-Man went through that arc with his Aunt May. No matter the iteration of the Spider-Man character,Aunt May has always been beloved and a favorite for audiences, so seeing her die was quite painful. The downward spiral that Peter descends into after May’s death at the hands of the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) is one of the darkest character arcs a Spider-Man has gone through on film.
Spider-Man: No Way Home
7John Walker’s Downfall
‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ (2021)
John Walker (Wyatt Russell) taking up the mantle of Captain America was never going to end well, but no one really knew how poorly things would go. It’s been stated several times that the super soldier serum that was given to Steve made his good and bad traits stronger than they had been before. Thus,bringinga flawed man like John Walkerinto the fold and giving him the super soldier serum was a massive oversight on the government’s part.
So, when Walker is pursuing a Flag-Smasher and lets his rage get the best of him,he brutally caves the man’s chest in with the Captain America shieldin public.It’s a horrifying sight to behold, especially being done with Steve’s iconic shield, a symbol of freedom, at least up to that point. The brutal display of power shook not only the Marvel Cinematic Universe but its fandom as well.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
6Death of the Black Panther
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ (2022)
After the tragic loss ofChadwick Bosemanin 2020, many were unsure of how the Marvel Cinematic Universe would move forward with the character and the greenlit second film in the franchise. Were they going to recast T’Challa or kill him off?Many wondered what the best way to proceed would be, and thankfully,Ryan Coogler took things in a dark yet necessary direction.
The beginning ofBlack Panther: Wakanda Foreverdepicts a Wakanda up in arms as they struggle to save their dying king from a sickness. So, yes, they decided to kill off T’Challa in-universe, and it’s just as dark and tragic as everyone thought it would be.It was a very depressing way to start the film and send his young sister,the up to that point criminally underrated Shuri(Letitia Wright), down a path to become the new Black Panther.Everyone felt for her as they relived the uncontrollability of Chadwick and T’Challa’s deaths, and it did wonders for the film while also paying tribute to the actor.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
5Wanda’s Control Over Westview
‘Wandavision’ (2021)
It was always a given that Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) would lose herself one day and go through the “House of M” storyline, or at least something close to it. So, whenWandavisionrolled around, people knew something was afoot in Wanda’s mind. Still, the truth behind what was happening in Wanda andVision’s (Paul Bettany) new home, Westview, was darker than anyone could’ve expected.
In the comics, during the House of M storyline, Wanda’s mental break results in the extinction of all mutants in the Marvel Universe. Conversely, in the MCU,Wanda takes control of an entire town, holding the people mentally hostageand forcing them to live the life she wants rather than having free will. This series truly solidified Wanda’s darker side and horrified people at home with how terribly she acted, sending her down the dark and violent path she follows inDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
WandaVision
4The Truth Behind Meredith Quill’s Death
‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ (2017)
The death of Star-Lord’s (Chris Pratt) mother, Meredith Quill (Laura Haddock), is the cornerstone of his character arc across the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It, quite literally, is what got him taken to space and cemented a plethora of trauma in him. Meeting his father, Ego the Living Planet (Kurt Russell), gave him the chance to heal some of that parental trauma, or so he thought.
In the climax ofGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Ego reveals to Star-Lord that he, in fact, was the one who planted the tumor in Meredith’s head, killing her. Star-Lord then turns against his father, understandably so. This reveal spurred gasps throughout theaters all over the planet and brought a chilling vibe to the history of the Quill family. It may beone of the most vile things a villain has done in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
3Agatha Harkness' Backstory
‘Agatha All Along’ (2024)
One of the biggest themes ofAgatha All Alongis the inevitability of death, and nothing enhances that as much as the true backstory of the titular character, especially the secret behind her son Nicky’s (Abel Lysenko) fate. For quite some time in the series, a very tragic backstory was hinted at regarding her son’s death, and when it was eventually revealed, it was darker than some expected.
Many expected the truth to be that Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) traded her son’s life for the Darkhold, but the truth ended up being that, from birth, Nicky was destined to die. Born severely ill, there was nothing Agatha could do to stop it.No matter how much power she sought,Agatha couldn’t save her childbecause, as she says,sometimes boys just die.It’s heartbreaking and tear-jerking and a harsh reality of being alive.
Agatha All Along
‘Avengers: Infinity War’ (2018)
The most devastating thing to happen to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is, by far,the mighty Thanos' (Josh Brolin) Snapand the five years that succeeded it. Everyone knew the Avengers were going to have some trouble walking intoAvengers: Infinity War, but general audiences were horrified when, at the end of the film,half of the universe and the Avengers were massacred via the Snap.
As if half of the universe dying wasn’t bad enough, the five years that followed were even harder. When viewers picked back up with the survivors inAvengers: Endgame, they witnessed a world in despair and at a loss. It’s heartbreaking not only to watch the likes of Spider-Man and Vision die but to see how terrible the world ended up because of it. For the first time in their history,the Avengers actually lost.
Avengers: Infinity War
1Rocket’s Backstory
‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ (2023)
Since his introduction inGuardians of the Galaxy, it was always made very apparent that Rocket Raccoon’s (Bradley Cooper) backstory was quite frightening and sad. However, nobody was truly prepared for what they would see inGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, a film that doesn’t shy away from chilling discussions about the ethics behind animal testing.
The testing and torture done to Rocket aresome of the most terrifying acts done in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe. Whether it be the death of his friends or the consistent cutting open and prodding of Rocket’s young, frail body, the things done to these innocent animals are spine-tingling. Heart-wrenching isn’t even worthy enough to explain the heartbreak that viewers felt when watching, and director James Gunn shows how brutal things can be, making this storyline the darkest in the MCU so far.
