Marvel is at the center of Hollywood at this point, so it comes as no surprise that they assemble some of the biggest talent out (and even a few vets who you’d think were over big budget spectacles and closer to retirement) for their films, and now, series. And yet, there’s still a rarefied air of actor who, for one reason or another, just seems above being in a superhero property, especially now that they’ve become so ubiquitous. But the allure of Marvel is too great. Julia Louis-Dreyfus just tagged into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and as a character that will soon go far beyond mere cameos if the source material is even halfway followed. To reiterate: Elaine is playing a key figure in Marvel’s next big picture story plans. In honor of her scene-stealing appearance in Black Widow, here’s a list of the craziest holy-shit cameo appearances and or full-on casting coups that have gone down during this last decade plus of Marvel.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Rumors and speculation about the future of the MCU is its own cottage industry. Yet none of the professional scoop-chasers had a clue about the involvement of 11-time Emmy Award-winning actor Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The Falcon and The Winter Soldier writer Malcolm Spellman teased the entrance of a new performer to the MCU, but the thought of Dreyfus—of all actors!—wasn’t exactly what anyone was expecting. Not since Samuel L. Jackson’s cameo at the end of Iron Man has there been such a well-protected and shocking reveal. Jackson is a fitting analog for JLD, as her character—Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine—is seemingly recruiting different members of the MCU for some sort of higher calling, just like Nick Fury did with the Avengers. While there’s some informed speculation on what exactly Fontaine is up to, it’s safe to say JLD’s brand of sardonic wit will be part of the MCU for the foreseeable future.
Jeff Bridges. Bridges’ role as Obadiah Stane in Iron Man set the template for what we’d see in many Marvel movies: cast a well-known, respected actor to show up alongside your lead and have them go for broke. It’s a well-worn method at this point and a quick way to instantly elevate otherwise silly material. Bridges’ charm remains one of the first Iron Man’s secret weapons, as he uses his aw-shucks charm to disarm both Tony and the audience to equal measure—and has a blast while doing so.
Bradley Cooper. On August 3, 2014, Mindy Kaling tweeted a thought hundreds of fans—MCU or otherwise—had before, during, or after seeing Guardians of the Galaxy: “Let me get this straight they made Bradley Cooper the goddamned raccoon.” Casting an actor of Cooper’s caliber as one of the only A-List stars in a movie featuring (at best) D-List comic book characters seemed like the beginning of the end of the MCU. The rest was history. The angry and bitter genetically-altered raccoon is the emotional throughline of the Guardians franchise—and is the result of Cooper’s never-wavering commitment to acting his ass off. Long live the goddamned raccoon.
Cate Blanchett. The idea of two-time Oscar winner Cate Blanchett joining a Marvel project, as she did in Thor: Ragnarok, prompted many befuddled reactions. To her credit, Blanchett knows precisely what she’s there to do and makes a meal out of every line she delivers as Hela, Thor’s sister and the goddess of death. She’s one of the many reasons why Ragnarok remains so rewatchable.
Owen Wilson. We have to imagine the casting of Owen Wilson elicited a “wow” of its own from Marvel fans when they learned the actor would be joining Loki. Wilson is no stranger to big-budget productions but mostly worked in smaller-scale affairs over the last few years. The idea of Wilson committing to a Marvel project—let alone playing the second lead on a streaming television series—felt like a pipe dream. As Time Variance Authority Agent Mobius, Wilson provided a fantastic sparring partner (and eventual friend) to the god of mischief. Wilson also joins a rare group of A-Listers who will return for more, as the ending of Loki concludes with a cliffhanger between Mobius and Loki setting up the show’s sophomore season.
Mickey Rourke
Mickey Rourke’s stardom has waxed and waned throughout his time in the industry, but his role as the villain in Iron Man 2, especially coming off his highly-praised turn in The Wrestler, looked like another brilliant casting move. Despite this inspired choice, Iron Man 2 is universally acknowledged as one of the worst installments in the MCU. Rourke took the brunt of the film’s criticism and has lashed out at Marvel in subsequent years, explaining that all the nuance he brought to the role was left on the cutting room floor. Release the Rourke Cut!
Robert Redford. If the MCU existed at the peak of Redford’s career, you have to imagine the Sundance Kid would have wound up in the role of Cap. Decades later, Redford ends up playing Winter Soldier’s heavy with a bureaucratic charm—and, in a fun flip, he’s fighting for the institutions he battled against against in films like Three Days of the Condor. In many ways, Redford’s involvement in the MCU helped to further legitimize the movies for actors of his caliber. Plus, it seems like he enjoyed the experience enough to come out of his self-imposed retirement for one last, albeit brief, ride in Avengers: Endgame.
Ben Kingsley. The sheer mention of Ben Kingsley is likely to rile up MCU fans, as the Oscar-Award-winning English served as a finger in the eye to die-hard comic book fans. Kingsley was supposed to be playing the Mandarin, an iconic Marvel villain who is Tony Stark’s most notable nemesis. In the movie’s big twist, Kingsley is revealed to be an actor masquerading as the Mandarin. Two benefits here: Kingsley’s performance was a hoot, and now we’ll get to see the actual Mandarin in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings as played by the legendary Tony Leung.
Tilda Swinton. The only franchise credits to Tilda Swinton’s name are Disney’s Narnia series, so it was surprising to see the actor join Doctor Strange. Swinton’s casting as the Ancient One was meant to be an inspired flip, a way for Marvel to avoid a tired cliche of the wizened Asian Man. Instead, the casting marked considerable backlash as Kevin Feige was criticized for whitewashing the role. Swinton’s performance remains one of the stronger parts of Strange, but the role marks a considerable WTF moment in the MCU—for good and for ill.
Matt Damon. Damon’s appearance in Thor: Ragnarok feels random until you remember Chris Hemsworth and Damon have a storied friendship, dating back to Hemsworth’s earliest days in Hollywood. The cameo in Ragnarok marks Damon’s continued habit of showing up, uncredited, to help out his friends. However, the inclusion of the actor in Loki’s stage play—cast as Loki, naturally—offers up all kinds of meta-related shenanigans. Is Damon playing a version of himself who has been kidnapped by Loki and forced to act? Did he willingly submit himself to it? Is he just an Asgardian who happens to look like Matt Damon? However we decide to interpret his brief showing, Damon marks one of the MCU’s crazier castings.
Angelina Jolie. While we haven’t seen what Angelina Jolie will be doing—outside of a few steely glares—in The Eternals, her inclusion immediately boosted the upcoming film from an interesting curio into a must-watch project. It’ll be fascinating to see the role Jolie plays in shaping a new era of Marvel heroes.