From Iron Man to Wolverine, Black Widow to Jean Grey, Marvel comics has some of the best superhero characters around. There have been too many Marvel movies to count and too many characters to even keep track of, but what about those unlucky few who didn't make the cut?

As the Marvel Cinematic Universe plans to expand even further in Phase 4 after the events of Avengers 4, audiences are expecting to see a whole host of new characters making their way onto our screens. So, while fans patiently wait for the likes of Miles Morales, Nova and Silk to make their MCU debut, here are 10 major characters that were axed from Marvel movies (and not just the MCU…)

1. Hawkeye was cut from Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Marvel Studios

Everyone knows that Jeremy Renner made his MCU debut in Thor, but did anyone know he was also supposed to pull back his bow for Captain America: The Winter Soldier? Even though SHIELD plays a huge role in the superhero sequel, Clint Barton sat this one out – much like Avengers: Infinity War.

Speaking to CinemaBlend, screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely said The Winter Soldier already had too many supporting players and they were worried Hawkeye would get "a crappy part". Don't worry though, the Russo Brothers returned to direct Captain America: Civil War and made sure Hawkeye was an integral part of the cast.

2. Wolverine was cut from Fantastic Four

As audiences are still in the dark about when the X-Men and Fantastic Four will join the MCU, there was nearly a crossover (of sorts) between the two teams in 2005's Fantastic Four. By the time Fox introduced everyone to Reed Richards and co, Hugh Jackman had already made a name for himself as the adamantium-clawed Canadian.

The extended version of Tim Story's movie includes a scene between Ioan Gruffudd's Richards and Jessica Alba's Sue Storm. As Reed joked that the Invisible Woman needs "a stronger man", his face morphs into a terrible CGI version of Jackman's Wolverine.

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3. Mary Jane Watson was cut from The Amazing Spider-Man 2

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It's well documented that Peter Parker was supposed to fight for the affections of two women in Marc Webb's The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Repeating Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3, the movie would attempt to answer whether Gwen Stacy or Mary Jane Watson is Spider-Man's ultimate love.

Unfortunately, Big Little Lies' Shailene Woodley had her part as MJ left on the cutting-room floor. Woodley had a bit of a rough ride and presumably thought she'd be back for Webb's planned third and fourth movies. Instead, the MCU got its hands on Spidey and Woodley's axing is one of Webb's biggest regrets from his short tenure as master of the Spider-Verse.

4. Captain America was cut from The Incredible Hulk

Marvel Studios

After the success of Jon Favreau's Iron Man in 2008, there was a slight blip in the road with The Incredible Hulk later that year. Things were back on track as Chris Evans hurled a shield at some Nazis in Captain America: The First Avenger, but Steve Rogers was supposed to arrive a little earlier.

According to /Film, an alternate opening to Louis Leterrier's movie (that was seen in some of the trailers) featured the vast wilderness of the Arctic Circle in a dark scene where Bruce Banner tried to kill himself. When Ed Norton's Banner went full Hulk, he smashed a chunk of ice and there lay the frozen body of Captain America. The idea was left out and audiences had to make do with a well-placed cameo from Robert Downey Jr to start the expanded universe.

5. Nick Fury was cut from Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

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It might be hard to imagine anyone other than Samuel L Jackson as Nick Fury, but long before the Pulp Fiction star was putting on his eyepatch, there was someone else waiting in the wings. Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Andre Braugher was supposed to play Fury in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, but because Fox couldn't get the rights, his character was changed to General Hager.

The ghost of Fury still lingered around Rise of the Silver Surfer's script thanks to an argument between Hager and Richards that was a direct adaptation of one between Fury and Mr Fantastic in Ultimate Extinction Vol 1 #2.

6. Wonder Man was cut from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Alberto E. Rodriguez

In keeping with James Gunn's topsy-turvy Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, Nathan Fillion had his frankly bizarre role as Simon Williams/Wonder Man cut. For those up on Marvel comics, Simon Williams is a famous actor who sometimes goes under his Avengers alter ego of Wonder Man.

Posting on Facebook, Gunn said that he couldn't find the right role for Fillion, so settled on a small (ultimately deleted) scene on Earth that featured posters for a Simon Williams film festival.

Disney Marvel Studios

Fans have since said they loved the idea of Fillion being Wonder Man, but with Gunn being given the boot from the MCU, it remains to see how/if the character makes his debut and who gets to play him.

Fillion, of course, did actually voice the big blue bully who Groot dispatches in the Kyln prison in Guardians 1.

7. Storm was cut from X-Men Origins: Wolverine

20th Century Fox

Gavin Hood's X-Men Origins: Wolverine is up there with the worst of the worst superhero movies, but you can't knock the prequel movie for at least trying to delve a little deeper into the lore of the X-Men. As well as notable cameos from the likes of Blob, Emma Frost, and Professor Xavier, Hood once planned on including a younger version of Storm.

Although Storm briefly actually featured in the movie's trailer, it was a struggle to find her in the theatrical cut. MTV reports that producer Laura Shuler Donner had to make the tough choice to axe Storm because she simply didn't fit the story. Don't worry though, the fan favourite can be found on the X-Men Origins: Wolverine DVD release.

8. The Fantastic Four were cut from Deadpool 2

20th Century Fox

Why anyone would want to relive the nightmare of Josh Trank's Fant4stic is beyond us, however, Deadpool 2 was going to poke fun at the box-office bomb by bringing the cast back for a mind-boggling cameo. When Deadpool's Tim Miller was still attached to direct the sequel, he had concept artist Alexander Lozano draw the Fantastic Four for inclusion in his movie.

David Leitch took over directorial duties and the Fantastic Four were swapped out in favour of the X-Men: Dark Phoenix cast. Annoyingly, a revamped version of the Fantastic Four trying to fit in with the crass personality of Wade Wilson could have helped take some of the stink off Trank's movie.

Things might have been a bit complicated with Michael B Jordan playing Johnny Storm AND Erik Killmonger, but including the Fantastic Four in Deadpool 2 would presumably have locked down the team for Disney's upcoming takeover of Fox.

9. Sabretooth was cut from Logan

20th Century Fox

Perhaps the only good to come out of X-Men Origins: Wolverine (apart from learning how not to make a movie) was the recasting of Sabretooth with Liev Schreiber. Away from Tyler Mane's grunting version in the original X-Men, Schreiber was a fleshed-out version of Victor Creed.

The X-Men timelines are notoriously complicated, but it was once suggested that Sabretooth should return for Jackman's swansong and a Logan cameo. While both Jackman and James Mangold asked Schreiber to grow his fingernails for a return appearance, Schreiber confirmed that scheduling issues got in the way. It might have been a great way to round off Jackman's 17-year tenure as everyone's favourite 'bub', but it just wasn't meant to be.

10. Captain Marvel was cut from Avengers: Age of Ultron

Marvel Studios

The arrival of Carol Danvers has been a long time coming and Brie Larson will hopefully fly the MCU to victory with Captain Marvel in 2019. Rumours of the character's arrival have been circulating for years, but it turns out she was originally going to join the party for Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron.

More than just a passing idea from the scripting stage, Whedon even shot some test footage of Danvers for the movie. Marvel president Kevin Feige told Badass Digest that Whedon included FX plates of Captain Marvel flying in at the end of the movie. Deciding to "cast her later", they replaced Larson eventually with a last-minute shot of Elizabeth Olsen in her fully-formed Scarlet Witch outfit.

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