The Avengers changed the face of superheroes on the big screen, but what if the blockbuster hero set was created in the ’90s instead?
The success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe had been piling up for years, but the blockbuster ensemble film The Avengers really felt like the culmination of all things Marvel on the big screen (at least at the time of its release). While the MCU has seen even greater successes, The Avengers was cemented as a legendary film in superhero cinema.
It took years for the franchise to make its way to this event movie, but what if Marvel had started the ball rolling years earlier? Yes The Avengers had been made in the 1990s, who would have been his dream cast?
ten Maria Hill – Halle Berry
Although Halle Berry had more than enough skills and abilities to play the role of Maria Hill, in the 90s Halle was still working at the top of the Hollywood ladder.
And while she’s a fantastic dramatic actress, she’s also a formidable action performer, so a role as one of SHIELD’s most awesome agents would suit Berry like a glove.
9 Phil Coulson – Tom Hanks
Phil Coulson was such a popular and charming character in the original Avengers film that he earned his own television spinoffs. And he was an incredibly fun character to watch, as his childlike fanboy glee mimicked exactly how audiences were feeling.
And clearly, Clark Gregg did a terrific job in the role, but his cheerful demeanor and good guy charm make his character seem tailor-made for ’90s Tom Hanks.
8 Nick Fury – Morgan Freeman
Considering that most of the titular Avengers are people with superpowers, insane abilities, extraordinary intelligence, or have access to near-magical technology, it takes a pretty intense and imposing actor to play the role of Nick Fury.
Fury is said to be somewhat of an authority on the Avengers, and while Samuel L. Jackson electrifies the screen with his daring, Morgan Freeman’s quiet confidence would have given the character a lot of gravity in a ’90s iteration.
7 Black Widow – Catherine Zeta-Jones
Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones really started hitting hard in the late 1990s, but it would have been interesting to portray her as a relative unknown in The Avengers like Black Widow.
She obviously has the femme fatale look, but she also has the acting skills and charisma to defend herself with a massive team of superpowered or generally exceptionally skilled men.
6 Hawkeye – Tom Cruise
From the start of his career, Tom Cruise has played an astonishing variety of roles in all genres of films. However, in the mid-90s his action star career really started with the first Impossible mission movie, and he could have had a better start had he played the infamous archer in The Avengers.
Cruise has also shown his bolder side at times in roles like Lioncourt’s Lestat, so a role that combines his acting skills with that cooler side of Cruise would have been great to see.
5 Thor – Russell Crowe
Russell Crowe obviously built his CV around mostly dramatic roles, and he’s known as a very intense actor. But a role like Thor also seems like a great fit for him.
Had The Avengers been made in the ’90s, Thor would have been the perfect character to allow Crowe to show off his physicality and demonstrate his lighter side, because while his comedic roles are rare, he’s actually quite funny.
4 Iron Man – Val Kilmer
When it comes to portraying Tony Stark on the big screen, it’s clear that an actor like Val Kilmer would have excelled at playing Iron Man’s arrogance and swagger. Kilmer is known as a somewhat intense actor, so playing a big role in a popcorn blockbuster would have been a nice change of pace for him.
While Kilmer’s performance as Batman has received mixed reviews, a character like Tony seems more in Kilmer’s natural wheelhouse.
3 Captain America – Will Smith
Even now, Will Smith is one of the most famous and successful actors working in Hollywood, but by the 90s he was absolutely on fire.
He saw success with successes like Bad Boys and Men in black, but the role that really proved his abilities when it came to a character like Captain America was his performance as Captain Steve Hiller in Independence day. For a while, Smith was the face of American patriotism, and he would have made a great Steve Rogers as well.
2 The Hulk – Ralph Fiennes
Surprisingly, Marvel has historically had a bit of a hard time adapting Bruce Banner to the big screen, as Eric Bana and Edward Norton both played Hulk before Mark Ruffalo finally made the character a hit in. The Avengers.
Obviously, choosing an actor with depth and soul was key to making Bruce work, so the ’90s version of the Hulk would ideally have been played by the incomparable Ralph Fiennes.
1 Loki – Gary Oldman
Of course, while every Avenger must be on the verge of selling The Avengers as a movie, the movie ultimately wouldn’t work without a fantasy antagonist.
And while Tom Hiddleston is the perfect contemporary Loki, a ’90s version would have been best played by chameleon actor Gary Oldman. Oldman still plays all the roles thoroughly, and he would have made Loki just as charming and infuriating.