12 Unexpected Cameos By Popular Actors In Marvel Films

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is certainly a gigantic media franchise that requires A-listers. Most of the stars in the MCU films are established actors like Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, and Scarlett Johansson. Not surprisingly, the MCU flicks are also filled with surprise cameos by big-name celebrities.

Celebrity cameos is an ongoing theme for the MCU. After all, comic book icon Stan Lee has appeared in every single Marvel film and TV show. Lee is expected to show up again in Ant-Man and The Wasp as well as the still-untitled Avengers 4. In the meantime, here are some of the awesome cameos by major stars in the MCU movies.

Kate Mara and Olivia Munn in Iron Man 2 (2010)

The second Iron Man film actually featured two future Marvel stars in surprise cameos. House of Cards‘ Kate Mara appeared as a US Marshall who hands Tony Stark a subpoena early in the film. She would later take on the role on Sue Storm/Invisible Girl in the Fantastic Four reboot.

Olivia Munn had a brief stint as a reporter covering the Stark Expo before playing Psylocke in X-Men: Apocalypse. Iron Man 2 also featured cameos from Elon Musk and late DJ Adam Goldstein.

Natalie Dormer, Richard Armitage, and Jenna Coleman in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

It’s hard to miss Natalie Dormer in the first Captain America film. The Game of Thrones actress showed up as a private who gets caught kissing Steve Rogers. The Hobbit actor Richard Armitage also had a memorable scene as the HYDRA assassin who kills Abraham Erskine and gets chased down from Steve. Doctor Who star Jenna Coleman had a small role in The First Avenger as Bucky Barnes’ date.

Ashley Johnson in The Avengers (2012)

Remember the waitress who was saved by Steve Rogers? The sweet blond character was portrayed by Blindspot actress Ashley Johnson. The film also featured Polish filmmaker Jerzy Skolimowski as the man interrogating Natasha Romanoff.

Alice Krige and Chris O’Dowd in Thor: The Dark World (2013)

Alice Krige is known as the Borg Queen to Star Trek fans but Marvel lovers recognize the South African actress as the Asgardian physician who examines Jane Foster. The IT Crowd‘s Chris O’Dowd also turned in a hilarious performance as Jane’s suitor Richard.

Alfre Woodard in Captain America: Civil War (2016)

Alfre Woodard was a true scenestealer when her character Miriam Sharpe confronted Tony Stark for playing a part in the death of her son in Sokovia. It was a pivotal scene that made Iron Man think twice about his actions. Woodard would later portray Mariah Dillard in Luke Cage.

Matt Damon in Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

This is the second time that Matt Damon actually portrayed a character named Loki. The Academy Award winner previously played a fallen angel with the same name in Kevin Smith’s Dogma (1999).

Matt Damon and Alan Tudyk in Deadpool 2 (2018)

Okay technically, this isn’t an MCU movie but we’re including it since Deadpool is also a Marvel character, although FOX owns the movie rights for the character as of the moment.

Anyway, there were numerous cameos in the second Deadpool film but the surprise appearance of Matt Damon and Firefly‘s Alan Tudyk was certainly the most hilarious one. The two actors portrayed rednecks who encounter Cable while discussing a toilet paper manifesto. Brad Pitt also flashed by as The Vanisher.