10 MCU Characters Who Returned After Their Deaths

Many characters have died in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the franchise has brought some of them back even after depicting their demise. Since the franchise’s beginnings, the movies of the MCU have introduced a wealth of characters adapted from Marvel Comics. As the MCU’s story has continued to grow, many narrative arcs have come to a close, with multiple characters facing death within the franchise. Though some of these deaths mirror specific comic book arcs, many were unexpected twists or new spins on characters’ endings written to bring their MCU story to a purpose-built conclusion.

However, given the outlandish nature of Marvel’s stories and characters, death isn’t always the end. Across the MCU’s movie timeline, many characters have actually returned after death via various methods. With the franchise’s Multiverse Saga unfolding, there are a seemingly infinite number of variants populating the MCU’s many alternate universes, easily facilitating bringing back characters after their original demise. In other cases, supernatural, fantastical, or technological means have been used to revive fallen characters, making death seem of little consequence for many MCU heroes and villains. Here are 10 MCU characters that returned after their deaths.

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10 Killmonger Has Returned More Than Once In The MCU

What If…? Season 1 (2021), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)

Black Panther introduced the villain Erik Killmonger, a character that was quickly revealed to be the exiled cousin of T’Challa who returned to exact revenge on Wakanda. However, the film’s ending saw Killmonger killed in pursuit of his goal, with the MCU villain dying a dramatic and somewhat tragic death. He first returned in one of the MCU’s TV shows, What If…?, as a surviving variant who saved the life of Tony Stark. Killmonger later reappeared in the MCU’s main timeline when Shuri met with him in the Ancestral Plane during the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, making him one MCU character for whom death didn’t seem entirely permanent.

9 Black Widow’s Solo Movie Released After Her Death

Black Widow (2021)

Avengers: Endgame marked the end of the MCU’s Infinity Saga, but it also ended the narrative arcs of two major heroes. One of those heroes was Black Widow, who sacrificed herself to ensure her fellow Avengers could retrieve the Soul Stone in order to stop Thanos. Two years after her MCU death, Black Widow returned in a solo movie set before the events of Endgame, elaborating on elements of her past and introducing her successor to the franchise. Though she isn’t likely to reappear in the MCU’s timeline after dying, she did return for one final story.

8 Ronan The Accuser Was Featured In Captain Marvel After His MCU Death

Captain Marvel (2019)

Guardians of the Galaxy saw the titular heroes at odds with Kree warlord Ronan the Accuser, who had been tasked with retrieving the Power Stone for Thanos. The film’s ending sees Ronan killed by the power of the Infinity Stone, although that wasn’t his final appearance in the MCU. Five years after his demise, Ronan resurfaced in Captain Marvel, set roughly two decades prior to the events of Guardians of the Galaxy. Though he was only featured somewhat briefly, his role in the film partly explained his alliance with Thanos and offered greater context for his role within the Kree Empire.

7 Maria Rambeau Returned To The MCU Through Variants

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), The Marvels (2023)

There were many interesting additions to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ cast, but the inclusion of various multiversal variants facilitated the return of a character who had only recently died in the main timeline. WandaVision saw the death of Maria Rambeau, but her Earth-838 variant was later shown alive and well, imbued with the power of Captain Marvel. Though she was swiftly killed by the Scarlet Witch, she actually appeared again in the MCU, in a short but shocking cameo at the end of The Marvels set in yet another alternate timeline.

6 Thanos Was Avengers: Endgame’s Main Villain After Being Killed

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Thanos served as the main antagonist of the MCU’s Infinity Saga, and Avengers: Infinity War saw his succeed in his goal of eradicating half of all life in the universe. Avengers: Endgame began with a group of Avengers finding and killing Thanos, although it wasn’t the end of the character’s MCU story. In order to undo Thanos’ snap, the Avengers were forced to employ time travel, entangling them with the Mad Titan once again for another epic battle. A more sympathetic variant of Thanos later returned in What If…?, showing another side of the villain years after his death at the hands of the Avengers.

5 The Ancient One Reappeared Due To Time Travel

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Doctor Strange introduced the mystic arts to the MCU, as the titular hero became a powerful sorcerer under the tutelage of the Ancient One. In a battle with her corrupted student Kaecilius, the Ancient One was mortally wounded and died before passing some final wisdom onto Strange. Death wasn’t the end for the Ancient One, though, as she returned briefly during Avengers: Endgame’s time heist, allowing Hulk to take the Time Stone from the past in order to defeat Thanos.

4 Loki Came Back To The MCU After His Endgame Death

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Few MCU characters have faced death as often as Loki, but it has also proved to be remarkably impermanent for the franchise’s God of Mischief. After multiple death fakeouts, Loki actually met his end for real at the hands of Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, only to reappear during the time heist in Endgame. After escaping captivity in the past, Loki created a branching timeline, discovering the existence of the TVA and leading the MCU into the Multiverse Saga. Despite having faced death many times, Loki has consistently reappeared in the MCU, making him seem all but impossible to kill.

3 Gamora’s Past Self Became Her Current MCU Depiction

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Another character killed during the events of Infinity War only to return for Endgame was Gamora. The Guardian of the Galaxy was sacrificed by her adoptive father Thanos in order for the villain to obtain the Soul Stone, permanently killing her. However, Endgame’s time travel meant that Gamora’s death was effectively undone, with her past self traveling to the future to become the MCU’s new version of the character despite having previously been killed – though the MCU has gone to lengths to showcase how different this Gamora is to the version audiences had come to know so well.

2 Vision Became White Vision After His Endgame Death

WandaVision (2021)

After his creation in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Vision proved himself as one of the strongest members of the Avengers. However, during the events of Infinity War, Thanos overpowered Vision and ripped the Mind Stone from his head, instantly killing him. Three years after his death, Vision returned to the MCU in WandaVision, first as a magical creation of Wanda’s subconscious, and later as White Vision when his body was reanimated by SWORD. Once Wanda’s Vision had restored the memories of White Vision, the hero was effectively resurrected, though this left White Vision himself with complex moral questions as to whether he was the exact same figure as the version of Vision that came before.

1 Half Of The Avengers Returned From The Snap Year Later

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

One of the most shocking moments in MCU history came at the end of Avengers: Infinity War, when Thanos succeeded in performing his snap and wiping out half of all life in the universe. The action also simultaneously killed half of the Avengers, with many of the team’s ranks disappearing before their companions’ eyes. However, despite their deaths, Avengers: Endgame saw those lost returned to life after the surviving heroes were able to restore them using the Infinity Stones. It’s the most grand-scale return of dead characters in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, making for one of the franchise’s most triumphant moments.