Many superhero costumes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been comic-accurate, but a handful stand out from the rest. While early live-action superhero projects tended to shy away from giving heroes and villains their comic-accurate designs, Marvel Studios has been unique in its embrace of these often-outlandish outfits. This has only become more prominent as the MCU has grown over the last 16 years, allowing most of the franchise’s new characters to be given their Marvel Comics looks straight away.

While many superhero costumes in the MCU have been modernized, slightly altered, or completely changed to better fit a live-action medium, several have been translated from page to screen very faithfully. Currently, there are perhaps too many comic-accurate costumes in the MCU to count, but a handful stand out as some of the best. Ranging from WandaVision’s fantastic comic-accurate Halloween costumes, to Doctor Strange’s gloved look in Thor: Ragnarok, to vibrant mutant outfits in the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine, these superhero suits have been adapted brilliantly.

10

Hercules Needs To Return In His Comic-Accurate MCU Costume

Thor: Love & Thunder (2022)

Despite only being seen for a few seconds at the very end of Thor: Love and Thunder, it was exciting to see Ted Lasso’s Brett Goldstein debut as Hercules in his comic-accurate costume. Of course, this costume doesn’t provide much protection for the Greek god, as it’s comprised of not much more than a few straps and a skirt. Even so, this was a fantastic adaptation from page to screen, so it’s a shame the costume wasn’t put on display for very long.

Thor: Love and Thunder’s mid-credits scene saw Russell Crowe’s Zeus declare war on Thor and the Avengers, setting up a huge storyline for future Thor projects, that could see Chris Hemsworth’s Thor battle Hercules on-screen. However, Thor 5 hasn’t yet been officially confirmed, and Brett Goldstein hasn’t revealed when or if he might be returning to the MCU. Hercules is a very exciting addition to the MCU, so it would be great to see him return in his comic-accurate costume to cause some problems for the God of Thunder.

9

Each Of The Defenders Made Jokes About Their Comic-Accurate Costumes, But Daredevil Embraced His

Netflix’s Defenders Saga (2015-2019)

Netflix’s Defenders Saga introduced several new heroes into live-action, but the franchise’s grounded, down-to-Earth textures made it impossible for some of their goofier comic-accurate costumes to be depicted on-screen. While Charlie Cox suited up in an almost-comic-accurate Daredevil suit, and Jon Bernthal’s Punisher sported his skull emblem, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter, Finn Jones, and several others went without. The costumes did make appearances, however, but were played off as jokes.

Ritter’s Jessica Jones refused to wear her white-and-blue jumpsuit during a flashback prior to her meeting Kilgrave, who was also made to appear more human in Jessica Jones. Colter’s Luke Cage escaped from Seagate Prison in his comic-accurate costume, but noted that he looked foolish after catching a glimpse of himself in a mirror. Jones’ Danny Rand trained in K’un-Lun in his comic-accurate costume, but this was modernized for his present day appearances. This may have avoided giving them faithful designs, but the explanations for them being introduced were still entertaining.

8

The Scarlet Witch, Vision & Quicksilver’s Comic-Accurate WandaVision Looks Were Hilarious

WandaVision (2021)

Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany’s designs as the Scarlet Witch and Vision, respectively, have been modernized and streamlined significantly for the MCU. Given the fact that their looks in Marvel Comics were questionable, this was a great choice by Marvel Studios, but it didn’t stop their comic-accurate costumes making an appearance in 2021’s WandaVision. During a Halloween-themed episode, the Scarlet Witch, Vision, and Quicksilver’s comic-accurate suits were played off hilariously as Halloween costumes.

Elizabeth Olsen revealed to Vanity Fair (via Comicbook.com) back in 2021 that she fought for the costume to be used in WandaVision, and thought the Halloween angle was inspired, as “you can’t take that costume seriously.” While Wanda’s costume is played as that of a Sokovian fortune-teller, Vision’s high-collared and simple costume was similar to those of Mexican wrestlers. Evan Peters’ “Pietro”, and Billy and Tommy Maximoff also had comic-accurate costumes, which brought a bit of fun to a dramatic WandaVision episode, and was a brilliant call-back to these characters’ Marvel Comics roots.

I was so excited! We have a Halloween episode, and they were trying to figure out how big of a nod to the character we were going to do, and it did start off with the classic Scarlet Witch costume. It was kind of like a gypsy thing that has to wear a headband and I, like, fought for it. I was like ‘No, we have to go full into it… this is like the greatest thing, if Paul’s doing it, I’m doing it.’ I’m really in it, it’s not just a flash, I’m really in the costume for quite a bit. And it was so fun. I loved it, and it was the perfect way to wear that costume, because you can’t take that costume seriously.

7

Doctor Strange’s Thor: Ragnarok Costume Had An Added Comic-Accurate Detail

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Benedict Cumberbatch’s costume as Doctor Strange has been fairly comic-accurate throughout his entire MCU journey, with the deep blue robes and red Cloak of Levitation being an almost exact page-to-screen adaptation. However, his brief appearance in 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok gave his costume a little something extra from the comics that, unfortunately, hasn’t been seen again. The inclusion of Doctor Strange’s yellow gloves in Ragnarok was a brilliant touch, and made Cumberbatch’s superhero suit as comic-accurate as it could be.

Doctor Strange sports these gloves in Marvel Comics, adding a little extra color to his dark and mysterious Master of the Mystic Arts outfit. However, these gloves have only been seen once in the MCU, perhaps so that Cumberbatch’s hands can be on display, allowing him to gesticulate better, and enabling the audience to see his sling ring and the scars on his hands. Nevertheless, it was great to see the gloves in Thor: Ragnarok, and it would be fun if they had a brief reprisal in the future.

6

Moon Knight’s Costume Harks Back To The Hero’s Egyptian Roots Perfectly

Moon Knight (2022)

Moon Knight’s costume in the MCU may have a very comic-accurate design, but its origins are wildly different from its Marvel Comics counterpart. In the comics, Marc Spector makes his suit from Kevlar, later replacing it with adamantium, but in the MCU, Moon Knight’s suit was gifted to him by Khonshu during his first transformation. This makes him a much more supernatural hero, with stronger connections to the Egyptian pantheon, and his suit of armor mirrors this perfectly.

For Oscar Isaac’s suit in the MCU, details were added such as it taking the form of mummification wraps, his crescent weapon being wrapped gently into the suit, and the inclusion of hieroglyphics that read “The Protecting Soldier of the Moon.” These helped to make Moon Knight’s MCU costume one of the franchise’s strongest and most impactful suits, and this is mirrored wonderfully in Steven Grant’s costume as Mr. Knight. With the same capabilities, but more of a business look, both of these costumes are very comic-accurate, and very stylish to boot.

5

Ms. Marvel’s Comic-Accurate Costume Was Well-Thought-Out

Ms. Marvel (2022)

The moment Kamala Khan receives her costume in 2022’s Ms. Marvel is very emotional, as, as well as being comic-accurate, Ms. Marvel’s superhero suit was well-thought-out in her debut series, paying homage to her entire evolution into a hero. Kamala Khan’s Ms. Marvel costume was designed and created by her own mother, Muneeba Khan, and took inspiration from elements of her journey. This incorporated the mask gifted by Bruno Carrelli, the blue vest given by Waleed, the red scarf taken from Kareem’s Red Dagger, and a lightning bolt, based on Kamala’s own broken necklace.

Muneeba handing over the superhero suit was a sign of her acceptance of her daughter, and her pride in Kamala’s actions as a hero. This was a very touching moment that The Marvels seemed to undo by giving Ms. Marvel a new suit, though Iman Vellani revealed to The Direct in December 2023 that the original suit is “safe,” and that she now has two costumes. Both are comic-accurate, but her costume in Ms. Marvel has that personal touch that makes it such a powerful and representative outfit.

It’s safe. She changed at home. If you remember, she changed into that flannel look. After. So, why did she change? I don’t know. But she changed. So she can get a new suit. So now she has two suits. I think it’s good. We’re expanding the closet a little bit.

4

Sam Wilson’s White Suit Marked A Powerful Debut For The New Captain America

The Falcon & The Winter Soldier (2021)

Despite being gifted the Captain America suit and mantle at the end of Avengers: Endgame, Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson took some time to come to terms with the idea of being a Black man in America and being Captain America, a major patriotic symbol. This hesitation and evolution was beautiful to watch, and culminated in him suiting up in his comic-accurate white-and-blue Captain America costume in the finale of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. This version of the suit was made of adamantium, gifting him some abilities, as he hasn’t used any super-soldier serum.

This suit of armor was strikingly similar to his outfit after taking up the Captain America mantle in Marvel Comics. Sam Wilson retained his wings, which set him apart from Steve Rogers, while the costume also continued similar themes to Rogers’ suits as Captain America. It was great to hear that this white-and-blue costume would be returning in Marvel Studios’ upcoming Captain America: Brave New World, as this is Sam Wilson’s iconic outfit as Captain America in Marvel Comics, so it deserves more time in live-action.

3

Iron Man’s First Suit Was Taken Straight Out Of The Comics

Iron Man (2008)

While many of Tony Stark’s suits of armor as Iron Man were comic-accurate, most of them were touched-up and changed to better fit the MCU. His first suit, however, was incredibly comic-accurate, earning it a spot as one of the MCU’s best. In both Marvel Comics and the MCU’s Iron Man in 2008, Stark designed his first suit of armor with the help of Ho Yinsen, which he used to escape captivity. This bulky, silver suit of armor was rudimentary, but allowed Stark to return to safety, and inspired him to make improvements on his simple design.​​​​​​​

Iron Man marked a strong start for the MCU, especially since it adapted Tony Stark’s origin story from Marvel Comics pretty accurately, with only a few minor changes. It was fantastic to see his first prototype Iron Man armor kept faithfully, though, as it would have been a shame to lose this suit’s rag-tag, put-together feel, particularly since that’s exactly what it was. Robert Downey Jr.’s later suits as Iron Man may have been more technologically-advanced and fancy, but his original Iron Man suit is a tough one to forget.

2

Spider-Man’s Comic-Accurate Costume Has Greater Meaning In The MCU

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Tom Holland has had the most impressive career out of any live-action Spider-Man actor, which has seen him appear in six MCU movies, and sport different superhero costumes in each of these projects. Peter Parker’s connection to Tony Stark in his early adventures meant that the wall-crawler went through modernized, technological suits just as fast as his armored mentor. This means it wasn’t until the very end of 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home when Peter Parker made his own suit, and a comic-accurate one at that.

Peter Parker’s final costume in Spider-Man: No Way Home wasn’t just another suit, either, but it was directly inspired by his experiences with his multiversal variants, portrayed by returning actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Both of these former Spider-Men sported red and blue costumes, which prompted Holland’s Peter Parker to sew his own red and blue suit, without the help of Stark’s gadgets. Seeing this vivid costume in No Way Home was fantastic, but highlighted the tragedy of the movie’s events, reverting Peter Parker to a grounded, Friendly Neighborhood hero.

1

Deadpool & Wolverine’s Comic-Accurate Costumes Spell Good News For The MCU’s X-Men

Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

It’s always satisfying when a live-action MCU hero suits up in a comic-accurate costume for the first time, but this is even more true for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in his MCU debut. Jackman has portrayed Wolverine since 2000’s X-Men, but was never seen in a comic-accurate, yellow-and-blue costume in Fox’s X-Men franchise, but this changes in Deadpool & Wolverine. In fact, introducing the yellow costume was one of Marvel boss Kevin Feige’s criteria when bringing Jackman back into action, as Shawn Levy revealed on the Deadpool & Wolverine​​​​​​​ press tour (via Comicbook.com).​​​​​​​

[Kevin Feige] said, ‘Yes, but he wears the yellow. Can he finally wear the yellow?’ And we began.

Even Ryan Reynolds’ costume as Deadpool in the MCU’s Phase 5 is brighter and more comic-accurate than his previous, hardened design in Fox’s X-Men franchise, but Jackman’s Wolverine is clearly the star of the show. The fact that Marvel Studios has the confidence to put Wolverine in his colorful and fantastical costume means that same could be done for the rest of the upcoming X-Men team in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Gone are the days of black leather and fear at what the audience might think. Marvel Studios’ X-Men are coming, and their vibrant, comic-accurate costumes will follow suit.