People Are Talking About The Best Original MCU Character That Doesn't Appear In The Comics, And It's A Solid List

The MCU — or Marvel Cinematic Universe, if you're new — is filled with so many freakin' characters that, if I'm being honest, it's a little hard to keep up with who's who.

And it's even HARDER to know who is and who isn't a character from the comics unless you're an uber fan. (YES, there are many characters in the MCU who are original to the films.)

Part of the reason it's hard to decipher who's a comic book character and who isn't is that, oftentimes, the original characters are written so dang well. So when Reddit user u/Kruger-Dunning posed the question, "Who is the best original MCU character that doesn't appear in the comics?" to the r/marvelstudios community, they came back with some great responses. Here are the top-voted ones:

1. Phil Coulson (portrayed by Clark Gregg)

First appearance: Iron Man (2008)

What people are saying:

"In the comics, you basically have Nick Fury, Maria Hill, a bunch of superpowered people/super spies, one-dimensional gimmicky people. You don't really have a likable everyman, definite improvement to make Shield more relatable."

—Kruger-Dunning

"He's actually the most developed MCU character period thanks to Agents of Shield."

—bigfatcarp93

2. Coach Wilson (portrayed by Hannibal Buress)

First appearance: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

What people are saying:

"I love how even though he has, like, three scenes total you can totally tell he’s, like, this satire of someone totally controlled by misinformation haha."

—ReadDesperate543

"Him taking a selfie in Venice while scared about the camera falling in the river and then it falling from his hands anyway sums up the comedic style of the trilogy."

—poopatroopa3

3. Michelle Jones-Watson (portrayed by Zendaya)

First appearance: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

What people are saying:

"I prefer Michelle over any of the Mary Janes. I think she's a great match for Tom Holland's Spider-Man."

—CloverPixels

"She has great chemistry with Tom Holland and fits the MCU a lot better than the original Mary Jane."

—slaptito

"She turns a lot of the Spider-Man girlfriend tropes on their head, is a good source of comic relief, and makes Peter Parker way more relatable."

—Kruger-Dunning

4. Luis (portayed by Michael Peña)

First appearance: Ant-Man (2015)

What people are saying:

"I would love a Disney Plus short series where Luis explains each MCU movie. Nothing long, just short like 3–5 minutes or so."
—Deathly_rYaN

5. Darcy Lewis (portrayed by Kat Dennings)

First appearance: Thor (2011)

What people are saying:

"I wanna see her and Katy Chen get together and just destroy some villain by pure killer insults."

—GANTRITHORE

"Darcy is my favorite, she's so fun. I want a series where she and Jimmy Woo solve superhero mysteries together. Jimmy would be actually investigating it and Darcy would somehow accidentally get involved and help save the day. And they'd get a dog."

—ChazzaHazza

6. Ray Nadeem (portrayed by Jay Ali)

First appearance: Daredevil (Season 3, Episode 1)

What people are saying:

"Ray Nadeem is sooo underrated."

—VTYJ6503

"His growth and character arc were so good. I loved him and the actor did a great performance — easily one of my favorite characters, superheroes included. Surprises me that a normal FBI agent was more interesting than the likes of someone like Yelena, Echo, Kate Bishop, Monica Rambeau, etc."

—AbhayXV

7. Darryl Jacobson aka Thor's roommate (portrayed by Daley Pearson)

First appearance: Team Thor: Part 1 (short film)

What people are saying:

"I love him! I heard they’re doing a Darryl and Korg short, but I don’t know how true that is."
—maciswack0017

8. Erik Selvig (portrayed by Stellan Skarsgård)

First appearance: Thor (2011)

9. Finally, Grant Ward (portrayed by Brett Dalton)

First appearance: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 1, Episode 1)

What people are saying:

"Ward is tied for the best MCU original character."

—Sackzaur

"This might be a crazy hot take, but besides Fisk, Ward is the greatest villain in the MCU."

—Gcarsk

What do you think? Is there an original MCU character you'd add to this list? Sound off in the comments below!