10 Best Unused MCU Concept Art Designs That Could Have Been Truly Great

Summary

• The MCU has had a good track record with character designs, but some concept art seems even better than what ended up on screen.
• There are several reasons, including the practicality of adapting artwork to live action, that may explain why certain compelling designs were not moved forward with.
• Designs such as Scarlet Witch's demonic appearance, Electro's comic-accurate costume, and Ultron's "Mega-Ultron" form could have added more vibrant and terrifying elements to the MCU.

Every project in the Marvel Cinematic Universe goes through the concept art stage, and some of the franchise's most interesting character designs have been created there. However, some fascinating concepts never made it to the big screen. When creating characters for the MCU, Marvel Studios has decades of stories and artwork from Marvel Comics to work from, but these designs don't always work in live-action. Dozens of concept artists and illustrators work on producing realistic and exciting designs for the MCU's heroes and villains, ready to be brought to life on screen, but many of these amazing designs end up not getting used at all.
Sometimes, the reason why is understandable. Like designs in comics, some concept art looks great in a static image but simply wouldn't work in motion. Other times, it's not as clear why concept art wasn't moved forward with. Marvel Studios concept art imagines new perspectives on some of the MCU's most popular heroes and villains alike, and while some designs are perhaps better left unmentioned, many would have been perfect for a live-action adaptation, perhaps even making the MCU a more vibrant, exciting, and terrifying franchise.
Your browser does not support the video tag. 10 Wanda Maximoff, A.K.A. The Scarlet Witch Elizabeth Olsen debuted as Wanda Maximoff in the MCU's Phase 2, and though she was often depicted as a hero, Phase 4's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness saw her become a villain as the MCU's Scarlet Witch. While the Scarlet Witch was truly terrifying in Multiverse of Madness, concept art revealed in The Art of the Movie book and shared by Reddit user u/Louis_DCVN, shows just how sinister she could have been. Originally, the Scarlet Witch had a much more demonic appearance, with her iconic crown seemingly growing from her face. This would have been a horrifying addition to Multiverse of Madness, so it's no wonder she was made to seem more human in the final cut.
9 Max Dillon, A.K.A. Electro After appearing as Max Dillon, a.k.a. Electro, in 2014's The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Jamie Foxx returned as a multiversal villain in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home. He got an updated look for his MCU debut, no longer depicted as a blue being, but No Way Home concept art shared by Jerad S. Marantz reveals Electro was originally going to receive a more comic-accurate costume. This would have given Electro a sleeker and more refined look among the other villains in Spider-Man: No Way Home, though still inspired by his electricity-based abilities. Elements of this design were certainly implemented in his MCU costume, but the full attire would have been fantastic.
8 Ultron Ultron had a disappointingly short reign of terror, as he poses a major threat in Marvel Comics but was defeated easily in the MCU. Voiced by James Spader, Ultron saw an evolution from broken puppet to juiced-up puppet master in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron, and despite threatening to eradicate all life on Earth, he never seemed like a very scary villain. This wouldn't have been an issue had concept art from Phil Saunders been used, as Ultron would have grown into "Mega-Ultron" for the film's final battle, formed of the individual Ultron bots combining into one giant body, which would have been the stuff of nightmares.