Yeah, Marvel’s Phase 4 is incoming, and with it, a boatload of new heroes from the Eternals, the vampire hunter Blade and of course, the master of Kung Fu, Shang Chi.

It’s not widely advertised but Marvel does have a decent amount of Asians who are superheroes (and villains). Sadly, most of them are bit players aren’t interesting at all.

In this followup to our past 5 Marvel characters who deserve their own movies, we take a look at 5 Asian Marvel characters that should get their own films!

1 – Amadeus Cho (Brawn)

Cho’s the green dude on the left, Ironheart (Riri Williams) is the girl on the left.

Amadeus Cho is the ninth smartest person on the Earth. He might be behind the likes of Mr Fantastic, Tony Stark and Moon Girl but Amadeus Cho is one of the more fleshed out Asian superheroes in recent memory.

He’s been around since 2005 (Amazing Fantasy #15) and has helped a ton of other more famous superheroes since then. Rising to prominence during the World War Hulk event, Cho assembled a group of heroes (including Hercules and She-Hulk) out to prove that the Hulk can be stopped peacefully.

With the stakes increasing, Cho would eventually remove the Hulk from Bruce Banner and implant it in himself, becoming a new version of the Gamma monster.

Eventually losing control, Cho was stopped and partially depowered. While no longer as powerful as when he was the Hulk, the current Cho (now calling himself Brawn) still retains some of his former powers, including enhanced strength and durability.

Why he should get a movie:

Are you kidding? He’s already a perfect fit for the MCU as it is.

Sure, Banner may claim that he’s got the Hulk under control, but we all know that’s a damn lie. It’s only going to be a matter of time when he loses his shit and the Worldbreaker re-emerges, perhaps even deadlier than before.

If Mark Ruffalo ever decides to hang up the purple pants, here’s somebody who can easily replace Banner as the Hulk.

2 – Kamala Khan (Ms Marvel)

Kamala Khan is an Inhuman who has the ability to control her size, sort of like a combination of Ant-Man and Mr Fantastic. She can shapeshift to a certain degree, such as lengthening her arms and legs or increasing their size and even elasticity. She also has a superior healing factor than normal humans, which allows her to recover faster from her injuries.

Kamala is not only Asian, she’s also Muslim, two of the rarest things one can be in the Marvel Universe. To date, only ONE other modern superhero (that we know of) shares that distinction; Faizah Hussain, who is coincidentally also in the list.

Khan has been pretty prolific in Marvel in recent years, popping up everywhere and contributing significantly. She’s been an Avenger and a Champion though she’s taken a step back from both teams in recent months due to a recent event involving her death, Mephisto and Miles Morales.

Why she should get a movie:

The MCU has an age problem.

Everybody and their uncle is an adult, save for Spider-Man. Kamala Khan is the perfect character to introduce because of that. She can serve as a superhero in her own right, and also somebody that Peter can talk to (akin to her relationship with Miles Morales in the comics).

Plus it’d be nice to see heroic Muslims in the MCU, especially since the only representation the religion has was arguably through the Ten Rings terrorists from Iron Man.

3 – Jubilation Lee (Jubilee)

Jubilee (during her vampire days) and adopted son, Shogo.

Everybody knows who Jubilee is right?

She’s the star of the X-men cartoon from the 90s with the yellow trenchcoat, pink shades and her fireworks based powers. Hell, she still looks like that now, even as an adult.

However, it’s only been recently that Jubilee’s gotten a more prominent role in the comics. She’s adopted a kid (Shogo), been transformed into a vampire (and then changed back) is one of the missing mutants taken by X-Man.

Why she deserves her own movie:

She’s been a vampire AND is a mutant…ok, some of the X-men can make that claim (Logan and Storm) but neither are Asian or a single mum. It takes a special kind of person to want to raise a kid amidst all the mayhem that regularly finds the X-men and we think that definitely warrants a movie.

Plus, Jubilee is close as hell with Wolverine and we hope giving her a movie brings Hugh Jackman to the MCU to reprise his role, killing two birds with one stone. Yeah, we’re sneaky that way.

4 – Akihiro Howlett (Daken)

Speaking of Wolverine, who better to get an MCU appearance than Daken? The most famous of Wolverine’s illegitimate offsprings, Daken is half- Japanese, which makes him half-Asian, making him eligible to be an Asian Marvel superhero!

Like his famous father, Daken has bone claws and a tremendous healing factor that allows him to shrug off injuries with barely any issues. Daken also has pheromones that he can use to influence people and heightened senses equal to Wolverine’s.

Oh yeah, did we mention that Daken is an anti-hero? While he’s been on the wrong side of the law originally, Daken’s taken on a neutral stance (occasionally even helping out) over the years, though his hate for Logan is still present, though toned down.

Why he deserves his own movie:

How can anybody not be interested in a movie that stars an apathetic, vicious killer like Daken? We’ve all seen what Logan can do; with Daken, imagine all that but the added benefit of daddy issues.

Since the MCU is still missing its Wolverine, maybe it’s time for the Dark Wolverine instead.

5 – Faiza Hussain (Excalibur)

Faiza Hussain is the exact opposite of what you’d expect an Asian Marvel superhero would look like. She’s a doctor, wears a hijab, dresses moderately and yet, wields one of the most powerful weapons in the comics. Her codename is a dead giveaway, she’s the current wielder of Excalibur.

Yes, THE Excalibur.

On top of wielding the sword, Faiza Hussain also has the power to disassemble biological organisms into base components to sort out what ails them. Ok, so it’s not really a power to stop evil doers, but that doesn’t matter, Faiza’s a doctor first and foremost.

Why she needs her own movie:

She’s a healer but uses a sword that kills, she’s a Muslim yet wears armor strikingly similar to what Crusaders wore. She’s a walking contradiction and would definitely pair well with Jane Foster (who is ALSO a doctor) as Thor.

Since we already know that’s coming, why not a movie with Faiza Hussain too? The UK desperately needs more heroes to beef up its presence and Faiza could be one of the characters in the first wave, hopefully alongside Captain Britain.

So that’s our list. What do you think of it? Agree? Disagree? Let us know!

Sal's been in the industry since the early 2000s. He's written for a ton of gaming and tech publications including Playworks, Hardwarezone, HWM and GameAxis. Recently, Sal served as a juror for the Indie Game Awards at Taipei Game Show 2020. A geek and hardcore gamer, Sal will play everything, on any platform.