The MCU needs to bring back an actor it wasted almost seven years ago, and I know the perfect project for his return. Marvel’s recent livestream announcing the cast for Avengers: Doomsday is a big reminder of how massive the MCU’s roster is. The cast includes 27 actors, which is still only a small portion of Marvel’s actors. The MCU has a massive roster of A-list stars, including Oscar winners like Robert Downey Jr., Cate Blanchett, and Michael Douglas. Some of these actors are in less prominent, secondary roles, making it easy to forget their MCU appearance.
For example, Bill Skarsgard was in the MCU, but many are surprised when they find out he voiced Kro in Eternals. The same can be said for Sterling K. Brown, who had a small but essential role as Killmonger’s father, N’Jobu, in Black Panther. Another popular actor who only starred in one MCU project is Walton Goggins. The Fallout actor played a secondary antagonist, wasting the talents of one of Hollywood’s most versatile performers. Goggins’ character would be perfect for Armor Wars, but it’s unclear if that project is still happening, even though it would have massive potential for the MCU.
Walton Goggins Played Sonny Burch in Ant-Man and the Wasp
Goggins played a secondary villain in the Ant-Man sequel.
While Goggins has starred in a selection of high-profile films, audiences may best know him from his roles on television. His recent roles include The Ghoul in Fallout and Cecil in Invincible. The actor is also currently starring as Rick in The White Lotus season 3, and as Uncle Baby Billy in The Righteous Gemstones, which is in its fourth and final season. He’s a veteran in the acting field, but many are just starting to see how talented he is as he stars in more popular programs.
Goggins has excellent comedic chops, but he also excels at playing sinister characters, which Marvel hired him to do in 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp. Walton Goggins played Sonny Burch, a black-market tech dealer who abandoned his deal with the Van Dynes after realizing how profitable Quantum tech can be. He was a secondary antagonist to Ghost, as the two parties fought and chased Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne to obtain their portable shrinking lab. Burch was arrested at the film’s end and hasn’t returned since, except in animated alternate universe form in What If…? season 3, episode 6.
Burch Could Be A Perfect Antagonist For Marvel’s Armor Wars
Burch could take advantage of Stark technology after Tony’s death.
Marvel first announced Armor Wars in 2020. Originally revealed as a Disney+ series, it would focus on James Rhodes trying to honor Tony Stark’s legacy by keeping his weapons out of the wrong hands. Don Cheadle was the only confirmed cast member for this series, and details about the project have been mostly quiet since the announcement. However, there are a few possible villains for this project. Many believe Sam Rockwell’s Justin Hammer could be attached to the installment, as he was Tony’s main weapons rival in Iron Man 2 before he was arrested.
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Burch is another character who could take advantage of Tony’s death. He seeks profits above anything else, and Tony’s weapons could sell for a large sum on the black market. Regarding his prison time, if Kingpin’s release from jail is unexplained, the same thing could happen for Burch or Hammer. Ant-Man and the Wasp showed that Burch has plenty of power within this sector with loyal men working for him, so it would be interesting to see Burch build a weapons empire using under-the-radar Stark tech.
Is Armor Wars Still Happening?
Marvel may have secretly canceled Armor Wars
While Marvel hasn’t officially canceled Armor Wars, the current setup for the installment makes its capacity to bring the likes of Goggins back into the MCU spotlight more questionable, despite being the perfect project to do so. 2 years after its announcement, Armor Wars was changed to a feature film. However, the film still doesn’t have a director, cast, or release date. In an interview with Collider, Marvel producer Nate Moore addressed the film’s status. While he didn’t say it was canceled, he did infer that it has been shelved for now, stating:
“You know, that’s not my project, to be honest. But, I do know, as Marvel [Studios] continues to go through this phase, we want to make sure whatever we’re making is awesome. So that means we had to slow down some things that were on the front burner. It doesn’t mean we’ll never make it, but it does mean we just have to be a little bit more considered so that every time out, audiences are guaranteed quality.”
It’s disappointing to hear that Armor Wars‘ status is unclear for now given its narrative and cast potential, but it’s not entirely surprising. The MCU is starting to focus on quality instead of quantity, and a film led by Rhodes may not currently be a big enough draw for audiences given his last major on-screen role was in the controversially received Secret Invasion. Making another project about Tony’s legacy may also be redundant, since Downey Jr is returning in Avengers: Doomsday. Still, I hope Armor Wars happens, especially since it can bring back some of Marvel’s underused actors, like Goggins.