50 Incredibly Surprising Facts About Marvel Universe – Part 3

In “The Ultimates #4”, published in 2002, Nick Fury and Ultimate universe version of the Avengers sit around and discuss what actors could play themselves if their story is ever made into a film. It’s suggested that Brad Pitt could portray Captain America, Steve Buscemi as Bruce Banner, Matthew McConaughey as Giant-Man, Lucy Liu as the Wasp, Johnny Depp as Tony Stark and Samuel L. Jackson could play Nick Fury.

2. Hawkeye developed his archery skills working at a traveling circus as a kid.

3. The final issue of ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’, in which Peter Parker is killed and Doctor Octopus takes over his role as the Web-Slinger, proved so controversial that the comic’s writer, Dan Slott, received numerous death threats from angry fans.

4. The original opening scene of ‘Iron Man 2’ featured Tony Stark in the Iron Man suit, suffering from a hangover and vomiting into a toilet. This was removed to make Stark’s first appearance much more heroic.

5. Every day for the first week of shooting ‘The Avengers’, Mark Ruffalo told director Joss Whedon that it wasn’t too late to replace him.

It is a common misconception that Cyclops of ‘The X-Men’ comic series possesses the power of heat vision. He actually projects a powerful beam of concussive energy, which feels more like a strong punch than a ray of heat.

7. Spider-Man was accidentally called Peter Palmer twice in the very first issue of ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ comic book.

8. Spider-Man invented the web-shooter he uses to swing between buildings and catch criminals. The fluid inside, which forms the webbing, can hold 120 pounds per square millimeter and evaporates within an hour or two.

9. Despite being over one hundred years old, the ‘X-Men’ villainess Mystique is able to constantly alter and rejuvenate her body’s cells and thereby retain her youthful appearance.

10. Tom Morello, guitarist for the rock band Rage Against the Machine, makes a cameo appearance as the first terrorist guard killed by the title character in ‘Iron Man’.

As the original ‘X-Men’ comic series was created in the 1960s, when the civil rights movement was at its peak, Professor X and Magneto were modeled after Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, respectively.

12. Wolverine once fought a supervillain named Spore in South America who was composed entirely of cocaine.

13. In a deleted scene from the 2008 film ‘The Incredible Hulk’, in which Bruce Banner goes to the Arctic to commit suicide, Captain America’s body and shield can be spotted frozen beneath the ice.

14. While doing a press conference for The Avengers: Age of Ultron, director Joss Whedon admitted that while Agent Coulson is alive in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., he still considers the character dead in the movie’s continuity so as to not cheapen his death in the first film.

15. Stan Lee had originally planned for Professor X to be the brother of his arch-nemesis.

In the 1981 ‘Batman Vs. The Incredible Hulk’ crossover comic, despite his relative lack of brute strength, the Dark Knight successfully defeats the Hulk in combat.

17. After the very first ‘Fantastic Four’ comic was printed in 1961, many fans debated for decades if the Thing’s genitalia had remained the same after he mutated. In 2011, creator Stan Lee finally confirmed that the Thing had a penis made of orange rock.

18. After Robert Downey Jr. expressed interest in the role of Tony Stark, Marvel originally told Iron Man director Jon Favreau, “Under no circumstances are we prepared to hire him at any price.” He pestered the filmmakers until they eventually gave him a screen test.

19. In “New X-Men #118,” the word “sex” is hidden in the art on every page of the issue.

20. In “Avengers X-Sanction #4”, the time-traveling mutant Cable notes that Spider-Man is seen in the future as the greatest hero of all-time, even more so than Captain America or Iron Man.

Stan Lee was actually very nervous that blind people would find his ‘Daredevil’ comic series offensive or parodical. Upon its release, however, he received fan mail praising his handling of the subject and asked him to contribute to charities for the blind.

22. American actor Robert Downey Jr. has actually been banned from Japan because of his erratic behavior in the US in the 1990s and was only allowed to enter Japan for the premiere of ‘Iron Man’ if he promised never to return again.

23. In the comic event “Fear Itself”, Tony Stark built a suit of Iron Man armor out of the same magical Asgardian metal used to create Thor’s hammer. It is known as the Iron Destroyer Armor.

24. Mark Ruffalo actually discussed playing Bruce Banner with the director of the 2008 film ‘The Incredible Hulk’, but Marvel did not believe he would be right for the role.

25. While the ‘X-Men’ comic series was originally developed as a simple tale of “Good vs. Evil,” various writers saw potential in the comic’s cast and story to delve into themes regarding the horrors of racism, religious fundamentalism, anti-Semitism, the red scare, the AIDS epidemic, and the struggle of the LGBT community