Top 10 Marvel Actors Who Parodied Their Own Characters
#10: Chris Evans (I)
“Free Guy” (2021)
Chris Evans makes a perfectly brilliant cameo in “Free Guy,” and it’s all thanks to a text message that Ryan Reynolds had sent to him. When Guy, Reynolds’s character, is about to get hit with an all-powerful Death Blow from Dude, he suddenly brings out Captain America’s iconic shield and blocks the punch to the tune of The Avengers’ theme. The movie, in all of its fourth wall breaking glory, cuts to the Captain America actor himself, watching the whole thing live on his phone! The whole movie’s got some pretty good Marvel meta-jokes, and while Chris Evans appears as himself rather than Cap, it’s a hilarious way to subvert his otherwise clean and honest Captain America persona.
#9: Jeremy Renner
“Saturday Night Live” (1975-)
“Saturday Night Live” has produced multiple Marvel parody sketches, and one of the best ones is from Jeremy Renner’s appearance on the show. In an Avengers sketch, Renner’s Hawkeye, much like in the movies, is portrayed as just a regular guy in a super team, where he’s constantly overshadowed by the powers of the likes of Thor and the Hulk. In an attempt to desperately help his teammates, he shortly realizes he’s completely out of arrows! The whole thing seems a bit self-deprecating, but Jeremy’s being a great sport about it and seems to lean into the Hawkeye memes.
#8: Tobey Maguire
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021)
Typically, the “Spider-Man” movies are pretty on the nose when it comes to humor. But there’s one really deep cut joke in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” once we finally get the other two ‘Spider-Men’ suited up on-screen. This seemingly innocuous interaction between Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Men, is first of all definitely a reference to an old “Spider-Man 2” meme that has been “YouTube-pooped” to hell and back, in which Tobey/Peter crash lands on a car and exclaims the famous words. But it doesn’t end there; Tobey Maguire claimed to have back problems and used it to push for a higher salary while filming 2004’s “Spider-Man 2” which seemingly spawned this incredible rabbit-hole.
#7: Chris Evans (II)
“Deadpool & Wolverine” (2024)
Fans were already speculating wildly thanks to rumors that Chris Evans would make a cameo in “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which paid off as the movie delivered the most masterful bit of self-parody with him! When he’s on-screen, it’s easy to see him and think “Oh he’s doing a Captain America cameo” which the movie leans heavily into… only for it to be his older Marvel role as Johnny Storm, the Human Torch! It’s the funniest way a movie ever could use an actor’s previous roles, and a clever way to utilize Deadpool’s integration into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
#6: Scarlett Johansson
“Saturday Night Live” (1975-)
Scarlett Johansson has made one of the better parodies of her Marvel counterpart, Black Widow, on “Saturday Night Live.” During her 2015 hosting of the show, SNL aired a mock trailer for a Black Widow solo movie titled “Black Widow: Age of Me” which for its time was brilliant. Instead of an action heavy spy thriller, it depicted Natasha Romanoff as the protagonist in a cheesy romantic comedy where she falls for Ultron! It was a healthy jab at Marvel Studios, who at the time seemed reluctant to give Black Widow her own solo movie, which she’d get 6 years after this sketch. It wouldn’t have worked so well if Scarlett wasn’t fully committed to the bit.
#5: Tom Hiddleston
“The Good, the Bart, and the Loki” (2021)
In the 2021 Disney+ short film “The Good, the Bart, and the Loki,” Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as the God of Mischief for an awesome animated crossover. Hiddleston voiced Loki, who finds himself banished to Springfield by Odin. He befriends Bart and attempts to navigate the quirky world of “The Simpsons,” making tons of sly MCU references along the way! It’s chock-full of colorful easter eggs from both universes blended together in a way that’s especially pleasing for those that are fans of both “The Simpsons” show and the MCU.
#4: Chadwick Boseman
“Saturday Night Live” (1975-)
Chadwick Boseman’s hosting of “Saturday Night Live” included one of the best MCU parodies to date, in a sketch where Boseman playfully channels Black Panther. In SNL’s “Black Jeopardy,” Boseman appears as King T’Challa, who, despite his regal bearing and advanced Wakandan knowledge, finds himself comically bewildered by American slang and culture. His earnest, literal interpretations of the questions keep leading him to incorrect answers. It’s a fun and sweet way to gently satirize the MCU and the cultural disconnect between Wakanda and the rest of the world, only possible thanks to Chadwick’s in-character performance.
#3: Escape Room Ensemble
“Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Endgame|Escape Room” (2019)
To promote the release of “Avengers: Endgame,” Marvel Studios produced a unique and wonderfully meta parody in the form of an Endgame themed ‘Escape Room’ special. Benedict Cumberbatch, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, and Letitia Wright were made to recall specific movie events in order to gather the Infinity Stones and escape. But even though Benedict Cumberbatch had played Sherlock Holmes in the past, it seems Sebastian Stan would be the one to accidentally discover most of the clues instead, stumbling into the spotlight. And with Joe Russo directing the heroes on comms, the whole thing comes together like a mini-Avengers movie in spirit. The actors aren’t playing their characters here, but the parody comes from putting them in this super-hero movie-type situation.
#2: Chris Hemsworth
“Saturday Night Live” (1975-)
When Thor actor Chris Hemsworth started embracing comedy roles more often, he appeared twice on “Saturday Night Live” in 2015.. During one of his hostings, he provided a self-aware but charming parody of a hyper-enthusiastic Thor Thor celebrating a victory in a post-battle interview sketch. Comically oblivious and in full party mode, in typical Thor fashion, he had not a shred of subtlety and seemed utterly over the top. Hemsworth took everything his Marvel character was and turned it up to eleven, while somehow managing to keep it all genuine.
#1: Ryan Reynolds
“Deadpool” franchise (2016-)
The king of self-parody within the MCU is none other than the master himself, Ryan Reynolds. Not only is he a great comedian, he’s got the perfect amount of material to draw on with his numerous past superhero roles, which do come into play in his jokes. The entire marketing campaign for the “Deadpool” films completely redefined what superhero promotion could be. Reynolds, fully in character, consistently shattered the fourth wall, directly addressing the audience, mocking Marvel, Disney, and especially his own prior, much-maligned portrayal of Deadpool in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”
Do you agree with our picks? Which Marvel actor’s parody made you laugh the most? Tell us in the comments down below!
