Marvel Knows Exactly How to Introduce Spider-Man’s First Villain to the MCU (In A Way That Makes Him A Serious Threat)

Marvel knows exactly how to bring the first ever Spider-Man villain into the MCU, as one story already showed how to make the Chameleon a major threat, one who could bring some flair and spectacle to the big screen with his shapeshifting powers. Though the Chameleon has faded in prominence as a Spidey antagonist over the decades, he is primed to play a vital role in the next Spider-Man movie.

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider – written by Stephanie Phillips, with art by Palolo Villanelli – pits the hero against Chameleon, whose powers have gone out of control, causing him to mimic the abilities of Spider-Man’s greatest villains.

Even more concerning, while Spider-Gwen might be able to handle Spider-Man’s villains individually, Chameleon’s new powers allow him to mix and match their abilities. This essentially makes him a one-man Sinister Six, which would make a perfect movie villain, since he’d be able to call upon all the abilities of the previous villains that Peter had fought.

One Story Proves Chameleon Has Everything He Needs To Be The Next Big MCU Spider-Man Villain

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider – Written By Stephanie Phillips; Art By Paolo Villanelli; Color By Matt Milla; Lettering By Ariana Ariana Maher

Fans have already speculated that a version of the Chameleon could appear in the MCU as a Skrull, but however the character’s origin and purpose change, Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider effectively gives a road map for how Marvel Studios’ filmmakers should portray the character, in order to make him a serious threat. In his early appearances – and at different points in the Chameleon’s history – he has been a legitimate adversary for Spider-Man and other Marvel heroes, though how dangerous he is is often downplayed or discounted.

Consider the enemies MCU Spidey has faced so far. None of the villains Peter has gone up against in his own movie could really face him physically, aside from the Green Goblin. Both Vulture and Mysterio couldn’t hope to fight Peter in a physical confrontation. But Chameleon could. Not only would Chameleon have access to both the powers of Vulture and Mysterio, but there’s really no reason why he wouldn’t be able to have the powers of the Avengers as well, if Marvel decides to give him his mutated power-set.

The MCU Can Make Spider-Man’s Original Villain His Greatest Antagonist

First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #1 – Written By Stan Lee; Art By Steve Ditko

Chameleon is a very strange villain because he honestly isn’t very well known. While he’s appeared in many Spider-Man stories before, he’s not an A-list villain that people would be quick to point out. He’s certainly not a big name like Lizard, Doc Ock, Venom, or even Vulture. But at the same time, Chameleon has an undeniable special place in Spider-Man’s history, because while he may not be as popular as the aforementioned villains, he does predate them, as Chameleon was the first ever supervillain that Spider-Man went up against.

This means that Chameleon has been around to battle Spider-Man longer than anyone else, yet he’s never really gotten the respect he deserves from it. Having Chameleon take center stage in an MCU film could be the way to fix this, and it’s not like he doesn’t have the power to play the role. If Marvel decides to adapt his current powers from Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider, then he’d certainly have no trouble going up against Peter, especially when he’s at a point with no friends and no allies.

Chameleon Is Arguably Spider-Man’s Most Under-Appreciated Villain

The MCU Can Earn Him Some Long Overdue Respect

The smartest way to follow up on Spider-Man’s arc in the MCU right now would be with a villain who can feed into the character’s isolation. Chameleon can be anyone, including Peter’s former friends and allies. He could pretend to be Dr. Strange and tell him the spell was reversed, he could pretend to be Mary Jane, who suddenly remembered him. There are tons of directions Marvel could take. Most importantly, Chameleon could easily prove to be Spider-Man’s physical match. No matter what direction Marvel goes, Chameleon would be the perfect villain.

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider is available now from Marvel Comics!