There are plenty of heroes in the Marvel universe. Most heroes are good from the start and earn a great reputation. However, not all have such noble beginnings. A few have had rough starts and were first introduced to audiences as villains.
A villain turning into a hero is a tough transition for some, but some of these former antagonists can prove they were good people, to begin with — just misguided. The road to redemption is a bumpy one, but these characters prove there can be a light at the end of the tunnel for anyone willing to try.
Update on June 5, 2022, by Sarah Prado: There are plenty of characters in the Marvel world that are switching sides either constantly or once in a while. Most of these characters have been around for a long time and started off as villainous characters. Some of them still have selfish reasons for doing things that they do, but they aren’t the worst characters out there. However, most of them have found redemption and use their powers for the general good or at least try their best to stay on a good path.
14 Warpath
Though he has been a hero for a long time now, Warpath started off as a villain after the death of his brother, John Proudstar, AKA Thunderbird. Believing that the X-Men were responsible for his death, Warpath sought to get revenge on them.
Warpath was part of the Hellions and fought against the New Mutants. He had the chance to kill Professor X but decided against it — the first step towards redeeming himself. After leaving the Hellions, Warpath’s tribe was slaughtered, and he joined the New Mutants in the fight for good.
13 Songbird
Songbird had quite a rough home life which eventually led her to become known as Screaming Mimi and join the Grapplers, a female organization that worked with the Roxxon Energy Corporation which did illegal activities. The Grapplers would break and Songbird would later join the Masters of Evil, a villainous group created by Baron Helmut Zemo. After getting arrested and escaping prison, she was contacted by Zemo again and would join the Thunderbolts, another villain group posing as heroes.
The group would actually love doing heroic deeds and becoming full-fledged heroes. Songbird has consistently remained a hero since then and has moved on from her Screaming Mimi identity and days as a villain.
12 Emma Frost
Emma Frost has a long and notorious history of being a villain. She is one of the founders of Hellfire Club and was a mentor to the Hellions. She’s fought against the X-Men quite a bit and eventually joined them. However, Emma is also notorious for always looking out for herself and her own goals. Even when she’s heroic, Emma is still an ice queen while doing so.
She’s definitely one of those characters that skate the fine line between good and evil. However, if there’s anything that should be known about her, she’ll always look out for herself first.
11 Venom
Venom might serve as an antagonist for Spider-Man, but he has come a long way since his debut. The symbiote and his host Eddie Brock seem to have a solid partnership at this point. They have been shown to protect people and team up with Spider-Man on occasion to do so.
He might be an anti-hero, but Venom/Eddie has shown he cares about the world around him. He’s teamed up with Spider-Man and other heroes a few times, slowly but surely growing more heroic on every adventure.
10 Morbius
Morbius did start off as an adversary for Spider-Man and Blade, and the one responsible for turning Blade into a dhampir. He does tend to be more of an anti-hero but is really a tragic figure that fans can’t help but feel a little sorry for. Thanks to an experiment gone awry, Morbius is stuck with his pseudo-vampire state and abilities. Because of this, Morbius constantly struggles with his need for human blood and tries his best to find a cure.
He’s an anti-hero and a vigilante, using his dark powers for mostly good. However, there are times when he slips back into being a villain.
9 The Punisher
While the Punisher has been considered an anti-hero for a long time, some fans might’ve forgotten that this vigilante started off as a villain in the Spider-Man comics. The Punisher sought revenge on Spider-Man, believing that he murdered Norman Osbourne. After this appearance, the Punisher began to show up more and more as a vigilante campaigning against all crime.
The Punisher is not afraid to kill, kidnap, extort, or torture anyone bad, something even most heroes don't have the stomach to do. And if anyone is wondering if he feels bad about what he’s done: he doesn’t. Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare had no effect on him, showing he regrets nothing.
8 Black Widow
Black Widow is usually on the side of good, but she tends to walk on a thin line between that and evil. As a villain, she sought Iron Man and almost destroyed him with the help of Hawkeye. However, she was injured, and when Hawkeye took her away to recover, she began to fall in love with him. When the Red Room captured and brainwashed her, Hawkeye — who had since joined the Avengers — helped her break free.
She joined the Avengers shortly after and became an espionage agent for S.H.I.E.L.D. Still, Black Widow is not afraid to get her hands dirty and isn’t above manipulating and using others. She’ll do whatever it takes to complete her mission.
7 Scarlet Witch
Scarlet Witch started off as a reluctant villain who was one of the first recruits in Magneto’s Brotherhood of Mutants along with her twin brother, Quicksilver. The two didn’t believe in Magneto’s cause and only joined him to repay him after he saved their lives. After Magneto is abducted by Stranger, the twins leave the Brotherhood and join the Avengers.
Since then, Scarlet Witch has mostly been on the side of good, but she’s been an enemy to both heroes and villains. At times, her mental instability has been her undoing and the world suffers with her. Because of this, her allies and brother usually stick close to her to make sure she doesn’t use her powers in anger.
6 Quicksilver
Like his sister, Quicksilver was one of the first recruits for the Brotherhood of Mutants and was an enemy to heroes. After joining the Avengers, though, Quicksilver has consistently remained on the side of good.
Unlike his sister, he is the least likely to cause any horrible world-altering events. He will team up with others to stop her if she becomes a threat. Many villains-turned-heroes still display some moral ambiguity, but this is definitely less the case with Quicksilver.
5 Deadpool
The Merc with a Mouth wasn’t always the witty, funny anti-hero that fans know and love today. Deadpool initially appeared as a villain against Cable and the New Mutants and continued to appear as an antagonist against the X-Force for a short time. While he was always a smart-aleck, he was more reserved and serious than he is now.
Thankfully, he changed for the better and has become one of the most popular anti-heroes of Marvel. While he has no problems getting his hands dirty, Deadpool now fights to protect innocents in a violent and fabulous fashion.
4 Gambit
Much like his other half Rogue, Gambit started off as a villain when he first appeared. He was part of a thieves’ guild and this caused a lot of the X-Men to not trust him and is known to be sneaky, manipulative, and sarcastic. It also didn’t help that he was part of the Morlock Massacre in which a group of outcast mutants was killed by the Marauders, the group he was a part of.
It’s a dark spot in his history, but his allies know that Gambit is not a bad guy and has redeemed himself. Though their relationship is rocky at times, Gambit courted Rogue for a long time and they eventually got married, and are considered one of the best couples in Marvel.
3 Rogue
Rogue might be one of the popular X-Men now, but she started off as a villain. When she was part of the Brotherhood of Mutants, one of her most notorious fights was up against Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers.
During this fight, Rogue managed to permanently absorb her powers and psyche. She joined the X-Men shortly after and has since become one of their best fighters.
2 Hawkeye
It might surprise some fans, but Hawkeye was a villain when he first appeared. As mentioned above, Hawkeye and Black Widow were a team, and together tried to steal Iron Man’s technology.
Since he and Black Widow were villains together, their redemption arcs also depended on one another. After Black Widow was kidnapped, Hawkeye became part of the Avengers and eventually rescued her. He’s been a hero ever since and has become one of the Avengers' most trusted and toughest warriors.
1 Bucky Barnes AKA Winter Soldier
Much like his MCU counterpart, Bucky Barnes started off on the side of good and as a good friend to Captain America/Steve Rogers. He was thought to be dead after explosives went off in a plane he and Captain America were in. Bucky lived and was found by enemies, then brainwashed into becoming an assassin. For a long time, he went on covert missions, killing many people along the way and fighting against the Avengers.
Once his memories are restored, Bucky feels immense guilt for what he’s done and wishes to atone. After Steve is seemingly killed, Bucky takes up the Captain America mantle and fights in his place. Even after Steve is revealed to be alive, both of them keep the Captain America title and fight together. His is a unique case of hero to villain and back to hero again.