Who Is the Villain in ‘The Defenders’?

Drew Dietsch
TV Marvel
TV Marvel

The Defenders is bringing together a cadre of crimefighters: Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist. However, we don’t yet know who they will be going up against. Well, we know that the lead villain will be performed by fan royalty Sigourney Weaver. And we do know that her name is Alexandra Reid. But, we still aren’t clear on exactly who she is playing. Though, that hasn’t stopped us from digging deep into the Marvel archives and looking for some clues. We’ve got a couple of theories that sound the most likely. If you’d rather stay unspoiled, just tune into The Defenders when it hits Netflix on August 18.

Still here? Okay, here we go…

The Defenders Villain Might Be…

the defenders alexandra sigourney weaver villain 2

Alexandra Bont.

That name might not sound familiar at first. That’s because it’s a gender-swap of Alexander Bont. Bont was created by Brian Michael Bendis during his comic book run of Daredevil. Bont was the original Kingpin of Crime before Wilson Fisk took over. He has a personal grudge against Daredevil and was even involved in the murder of Daredevil’s father.

The Netflix/Marvel shows have leaned heavily on the crime boss antagonists, so this seems like a safe bet for what’s come before. But, this could also be a smokescreen for a much more intriguing reveal…

Could the Defenders Villain Actually Be…

marvel the defenders villain mephisto

Mephisto.

The character has been rumored as The Defenders villain for a long time. He’s basically the Satan of the Marvel universe, and having Sigourney Weaver be the Devil of Marvel would be amazing. Weaver has even said her character is someone who loves life and culture, and Lucifer is often a character who is shown to enjoy the pleasures of life to their fullest. You don’t get an actress of Weaver’s caliber and have her play some no-name throwaway character. But having her be Mephisto? Yes please!

Of course, Mephisto is commonly represented as a man in the comics – but not always! – so Marvel might be hiding Weaver’s true identity for fear of any pre-release pushback from certain circles of fandom. As far as FANDOM is concerned, this would make Weaver the best villain in any of the Netflix/Marvel shows to date. And it would definitely create a threat that would necessitate bringing all these heroes together.

We’ll see if our theory holds any water when The Defenders hits Netflix later this year.

Drew Dietsch
Drew Dietsch has been professionally writing about entertainment for over a decade. His bylines include FANDOM - where he was a founding contributor and Entertainment Editor - Bloody Disgusting, SYFY WIRE, and more. He created and hosts GenreVision, a weekly film discussion show at genrevision.com.