Man-Thing (2005)
Credit: Marvel
Sitting apart from the 90s movies, Marvel had one last stab at a TV movie before the MCU took off. Man-Thing was quite a departure from the high camp of the 90s and went full horror with the premise. It even opens with the horror cliché of the teen couple being murdered whilst having sex.
Continuing the tradition of these films, budget cuts hampered production considerably. Filming was moved to Australia, and a large proportion of the actors are clearly Australians trying (and failing) to speak in American accents. Virtually every reference to the comic is removed. Man-Thing's alter-ego Ted Sallis is a Native American Shaman instead of a scientist, and his burning touch has been replaced with control over plant life. He's also now a horror movie villain, killing indiscriminately. Even Man-Thing's home was changed, moving the action from Florida to Louisiana.
The film is probably the lowest point of Marvel live action. Despite plans for a cinematic release it premiered on the Sci-Fi channel and managed to lower the bar even by their standards. Man-Thing himself doesn't look too bad, a decent combination of practical effects and computer graphics. But that doesn't in any way make up for the abysmal scripts, terrible acting and lack of any action until the final 10 minutes.
One final piece of trivia for the article. The lead female role in Man-Thing was played by Rachael Taylor, who would later appear in the MCU as Jessica Jones' friend Trish Walker.