• Sacha Baron Cohen’s versatility suits playing Mephisto’s shapeshifting abilities perfectly.
• Cohen’s portrayal of conniving characters, like Thénardier, showcases his ability for Mephisto.
• If Cohen plays Mephisto in Ironheart, fans can expect evil vibes, cunning manipulation, and humor.

To many people, Sacha Baron Cohen is something of a clown figure who plays crazy and controversial characters in an attention-seeking manner. However, that’s a monumentally misinformed view. The British actor is an exceptionally talented man whose most famous roles had the specific aims of creating talking points and sending important messages. He is a hugely versatile actor, accomplished writer, and producer with a massively impressive filmography. That’s why the prospect of him appearing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is far more exciting than the lack of hype around it would suggest.

It isn’t helping matters that the show in which he’s set to debut — Disney Plus’ Ironheart — has experienced such torrid delays. Filming began on the Marvel Studios series in 2022, and Marvel Cinematic Universe fans are rightfully bored, frustrated, and losing interest after patiently standing by for so long. Dominique Thorne debuted as the eponymous Riri Williams in 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It’s been an arduous wait. However, Cohen alone could make it all worthwhile. It isn’t yet confirmed which character he’s playing, but reports suggest it’ll be Mephisto, the powerful demonic villain from Marvel’s comic books. If that’s the case, MCU fans are in for an unforgettable wild ride, and Cohen’s past roles show why.

RelatedAn Ironheart star discloses significant changes to a character’s origin in the upcoming Disney+ series.

Sacha Baron Cohen’s Versatility Is Superb

He’s played a wide range of characters with great skill, which perfectly lends itself to Mephisto’s shapeshifting abilities.

Sacha Baron Cohen has an essential trait for portraying a character like Mephisto: incredible versatility. In fact, it’s fair to say Cohen embodies the term. The wide range of characters he’s played on the big screen is bordering on ridiculous. He’s a tremendous character actor who embodies the individuals he plays. He is superb at conveying exaggerated personas and building entire worlds around his characters, remaining in character for prolonged periods in his faux-documentaries.

For starters, he’s taken three iconic characters from his television series Da Ali G Show to Hollywood. They are the faux-streetwise Staines-based poseur and wannabe rapper Ali G, the outrageous and hapless Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev, and the camp homosexual Austrian fashion enthusiast Brüno Gehard. Additionally, he’s played eclectic characters like the cocky French Formula One driver Jean Girard in 2006’s Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, the theatrical barber and snake oil salesman Adolfo Pirelli in 2007’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, the oppressive leader of the fictional East African republic of Wadiya, Admiral-General Aladee, in 2012’s The Dictator, the British football hooligan Kyle Alan “Nobby” Butcher in 2016’s The Brothers Grimsby, and the American political and social activist Abbie Hoffman in 2020’s The Trial of the Chicago 7.

Mephisto’s tendency to take on human form and to get close to people he wishes to manipulate is perfect for Cohen. He’ll be able to play multiple roles to suit whatever character is required in any given situation. Moreover, when it comes to playing Mephisto himself, given Cohen’s dedication to his craft borders on performance art, he’ll fully commit to it and ostentatiously lord over his hellish realm impeccably.

Sacha Baron Cohen Can Play Conniving And Manipulative Antagonists To Perfection

His role as Thénardier in Les Misérables was a great example of his suitability to play Mephisto.

Perhaps most pertinently for playing Mephisto, Sacha Baron Cohen has displayed the ability to play conniving and manipulative characters brilliantly — arguably the best example being Monsieur Thénardier in 2012’s Les Misérables. Thénardier is part of a swindling married couple, along with Helena Bonham Carter’s Madame Thénardier, and they’re unscrupulous and dishonest innkeepers who tend to manipulate people to their advantage.

Cohen’s performance as the character was a brilliant showcase of his ability to play a larger-than-life, sleazy, and opportunistic trickster, conveying dark humor, theatricality, and outright malevolence. Should Mephisto be presented as both a powerful evil demonic being and a conniving scoundrel who integrates himself into the life of Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams and her friends in an attempt to manipulate them, Cohen channeling his role as Thénardier would be a great starting point.

Mephisto has famously been on the minds of MCU fans for several years, with many expecting him to appear in WandaVision back in 2021. When that didn’t happen, expectations of his introduction shifted to 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The concept became a meme, with every project from 2022’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and 2024’s Agatha All Along (in which he was name-dropped) eliciting new exclamations of “Mephisto confirmed!”

Should Ironheart finally bring Mephisto to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Cohen is undoubtedly a great choice to portray him. He’ll bring evil vibes, cunning manipulation, and a welcome touch of humor. Fans don’t have long to find out if he is playing the villain, as the show is scheduled to premiere on Disney Plus (finally!) on June 24.