Aldrich Killian
Who he is: Aldrich Killian, a.k.a. The Mandarin
His power: Killian was the scientist who invented the Extremis program and made himself its most powerful recipient. That means he’s capable of superheating his body to extreme temperatures, regenerating injured or severed body parts, and even—as we learn in a particularly weird way—capable of spitting fiery lava from his mouth.
His story: Killian’s sole MCU appearance is in Iron Man 3. After a physically handicapped Aldrich Killian is spurned by Tony Stark on New Year’s Eve, 1999, the founder and CEO of Advanced Idea Mechanics rededicates himself to the Extremis program, eventually partnering with genetic scientist Maya Hansen to create a serum capable of regenerating lost limbs. Unfortunately, it’s also highly volatile, and even slight variations in the injections can turn those same people into superheated bombs. With his newfound power, Killian decides to weaponize his invention, and creates a phony incarnation “The Mandarin,” a real-world terrorist whose identity (played by Trevor Slattery) adopts as a cover for his own attacks upon the world population. By conspiring with the vice president, he hopes to play both sides of the military-industrial complex to become, well, super rich, basically. It’s kind of a weird plan, honestly. Unfortunately for him, Tony Stark decides to take him on, and after Killian kidnaps the president as the culmination of his plan (in addition to injecting Pepper Potts with Extremis), Stark and Col. Rhodes intervene, destroying the entire group of Extremis super-soldiers and killing Killian. “Killing Killian”—try saying that five times fast.
Played by: Guy Pearce
Currently, Aldrich Killian is: Exploded into a bunch of tiny little pieces. R.I.P.
Where will we see him next? Nowhere.