Malekith

"Your universe was never meant to be. Your world and your family will be extinguished!"

- Malekith

Malekith was the cruel and utterly malevolent leader of the Dark Elves, a race of beings said to be older than the universe itself. Born into darkness, Malekith led his people in a war against the Asgardians, using an ancient weapon known as the Aether, but they were thought to have been destroyed thousands of years ago during a battle against the Asgardian King Bor.

Malekith survived, however, and after going into hiding for thousands of years, he returned during the second Convergence and sought to retake the Aether and use its power to transform the universe by plunging it back into eternal darkness. Before his attempt could succeed, however, he was defeated by Bor's grandson Thor in the Battle of Greenwich, resulting in his death.

Malekith's War
"Long before the birth of light there was darkness, and from that darkness came the Dark Elves. Millennia ago the most ruthless of their kind, Malekith, sought to transform our universe back into one of eternal night. Such evil was possible through the power of the Aether, an ancient force of infinite destruction."

- Odin

Born on Svartalfheim, Malekith was a cruel and warmongering leader of the Dark Elves. Although Malekith's soldiers expressed blind loyalty to their leader and he became worshiped as a god-like figure to the Dark Elves, Malekith's desire to restore the universe to a state of eternal darkness put him in conflict with the forces of Asgard and their king Bor.

Thousands of years ago, Malekith attempted to harness the power of the Aether, an Infinity Stone predating the universe itself, and use its destructive power to destroy all of the Nine Realms. Led by Bor, the Asgardians managed to steal the Aether and stop Malekith's war. In response to the defeat, Malekith sacrificed the majority of his people, including his own wife and son, in an attempt to wipe out the Asgardian invaders, putting himself, his second in command Algrim and a few survivors into hibernation.

Revenge
"Look upon my legacy, Algrim. I can barely remember a time before the light." "Our survival will be your legacy." "The Asgardians will suffer as we have suffered. I will reclaim the Aether. I will restore our world. And I will put an end to this poisoned universe."

- Malekith and Algrim

Thousands of years later, during which time Bor had died and Asgard was being ruled by his son Odin, the vengeful Malekith and his remaining army awakened when the Aether was absorbed into the body of a human woman named Jane Foster, signalling the beginning of the Convergence. The Aether's reactivity allowed Malekith to sense it's location.

Malekith first traveled back to his home world of Svartalfheim, which had been all but destroyed during the great war between the Dark Elves and Asgardian Army, with hundreds of Dark Elf Flagships littered across the burnt wasteland. As Algrim attempted to comfort his leader by reminding him of all the Dark Elves still alive due to his actions, Malekith swore to avenge his fallen brothers by reclaiming the Aether and using its immense power to destroy Asgard and the rest of the universe.

Malekith and the Dark Elves started searching for the Aether. They soon discovered that Jane Foster had been transported from Earth to Asgard in order to have the Aether removed from her body as it was slowly killing her. Malekith sent his lieutenant Algrim into the city under the guise of a prisoner, and before he left Malekith stored a Kursed Stone inside Algrim's gut to make him indestructible and allow him to destroy Asgard's defences from the inside.

Sacking of Asgard
"Stand down, creature. You may still survive this." "I have survived worse, woman." "Who are you?" "I am Malekith, and I would have what it is mine."

- Frigga and Malekith

Malekith sent his attack ships to fly into Asgard and invade the city. Algrim transformed into a Kursed and freed the inmates, including Lorelei, and managed to lower Asgard's defences. Malekith's own ship crashed into the city and his soldiers attacked the guards. While the Dark Elves held back the Asgardian Soldiers, Malekith calmly walked through the room and destroyed Odin's throne with a Black Hole Grenade.

Malekith went to the palace room, where he found Queen Frigga protecting Jane Foster. When Malekith attempted to capture Foster, Frigga defended her by attacking Malekith. Taken off guard by Frigga's fighting ability, Malekith was defeated in single combat. Algrim eventually arrived and restrained Frigga while Malekith went to grab Foster, only to discover that she was an illusion and the true Foster was hidden in another room of the palace.

Malekith called Frigga a witch and demanded to know where the Aether was. Realizing that Frigga would not talk, Malekith allowed Algrim to kill her by stabbing her through the heart. Thor, witnessing the death of his beloved mother, angrily struck Malekith's face with lightning, leaving a permanent burn on the right side of his face. Algrim carried his injured master and together they jumped on board a Dark Elf Harrow and escaped before Thor could kill them.

Battle on Svartalfheim
"We must strike now." "No, Asgard is meaningless. The Aether has found it's way home."

- Algrim and Malekith

Malekith was taken back to the Dark Elf Flagship where his injuries were treated while his forces prepared to attack Asgard again. Algrim insisted that they must attack Asgard again while they were still weak after the last battle, however Malekith sensed that Thor and Loki had chosen to disobey Odin's orders and decided instead to move Jane Foster to Svartalfheim in order to draw Malekith out.

Malekith witnessed the Asgardian's arrival on their home world and was surprised when Loki suddenly betrayed his brother by seemingly stabbing him in the side before cutting off his hand and surrendering Foster to his forces. Loki then told Malekith that all he wanted in exchange for his partnership was a seat from where he could watch Asgard burn. Algrim recognized Loki as a fellow prisoner on Asgard who he had seen during his breakout from the dungeons and confirmed this to his superior. Malekith took Algrim's word and mocked Thor as he lay moaning in pain on the ground.

As the Dark Elf extracted the Aether from Jane, it was revealed that Loki cutting off his brother's hand was actually an illusion. Summoning his hammer, Mjølnir, Thor attempted to destroy the Aether while Loki protected Foster, only for the Aether to reconstitute itself almost instantly. Malekith explained that the Aether could not be destroyed and absorbed it, leaving his Dark Elves and Algrim to deal with his two Asgardian opponents. Malekith then made his way to Earth, where he would unleash the Aether into the Convergence and then obliterate the realms.

Attack on Earth
"Darkness returns Asgardian, have you come to witness to end of your universe?" "I've come to accept your surrender."

- Malekith and Thor

Arriving on Earth, Malekith and his forces witnessed portals in the sky opening up as the Convergence began. They were soon confronted once again by Thor, who had survived his battle with Algrim. With the Aether enhancing his power and abilities, Malekith battled Thor, absorbing the power of his lightning and throwing him through the air. Their fight quickly led to them being thrown through various portals left by the Convergence. Their strength was equal, finding that neither could overpower the other as they were teleported over the Nine Realms, taking them to Svartalfheim where Thor lost Mjølnir through a portal, leaving him nearly defenceless. While on Jotunheim they were almost killed by a Jotunheim Beast. Eventually, the two were teleported away from each other and Malkeith used the opportunity to begin unleashing the Aether on the Nine Realms, sucking all the light out of the Realms. Thor returned and confronted Malekith. The Dark Elf turned to face the Asgardian and casually asked if he wanted to see the end of the universe. Thor defiantly demanded his surrender as he threw a teleportation device Erik Selvig had created at him which Malekith casually caught, before the device activated and teleported his right arm. Thor then threw the second device, hitting Malekith in the left shoulder, which then teleported his remaining arm away. The Dark Elf arrogantly dismissed Thor's efforts, declaring that the Aether cannot be destroyed. However, Thor declared that he can at least destroy him as he summoned Mjølnir into his hand and slammed the last teleportation device into Malekith's chest, sending the Dark Elf crashing into his ship. Subsequently, Jane Foster activated the device, sending him to Svartalfheim. Malekith fell on his back, weakened by the battle, moments later, Erik Selvig used another device to teleport Malekith's Dark Elf Flagship to the Dark Elf's location, the ship continued to fall and Malekith, unable to move in time, was subsequently crushed and killed by his own ship.

Personality
Malekith was the most ruthless of his kind, willing to do whatever it takes for his goals to be fulfilled, an example of this would be when Asgardians and Dark Elves were battling on Svartalheim, Malekith sacrificed his own troops in a desperate bid to kill his foe, he also put the wellbeing of his loyal second in command by Kursing him. Malekith was vengeful, cruel, vicious, depraved, callous and black-hearted. After losing the war, Malekith, his army and his super-weapon, the Aether were trapped in stasis for centuries however this did not soothe his hatred, he became obsessed with the destruction of the Nine Realms and sought the legendary dark power of the Aether. He also possessed a strategic mind, being able to implant a Kursed One in Asgard and then able to launch an all-out attack on the city, Malekith was able to locate where the Convergence would take place and use it to destroy the Nine Realms.

Due to the power of the Aether Malekith possessed a superhuman amount of physical strength and was able to hold his own against Thor, he was also able to absorb the lightning fired by Mjolner. Due to him having the power of an Infinity Stone, Malekith had the capability to destroy a world, but he was not invincible, as he was crushed by a Dark Elf Flagship, which killed him.

Powers
Malekith has mastery over the Aether, and appears to be one of the most powerful beings in the Nine Realms. He is able to match Thor with the power of the Aether, if not slightly surpass him. Malekith possesses various superhuman attributes, some of which are common to his race, the Dark Elves.
 * Superhuman Strength: Malekith, like all Dark Elves, possesses superhuman strength. Ordinarily, Malekith possesses sufficient strength to overpower weaker beings without supplementing his strength with his other powers. However, while using the Aether, he is able to increase his strength to immense, superhuman levels, up to the point where he can match Thor's incredible strength blow for blow with his bare hands, even with Thor having Mjølnir.
 * Superhuman Durability: Malekith's body is extremely durable, much more resistant to physical injury than the body of a human. Malekith has withstood exposure to the temperature and pressure extremes of Jotunheim, falls from great heights, powerful energy blasts, and even numerous, mighty blows from Thor wielding Mjølnir, all without sustaining any permanent injuries. Though a powerful lighting blast from Mjølnir did blacken the right side of Malekith's face, he wasn't affected much besides that. Additionally, Malekith was one of the extremely few beings powerful enough to withstand and wield the power of an Infinity Stone. However, Malekith's durability still had its limits - as Thor was able to sever both of the Dark Elf's arms by having them teleported back to Svartalfheim, and succeeded in smashing the last teleportation device into Malekith's chest with Mjølnir. The malevolent Dark Elf was finally killed when his massive flagship collapsed on top of him, crushing Malekith.
 * Longevity: Malekith, like all Dark Elves, possesses a greatly extended lifespan and ages at a much slower pace than humans, being one of the oldest beings in the Nine Realms. He is also immune to the effects of all known Earthly diseases and infections.
 * Regenerative Healing Factor: In spite of his body's increased durability, it is possible to injure Malekith, such as when a powerful lighting blast from Mjølnir blackened the right side of his face, though he wasn't affected much besides that. Malekith's metabolism enables him to repair damaged bodily tissues much faster and more extensively than a human is capable of. He is shown healing in stasis pods on board his ship. However, even with the Aether, he was unable to regenerate damaged or severed limbs.

Abilities

 * Expert Combatant: Malekith is an extremely skilled warrior in both armed and hand-to-hand combat, shown when he quickly and effortlessly took out three armed Einherjar with only his dagger. Malekith's skill was increased following his infusion with the Aether and he went toe-to-toe with Thor, the most powerful and skilled warrior in Asgard, though he was ultimately defeated by the latter after a prolonged battle.
 * Expert Tactician: Malekith lead the Dark Elves against Asgard for many years. When facing defeat against Bor and the armies of Asgard, Malekith sacrificed most of his own people and ships to decimate the Asgardian army.
 * Multilingualism: Malekith fluently speaks both English and his native language, Shiväisith.

Weapons

 * Dagger: Malekith wields an ancient dagger forged of Dark Matter that predates our own universe. The merciless leader of the Dark Elves used this blade during the Asgardian invasion of Svartálfheim and during his siege on Asgard. It was Frigga, mother to Thor and Loki, wife of Odin and queen of Asgard, who wrestled this blade from Malekith’s grasp.
 * Aether: Malekith is the only one known to effectively use it in combat. The Aether's primary function is to corrode matter into dark matter and Malekith planned to unleash it on the entire universe, but the Aether can also be weaponized into tendrils that shoot out from its wielder.

Allies

 * Dark Elves - Subordinates
 * Algrim † - Servant

Enemies

 * Asgardians
 * Bor †
 * Odin
 * Frigga †
 * Thor
 * Jane Foster
 * Loki
 * Erik Selvig - Unintentional Killer

Trivia

 * In the comics, Malekith has the dark side of his face on the left instead of the right.
 * In a non-canon story in the Captain America & Thor: Avengers! comic, Malekith is the royal mage of Queen Alflyse of Svartalfheim.

Behind the Scenes

 * Mads Mikkelsen was considered for the role of the Dark Elf, but he dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.