Characters / MCU: Ulysses Klaue

Main Character Index > Villainous Organizations > Criminals & Terrorists | Criminal & Terrorist Organizations (Sharon Carter | Ulysses Klaue | Arthur Harrow) > New York-Based Criminals (Fisk Crime Ring (Wilson Fisk | Benjamin Poindexter) | Stokes–Dillard Crime Ring | Vulture's Gang (Adrian Toomes))

---

Ulysses Klaue

"Human life: Not a growth market."

Species: Human (cybernetically enhanced)

Citizenship: South African ^note born in the Netherlands; has a citizenship in Belgium

Affiliation(s): Intelligencia (formerly)

Portrayed By: Andy Serkis

Voiced By: Enrique Cervantes (Latin-American Spanish dub), Ramón Langa (European Spanish dub), Minoru Hirota (Japanese dub), Jérémie Covillault (European French dub), Manuel Tadros (Canadian French dub)

Appearances: Avengers: Age of Ultron | Black Panther

Klaue: Tell me something. How much do you know about Wakanda?
Everett K. Ross: Textiles, shepherds, cool outfits.
Klaue: All a front. It's a technological marvel.

A powerful South African gangster and smuggler who knows Tony from back during his days as an arms dealer. He's also the only mercenary to ever find Wakanda... and survive.

---

A-L

• Absurd Phobia: He's afraid of, to the astonishment of the Maximoffs, cuttlefish, having been terrified by a documentary featuring them. He's fully aware of how absurd it is and exploits this to mock Scarlet Witch's nightmare-inducing power and the Maximoffs' amateur intimidation tactics. Whether the fear is genuine or just made up to screw with the Maximoffs is left unclear.
• Adaptation Deviation:
  • Klaue is not responsible for T'Chaka's death in this continuity, Helmut Zemo is; it's said that he was hired to kill T'Chaka at the Bilderberg Conference if he refused to open Wakanda to trade, but he failed.
  • In the comics he lost his hand during his first attempted invasion of Wakanda; here, Ultron cuts it off in a moment of impulsive anger. The upshot of all this is that in the MCU, T'Challa sees Klaue as an enemy of his nation — and his father's last unresolved piece of business — instead of his personal Arch-Enemy.
• Adaptation Name Change: His name went from "Klaw" in the comics to "Klaue" in the movies, although it's still pronounced the same. ^note It should be noted that "Klaue" was also his birth name in the comics before he changed it.
• Adaptational Nationality: He went from being Belgian in the comics to South African. Although the file the Avengers have on him in Age of Ultron still states that he has the Belgian citizenship and was born in the Netherlands.
• Adaptational Wimp:
  • In the comics, Klaue has become a Nigh-Invulnerable Energy Being made of living sound who possesses superhuman strength and speed, and can use his sonic cannon in a large variety of ways, which even include the creation of mobile constructs in solid sound. While still dangerous, the MCU version is significantly less powerful, as he remains a mere human being until his death and his sonic cannon's capabilities are much more limited.
  • This also applies to his accomplishments too. Klaw in the comics had successfully killed T'Challa's father, and led several large invasions against Wakanda, becoming a recurring enemy of the nation as a result. In the MCU, Klaue attempted to kill T'Chaka, but failed to do so and was incarcerated for it. He further spends mosts of his time smuggling Vibranium-related things in Africa and Europe, and is killed by Erik Stevens in only his second appearance.
• All of Them: His answer when one of his subordinates asks him who he is supposed to kill between the Avengers and Ultron.
  Klaue: Shoot them.
  Klaue's Mercenary: Which ones?
  Klaue: ALL OF THEM!
• The Alleged Car: Or boat in this case. During Klaue's very first moment on-screen, he's complaining on the phone about how old and rusty his boat is to the guy who traded it to him for some missiles.
• AM/FM Characterization: Klaue appears to be a big fan of pop and rap music. During the car chase in South Korea, his first instinct is to blast Kendrick Lamar through his speakers. He also brags about his SoundCloud mixtape to Everett Ross, and later belts out "What is Love" by Haddaway when he's in the CIA's custody.
• Alternate Self: Klaue has one on Earth-32938.
• Always a Bigger Fish: He may be a powerful and dangerous criminal himself, but in both of his appearances, Klaue ends up falling victim to a stronger, more menacing villain.
  • In Avengers: Age of Ultron, he got his arm cut off by none other than Ultron himself.
  • He's later betrayed and murdered by his former partner-in-crime Erik Stevens, also known as Killmonger, during the events of Black Panther.
• Amoral Afrikaner: He's a South African gangster.
• Arch-Enemy: He is the longtime veteran enemy of Wakanda since the time T'Chaka took up the Black Panther mantle.
• An Arm and a Leg: Like in the comics, he loses one of his arms, this time thanks to Ultron.
• Arm Cannon: Gets one after Ultron severs one of his arms. It's this in the most literal sense, as his robotic arm unfurls to reveal the actual cannon, which in itself is an Improvised Weapon, originally used for Vibranium mining. Klaue also used it in one scene as a Sonic Stunner, but to break glass rather than attack someone, though given what sonics do to vibranium in the film, it's entirely possible it's always been a sonic weapon.
• Arms Dealer: He sells all kinds of weapons on the Black Market, and he's notably the only person in the planet capable of delivering Vibranium.
• Artificial Limbs: After losing his left arm during his encounter with Ultron, he replaces it by a prosthetic arm that also doubles as a sonic weapon before the events of Black Panther.
• Ascended Extra: He has a much larger role in Black Panther than in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
• Asshole Victim: As fun as he may have been, it's hard to say he didn't deserve his death, considering he was a ruthless murderer and generally acted like a crazy jerk.
• Ax-Crazy: The arm he lost was presumably the arm he used to shake hands with sanity. Klaue is a violent maniac who takes joy in causing pain and suffering.
• Back for the Dead: He reappears in Black Panther after his brief appearance in Age of Ultron, only to be killed by Erik Stevens midway through the film.
• Bad "Bad Acting": The way he begs for mercy when T'Challa captures him is so over-the-top and ridiculous that it's obvious he only does it to mess with him.
• Badass Normal: Managed to sneak into Wakanda, steal a quarter-ton of Vibranium, kill many Wakandans, get caught and branded at some point, and somehow make it out alive. As a result, he's been evading Wakanda forces for many years while also having enormous success as an illegal arms dealer. He also survives encounters with Ultron and the Avengers. He also has Nerves of Steel, doesn't bat an eyelid in the face of immediate danger and likes to taunt his captors at every opportunity. In short, Klaue is as tough as they come.
• Badass Transplant: His Artificial Limb, which contains an Arm Cannon capable of shattering glass and blowing a car to smithereens.
• Bait-and-Switch Boss: In Black Panther, Klaue initially appears to be set up as the main villain. However, Erik Killmonger ends up killing him halfway through the movie and taking the role of the true Big Bad of the film.
• Batman Gambit: When T'Challa apprehends him in South Korea and has his claws at Klaue's throat, Klaue starts pathetically pleading for his life in an exaggerated and over-the-top fashion, not because he's legitimately afraid, but because there's a large crowd gathering and Klaue knows how bad it would look for the Warrior Prince of a (supposedly) third-world country to murder an unarmed man begging for his life.
• Beard of Evil: He has a moderately long one.
• Benevolent Boss: It's hard to believe, but even Erik notes that Klaue always make sure of paying his men pretty well.
  Klaue: I'll make sure both of you guys get paid.
  Erik: I won't worry about the money, bro. I know you're good for it.
• Big Bad Wannabe: He was indeed Wakanda's Arch-Enemy for years, and works alongside Killmonger, imagining that they're equals in a partnership with Klaue's aim being to steal and sell Vibranium. However, from the start, Killmonger was just trying to get Klaue in a relatively defenseless position so he could kill the arms dealer and use Klaue's death to help him realize his own grander ambitions to rule Wakanda.
• Blood Knight: He gets a massive charge out of causing violence with his own (prosthetic) hands. After tearing his way through a casino, he joyously remarks that it was awesome.
• Bloodless Carnage: There isn't a single drop of blood after his arm gets chopped off. Justified, as Ultron apparently heats up his hand at that moment, thus cauterizing the wound.
• Body Horror: Every time he deploys his sonic cannon, his prosthetic arm has to split open in two, which can be a bit disturbing to watch.
• Breaking Out the Boss: After Klaue is captured in South Korea, his henchmen promptly come to storm the CIA facility in which he is held prisoner and break him out.
• Bring It: After stealing a vibranium artifact, Erik tries to warn Klaue that the Wakandans are probably going to go after him for that, only for him to confidently reply "That'll make my day!".
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Despite his numerous eccentricities, he's very good at stealing valuable artefacts, selling weapons and murdering people. In addition, he must be the most knowledgeable person (outside of Wakanda, of course) when it comes to vibranium and its incredible properties.
• The Cameo: In Avengers: Age of Ultron, he only appears for a single scene, albeit a fairly important one.
• Catchphrase Insult: Downplayed, but he refers to the Wakandans as "savages" on several occasions.
• Celebrity Paradox:
  • The Winter Soldier and Civil War acknowledge that the Star Wars franchise exists, which Serkis is a part of its Sequel Trilogy since 2015 (as Snoke).
  • In The Avengers (2012), Iron Man calls Hawkeye "Legolas", which would imply that The Lord of the Rings exists. Serkis played Gollum in the films.
  • Moon Knight (2022) reveals that The Simpsons exists in the MCU. Andy Serkis guest starred in a Season 14 episode where his character makes a Shout-Out to Gollum in The Lord of the Rings.
• Characterization Marches On: He was a much more stoic and serious character during his brief appearance in Avengers: Age of Ultron compared to the Large Ham Giggling Villain he becomes in Black Panther.
• Chewing the Scenery: His actor is clearly having tons of fun in the role. He even sings pop songs during his interrogation.
• Cloudcuckoolander: Moreso in Black Panther than in Avengers: Age of Ultron. He displays many odd and eccentric behaviors, as mentioned above he even starts singing whilst being captured.
• Comic-Book Movies Don't Use Codenames: In this version, he's only called "Ulysses Klaue" (his original name from the comics) instead of "Klaw" (his supervillain name) ^note "Klaue" and "Klaw" are pronounced the same, though. Might be Justified in that unlike the comics, MCU Klaue has remained a mostly normal human being throughout his appearances.
• Composite Character: He has taken many elements of his father, Fritz Klaue, such as being a smuggler and ally to Baron Strucker, the unique spelling of his surname, and his overall look.
• Cyborg: Becomes one in Black Panther after replacing his lost limb with a cybernetic prosthesis that can serve as a powerful sonic Arm Cannon.
• Deadly Euphemism: Klaue's introductory scene is him on the phone with a customer whom he's not happy with. He ends the conversation by warning them that if things aren't made right, "the next missile I send you will come very much faster."
• Deadpan Snarker: Even when he is caught in situations where his life is on the line, Klaue is able to make several amusing quips.
• Death by Adaptation: His comic counterpart is not only still alive, but also pretty much immortal since he turned into an Energy Being made of sound. In the MCU, Klaue is murdered by Killmonger in his second movie appearance only, and never gets the chance to become a being of sound like in the comics.
• Decomposite Character: In the MCU, Klaue's role as T'Chaka's murderer from the comics is given to Helmut Zemo instead of him.
• Defiant Captive: Even after being apprehended, he keeps taunting his captors and even tells T'Challa to his face that his people are savages who don't deserve to possess Vibranium. Later, he tries to play mind games with Everett Ross and to sow discord between him and the Wakandans by revealing there are many things that they are hiding from him.
• Demoted to Extra: In the comics, he's T'Challa's most important enemy and the two have clashed with each other on numerous occasions. In the MCU, he apparently meets T'Challa only once, and gets killed shortly after.
• Didn't See That Coming: He certainly didn't expect his partner Erik to betray him and try to shoot him, and even less so that he would turn out to be of Wakandan origin.
• Die Laughing: When Erik mortally wounds him, Klaue warns him that he'll never be able to just drop in on Wakanda. Erik then reveals that he has Wakandan heritage, after which Klaue quickly realizes who he is. This realization causes him to laugh at his own mistake, during which Erik kills him.
• Disc-One Final Boss: He gets killed off around half way through Black Panther by the real villain, Killmonger.
• Doesn't Trust Those Guys: Due to his past history with them, he thinks the people from Wakanda should never be trusted, as he explains to Agent Ross.
  Klaue: You know, you really shouldn't trust the Wakandans.
• Early-Bird Cameo: His first appearance was in Avengers: Age of Ultron, three years before a Black Panther movie. His official description even refers to him as "A powerful new player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe".
• Empowered Badass Normal: In Black Panther, he uses an Arm Cannon to replace his left arm which Ultron sliced off.
• Establishing Character Moment:
  • During his very first moment in Avengers: Age of Ultron, he rudely berates one of his missile buyers and even makes an Implied Death Threat, then he casually resumes his call with another customer who's none other than a minister. This effectively shows what kind of person he is.
  • To reintroduce the character and his larger role in Black Panther. He breaks into a museum alongside Erik and kills a bunch of museum guards. He leaves one alive, assuring him that he can go free, but waits for him to run a few paces before shooting him in the head. When questioned about this he points that spreading out the crime scene makes the job look less professional to attempt to hide their involvement, then gleefully uses his Arm Cannon to bust open the glass around a Vibranium axehead. The message is clear: for all his giddiness and comic relief value, he's still a clever and cunning criminal who knows what he's doing. It also offers some insight into how he has evaded Wakandan custody for so long.
• Evil Colonialist: Ulysses Klaue is a charismatic but cruel thief who pillages Wakanda's prized natural resource of Vibranium, justifying it by saying that the Wakandan are "savages" who don't deserve to have it. He even likens the country to his own personal El Dorado, the city of untold riches in many a colonizer's dreams.
• Evil Is Hammy: He's a very exuberant, unhinged and fun presence despite his sadistic love of violence, particularly in Black Panther. After causing an explosion at a casino, he joyously remarks that he 'made it rain'.
• Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor: For one thing, he labels a wrapped-up piece of vibranium 'fragile'. Oh, and he hides it in his pants so he can pretend to flash his junk when he takes it out.
• Evil Laugh: Does this several times in Black Panther. He often laughs insanely while causing deaths and destruction, a good example is when he starts cackling like a maniac after using his Arm Cannon to blow up a podium filled with money in an attempt to kill T'Challa.
  Klaue: I made it rain! MWA HA HA HA HA!!!
• Evil Sounds Deep: He has a very deep voice and is evil to the core.
• Evil Virtues: Despite appearing, at first glance, to be nothing more than a slimy, double-crossing Arms Dealer, Klaue is afraid of nothing. Ultron and the Maximoff twins barely faze him, even after getting his arm sliced off he's still giving orders to his men. Even after Killmonger shoots him at least twice, he's still laughing before being finished off.
• Face Death with Dignity: When Killmonger prepares to shoot him, Klaue appears to accept his fate and simply laughs, rather than try to beg for his life.
• "Facing the Bullets" One-Liner:
  Klaue: Ah, to think I saw you as some crazy American...
• Fake Arm Disarm: During their confrontation in Busan, T'Challa promptly ends the fight by forcefully ripping off Klaue's prosthetic Arm Cannon.
• Firing in the Air a Lot: He shoots several times in the air while trying to get out of the Korean casino. Unfortunately for him, this causes him to run out of ammunition when he is confronted with T'Challa a few seconds later.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: After gaining a Vibranium arm to replace the one he lost to Ultron, he becomes this and as a result of gaining From Nobody to Nightmare status, he's shown to be a bit intimidating as seen when he becomes angry at Everett Ross's accusation of him stealing a large amount of Vibranium from Wakanda.
• Gadgeteer Genius: Downplayed, but he was apparently able to make some adjustments to an old Wakandan mining tool and managed to convert it into a formidable Arm Cannon.
• Giggling Villain: It's more prominent in Black Panther, but Klaue tends to be having a very good time no matter what he's doing. He's always snickering and smiling.
• Glass Cannon:
  • Almost literally. He's got an Arm Cannon powerful enough to blast apart Vibranium armor (though the Vibranium nanites of the Black Panther suit are able to No-Sell at least one shot from it), but is otherwise just a reasonably fit ordinary middle-aged dude. Once T'Challa finally manages to get close enough to land a punch on him it's pretty much over.
  • In his short gunfight with Killmonger, he actually manages to land a couple shots on Killmonger before Killmonger can shoot him. Unfortunately for him, Killmonger is wearing body armor, while Klaue isn't.
• Glass-Shattering Sound: His sonic arm cannon can emit a powerful frequency capable of shattering glass, as seen when he uses it to break the glass case containing the Vibranium warhammer during the Museum robbery.
• Gory Discretion Shot:
  • In Age of Ultron, we're not directly shown his arm getting sliced off by Ultron, though we see the aftermath.
  • Also, we don't see him being shot to death by Erik in Black Panther, we only see the latter firing in his direction.
• Graceful Loser: He cracks up laughing when he realizes how much Erik has tricked him, right before being fatally shot.
• HA HA HA—No: A variation when Ross claims he stole all of Wakanda's Vibranium.
  Klaue: I stole... [bursts out laughing] ALL of it?! I took a tiny piece of it.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: A rare example of this trope occurs after he hysterically laughs off being accused of stealing a large amount of Vibranium from Wakanda. He also has one of these moments in Avengers: Age of Ultron in which his hair-trigger temper is arguably far nastier in that film than it was in Black Panther.
• Handicapped Badass: Even after losing his left arm, Klaue remains a very dangerous villain.
• Hidden Depths: He has made a mix-tape and offers to give Everett Ross a copy.
• Hidden Supplies: He hides his stock of Vibranium above one of the room of his boat containing toxic wastes.
• Hollywood Silencer: He and Limbani have silencers on their guns during their robbery at the Museum of Great Britain.
• Horrible Judge of Character: In his first movie appearance, he tries to make business with Ultron, an Ax-Crazy Killer Robot. It was obviously a bad idea, and he eventually loses an arm because of him. In his second film, he makes an alliance with Erik "Killmonger" Stevens, an unstable black ops assassin turned criminal, who ends up betraying and killing him. Clearly, Klaue is really bad at choosing his associates.
• Human Shield: Klaue tries to use Linda as this when Erik starts attacking him. Unfortunately for him, Erik is perfectly willing to shoot her to get at him.
• The Hyena: In Black Panther, there's hardly a single one of his scenes in which he doesn't burst out laughing. This even includes the scene of his death.
• Icy Blue Eyes: An Amoral Afrikaner with piercing blue eyes.
• I Have Your Wife: Takes Erik's girlfriend hostage when they end up in a standoff. It doesn't work out because Erik just kills her himself.
• I Know You're Watching Me: After his capture, he's taken to the CIA facility and placed in an empty interrogation room, where T'Challa and Okoye observe him through a two way mirror. However, Klaue watches in their direction at one point and tells them that he knows they're here.
  Klaue: I can see you!
• I Surrender, Suckers: When T'Challa confronts him in the Korean casino, Klaue throws his gun down and starts putting his arms in the air, making it look like he's about to surrender... but then he reveals his Arm Cannon and shoots at him.
• It's Personal: His family and the Black Panthers have been going at it since the 19th Century.
• It Works Better with Bullets: When he faces T'Challa during the casino fight, he promptly tries to shoot him with his gun, only to realize that he just ran out of bullets due to Firing in the Air a Lot shortly before.
• Jerkass: Even without meeting him in person, Bruce Banner accurately describes him as a "horrible" individual.
• Just a Kid: When he meets the Maximoff twins, Klaue mocks their juvenile status and treats them like children, even offering them some candies.
• Large Ham: Klaue delights in being loud, keeping everyone off balance, and having a great time even when he should probably be more wary such as making kissy faces, laughing, and singing "What is Love (Baby, Don't Hurt Me)" loudly while in federal custody.
• Laughably Evil: Despite being a villain, Klaue is an absolute laugh riot who provides a constant stream of quips and gags and gets some of the best jokes in Black Panther.
• Let's Split Up, Gang!: During the car chase in Busan, he orders his henchmen to split up in order to lose their pursuers, even saying this trope almost word-for-word.
  Ulysses Klaue: Let's split up!

M-Y

• Made of Iron: A trait that's consistent in both of his appearances:
  • In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Klaue gets his arm sliced off and receives a kick in the face by a metallic Killer Robot, causing him to fall off some stairs. And yet, he doesn't seem to be in such a bad shape after that.
  • Likewise in his second movie, despite being involved in a particularly brutal car accident and then getting beat up by the super-strong Black Panther, Klaue doesn't look like he has sustained any serious injuries. He even participates in a gunfight with Killmonger shortly afterwards, and doesn't appear to be impaired in the slightest.
• Mad Bomber: He's clearly a madman who loves causing carnage and destruction, and he used bombs during his attack on Wakanda. This led to the deaths of numerous Wakandan citizens, including W'Kabi's parents.
• Major Injury Underreaction: He doesn't seem to be in that much pain after losing his left arm, just irritated.
• Make Some Noise: He can use his Arm Cannon to fire sonic blasts that are powerful enough to blow Vibranium cars to pieces.
• Make Way for the New Villains: On the receiving end of this. Ulysses Klaue is a relatively important villain within the MCU, being introduced during a Phase Two movie, and later making a reappearance in Black Panther, in which the first part of the film seems to build him up as the greatest enemy that the titular hero must defeat. However, the movie also introduces new villain Erik Killmonger, who ends up killing Klaue midway through the film and taking his place as the main antagonist.
• Mark of Shame: He got a Wakandan symbol◊ that translates as a derogatory word for "Thief" branded on his neck when he got caught stealing a massive amount of Vibranium.
• Marquee Alter Ego: In the comics, Klaue mostly appears as a being composed of solidified sound with a noticeably non-human look, while in the MCU he always has the (surprisingly) very human appearance of Andy Serkis.
• Mexican Standoff: Is involved in one at one point. When Erik tries to shoot him, Klaue takes Linda hostage and threatens to kill her, causing the two men to pause for a moment. Finally, Erik resolves the situation by simply shooting Linda himself.
• Misplaced Retribution: After having his arm chopped off by Ultron, he gets so mad that he orders his henchmen to kill both Ultron and the Avengers, even though the latter have just arrived and have nothing to do with his injury. Granted, they are his enemies anyway since they are superheroes and he's a criminal, but this time they didn't even come for him.
• Mythology Gag:
  • He wears a necklace with a claw attached to it, which is both a pun on his name and a sign that he has had an encounter with T'Chaka.
  • And of course, there's his Sonic Stunner Arm Cannon mentioned above, though it's on his left arm rather than his right as in the comics.
  • His insane singing and offhand mention of a mixtape may be a very subtle nod to his "made of sound" composition in the source material.
  • His S.H.I.E.L.D. file mentions him being a former member of the Intelligencia, a supervillain group from the comics that Klaue was indeed involved with.
• Nerves of Steel: Nothing really fazes him. He is remarkably unafraid and unshaken by a visit from Ultron and the Maximoff twins, even offering the latter candy as if they were small children. He's also surprisingly collected after losing his arm, giving orders to his men to take out everyone that isn't on their side. Nor is he afraid of T'Challa, a man who has every reason to want him dead. In fact, he mocks him as Klaue is the only invader to find Wakanda and survive. Even his death doesn't distress him overly.
• Noodle Incident: It's never really explained how Klaue managed to acquire the Wakandan mining tool that he converted into his Arm Cannon. When T'Challa and later Agent Ross try to interrogate him about it, he doesn't exactly give a clear answer.
• The Nose Knows: Apparently, he knows Vibranium so well that he's able to recognize it by its smell, as seen when he sniffs the hammerhead to make sure it's Vibranium during the Museum robbery.
• No Sense of Personal Space: He can't keep his hands off Everett Ross during their conversation in the casino. Ross is visibly uncomfortable with this and eventually tells him to stop.
  Everett Ross: That's enough.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Tells Everett Ross and later Erik that they are much more similar to him than to the Wakandans, therefore they shouldn't try to get involved with them.
• Not Wearing Tights: In both of his appearances he only wears normal clothes rather than something resembling his red supervillain "made of sound" look from the comics.
• Obfuscating Stupidity: Invoked during the robbery of the Museum of Great Britain. Klaue deliberately makes the crime scene more spread out and disorganized to make the authorities think they're dealing with amateurs.
• Oh, Crap!: Has a notable one when he sees Okoye destroying one of his henchmen's cars with her spear.
  Klaue: Oh shit!
• One Degree of Separation: Even before his first on-screen appearance, Klaue had already met several major MCU characters at various points, including Tony Stark, Baron Strucker and the people from Wakanda. He later meets many others, such as Ultron, most of the Avengers, Erik "Killmonger" Stevens and Agent Everett Ross.
• Only a Flesh Wound: When he gets his arm cut off in Age of Ultron, he seems more angry than really in pain, and continues giving orders to his henchmen.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: While he acts like a Large Ham throughout the movie, he's much more serious during the scene where he and Erik get into a gunfight.
• Overshadowed by Awesome: While Klaue is certainely a dangerous villain in his own right, when the Avengers get into his boat they don't even bother arresting him and instead concentrate their efforts on fighting Ultron and the Maximoffs, who are a much greater threat than him.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: Subverted. He harbors a hatred for the people of Wakanda that surfaces on occasion, referring to them as savages, but it's a specific grudge against them due to the It's Personal nature of his feud with T'Challa and Wakanda. Also, for an old Afrikaner who grew up during Apartheid he's plenty tolerant — his henchmen include men of African as well as European descent, he treats Erik as an equal partner in their operations and he doesn't appear to have a problem with black people in general. His dislike of the Wakandans comes from their culture rather than their race and the fact that they branded him, and he warns Killmonger that such "savages" would never accept "people like us" when telling Erik why going to Wakanda would be impossible, implicitly grouping himself and Erik together in contrast to the Wakandans.^note He also always refers to Erik as an American, which he is, while in the real world racists from outside the USA are known to only think of white Americans as "real" Americans.
• Power Glows: His sonic Arm Cannon starts glowing every time he uses it to shoot energy waves.
• Psychopathic Manchild: Not so much in Age of Ultron, but definitely in Black Panther, where he does everything he does with extremely childish glee.
• Put Down Your Gun and Step Away: When Erik tries to kill him, Klaue takes his girlfriend Linda hostage and orders him to drop his gun, or else he'll shoot her. However, Erik chooses to shoot Linda himself instead.
  Klaue: Drop it! Or your little Bonnie-and-Clyde routine ends today! Put your gun down now!
• Rapid-Fire "Yes!": Has this reaction when he sees the Liberator Drones made from his vibranium in-person.
• Retirony: Downplayed as he probably didn't really intend to put a definitive end to his criminal activities, but Klaue said he was planning to lay low for some time just before getting killed by Killmonger.
• Riches to Rags: Implied. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ultron fills Klaue's bank account with billions of dollars in exchange for his supply of Vibranium. In Black Panther however, we don't see any trace of that money, in fact Klaue's organzation even seems much smaller this time around, meaning that he probably lost it somehow between the two films.
• Riddle for the Ages: At some point, the Wakandans caught Klaue, as evidenced by the "thief" brand on his neck. Given that Killmonger kills him so as to exchange his corpse for passage into Wakanda, it's unlikely that story will ever be told.
• Rogues' Gallery Transplant: Within the MCU. He's first introduced as an antagonist to the Avengers in Age of Ultron, but then antagonizes Black Panther completely separate from the Avengers. His comic counterpart is a Black Panther villain, but has fought the Avengers too.
• Sanity Slippage: Not that Klaue was a pillar of sanity to begin with, but in the time between his encounter with Ultron and being hunted by Black Panther, he's lost his mind, acting less like the unfazed arms dealer he was and more like the Psychopathic Manchild he's become.
• Seen It All: The Maximoff Twins really don't faze him in the least; he indicates he at least knows of them through his association with Strucker. While he is freaked out by Ultron at first, he still takes the whole thing in stride, even trying to do regular business with an obvious murder-bot.
• Slasher Smile: He's a pretty happy guy, usually wearing a big horrific smile when committing vile acts.
• Small Role, Big Impact: Though he only appears for about five minutes in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ulysses Klaue ends up leading Ultron to his vibranium stash — which becomes hugely important to the second half of the story.
• Smarter Than You Look: In Black Panther, Klaue can easily come across as little more than an unhinged and somewhat childish lunatic at first glance. In reality, he's much more clever than he lets on. He's a cunning strategist who managed to evade capture for years, he has a lot of knowledge about Wakanda and Vibranium, and he seems quite good with technology.
• Sole Survivor: Countless mercenaries and treasure hunters have tried to get into Wakanda and were killed for their troubles... except for Klaue. This is something that really unnerves T'Challa and is a source of shame and concern for the Wakandans on the whole.
• Something Only They Would Say: Klaue realizes that Ultron has some sort of connection to Tony Stark when Ultron uses a phrase Tony had said to Klaue in the past.
• Sonic Stunner: His prosthetic arm contains a sonic weapon capable of projecting powerful sound waves. Its effects are destructive enough to shatter glass, destroy furnitures, and even blow up vibranium cars.
• Staircase Tumble: After being kicked by Ultron, Klaue falls down some stairs inside his boat.
• Suddenly Shouting: After talking in a normal voice during the majority of his scene in Age of Ultron, he ends up yelling for his last words.
  Klaue: Shoot them.
  Klaue's Mercenary: Which ones?
  Klaue: ALL OF THEM!!!
• Surrounded by Idiots: He calls his henchmen idiots for trying to shoot at a vibranium car with normal guns.
  Klaue: It’s a vibranium car, you idiots!
• Take Me to Your Leader: A variant. When he meets the Maximoff twins, he refuses to do any business with them because he recognizes they are merely underlings, and tells them he will only make a deal with the "man in charge".
• Tattooed Crook: He sports numerous tattoos, in addition of the neck brand that he got for stealing vibranium.
• Tempting Fate: After angering Ultron by comparing him to Iron Man which cost him one of his arms. This would later happen again, but with Black Panther being the one Klaue angers.
• That One Case: Not tracking Klaue down after his escape was T'Chaka's greatest regret, and is something of a general black mark for the entire country by extension. Killmonger uses his corpse as a bargaining tool to gain access to Wakanda.
• Took a Level in Badass: Although he was already a dangerous criminal in Avengers: Age of Ultron, he was still a normal human being and was virtually helpless against actual superhumans. In Black Panther on the other hand, he has become much more powerful thanks to the acquisition of a sonic Arm Cannon, to the point he can easily blow up entire cars and give a hard time to the likes of Black Panther by himself.
• Took a Level in Cheerfulness: In Black Panther, Klaue is noticeably more of a hyperactive, if not carnage-inflicting thrill-seeker and a party animal then his stoic debut appearance in the last movie.
• Troll: Klaue gets great pleasure out of screwing with both enemies and allies. When he meets Ross for a deal, he gets overly touchy with him just to make him uncomfortable and even pretends to expose himself before revealing he's actually just taking out the vibranium axehead.
• Trouser Space: Where he hides the vibranium hammerhead. During his exchange with Ross in the casino, he unzips his crotch and takes it from his pants, saying he thought he'd save the money for a suitcase.
• Unknown Rival: W'Kabi absolutely hates Klaue more than anyone else in the world for causing the deaths of his parents, but Klaue doesn't seem to be even aware of his existence.
• Unwitting Pawn: Since the beginning of their partnership, Erik Killmonger was merely using Klaue as a pawn in his scheme to get into Wakanda, planning all along to eventually betray and kill him so that he can use his corpse as a present to the Wakandans.
• Utility Weapon: His sonic weapon was originally a Wakandan mining tool to which he subsequently made adjustments.
• Villain: Exit, Stage Left: Despite losing an arm, he manages to escape the events of Age of Ultron due to the Avengers being more focused on stopping Ultron than him, hence the fact that he's still at large when he reappears in Black Panther.
• Villain Has a Point: All the things he says about Wakanda pretending to be something they're not are entirely true, and he's not wrong when he points out T'Challa and his friends are lying to Ross.
• Villain of Another Story: In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Klaue is only a minor antagonist that the titular heroes don't even bother to arrest, but it's established that he had some history with the people from Wakanda, namely that he stole a large amount of vibranium from them in the past. We learn more about it when he reappears as a major villain in Black Panther.
• Villainous Valor: Klaue has Nerves of Steel, is seemingly almost immune to pain, and is disturbingly smart and perceptive.
• Villain Reveals the Secret: During his interrogation scene, he reveals to Agent Ross the truth about Wakanda and the amount of Vibranium that is really in their possession.
• Villain Team-Up: He has been affiliated with several other MCU villains, including N’Jobu, Baron Strucker, Ultron (briefly) and Erik Killmonger.
• Villains Never Lie: Despite T'Challa's claim that the words of a criminal cannot be trusted, Klaue tells nothing but the truth to Agent Ross during his interrogation.
• Villains Want Mercy: Played With. He loudly begs for mercy when T'Challa apprehends him in the streets of Busan; however, he does it in such a ridiculous manner that it's obvious he did it to make T'Challa look bad rather than out of cowardice.
  Klaue: Oh mercy, King! Mercy!
• Wasn't That Fun?: He can even find some dangerous situations absolutely hilarious. After escaping from T'Challa's attack in the Korean casino thanks to his Arm Cannon, he gleefully shouts "That was awesome!".
• We Used to Be Friends: Klaue denies Killmonger's right to go to Wakanda.
• Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: During the museum robbery in Black Panther he pretends to allow one of the guards to leave, then shoots him In the Back before he can get away. When Killmonger asks why he bothered, Klaue explains that it makes the hit look like an amateur robbery, allowing them to cover their tracks.
• Would Hit a Girl: During the heist of the Museum of Great Britain, one of his victims is the female director of the museum. In addition, he has no qualms about shooting at Okoye and Nakia with his Arm Cannon, or taking Linda hostage and threatening to kill her.
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit: After T'Challa causes the crash of his car, tears off his prosthetic arm and violently manhandles him, Klaue starts begging for his life in a particularly pathetic way in front of witnesses, in order to paint himself as the victim.
• Yank the Dog's Chain: He lets one of the museum guards go before shooting him in the back of the head.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Killmonger disposes of him as part of the next step to his plan.
• You Killed My Father:
  • A subtle example can be found if you look closely at the dossier the Avengers have on him. The document mentions that he bears a grudge against the Wakandan royal family because his great-grandfather was killed by a past Black Panther during the 19th century. He was also hired to kill T'Chaka during the Bilderberg conference if he wouldn't start trading Vibranium.
  • In addition, while Klaue didn't kill T'Chaka in this version, he did cause the deaths of W'Kabi's parents during his attack of Wakanda, causing him to hate his guts and want to make him pay.
• You Remind Me of X:
  • In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Klaue makes the mistake of comparing Ultron to Tony Stark after hearing him say a phrase that Tony has used during their last meeting. Ultron doesn’t take it well, to say the least…
  • When he first meets T'Challa in Black Panther, Klaue tells him that he's very similar to his late father.
    Klaue: You know, you look just like your old man.
• You Will Be Spared: Subverted during the raid on the Museum of Great Britain. Klaue and his henchmen have finished gunning down all the security personnel present when the former gives the last surviving member the opportunity to run, then shoots him when his back is turned in a display of pragmatism. Leaving the corpses more spread out apparently makes it resemble the work of amateurs.
• You're Insane!: He calls Erik "crazy" on several occasions, especially for wanting to go to Wakanda.
  Ulysses Klaue: You're crazy to think that you can just walk in there.
• Younger Than They Look: When we're shown a hologram of Ulysses Klaue during his attack of Wakanda in 1989, he doesn't really look much different than he is in present day, even though he's supposed to be almost 30 years younger.

Variants

King Killmonger's Ulysses Klaue

Ulysses Klaue

"Oh ho! I would not want to play chess with you, my friend!"

Species: Human

Voiced By: Andy Serkis

Appearances: What If...?

The Ulysses Klaue of Earth-32938, who teamed up with Erik Killmonger to start a war between Wakanda and America.

---

• Abled in the Adaptation: Because Ultron never gets constructed in this universe, this Klaue still has both of his arms.
• Death by Adaptation: He dies seven years sooner than the Sacred Timeline Klaue.
• Dies Differently in Adaptation: Played With. He actually dies the same way, just eight years earlier and with different circumstances.
• Genre Blind: In spite of seeing Killmonger's impressive Chessmaster and betrayal skills firsthand, Klaue never considers the notion that he might be amongst the people who he'll backstab.
• Innocently Insensitive: He calls Killmonger "boy"^note This is considered really demeaning to black people as it insinuates they are of a lower status than the "men" when insisting that they leave the border to Wakanda before they get spotted. Upon hearing that, Killmonger's face turns sour and he guns Klaue down shortly afterward.
• In Spite of a Nail: Like his Sacred Timeline counterpart, Klaue ends up working with Erik Stevens and subsequently is betrayed/murdered by him in order for the aspiring conqueror to be granted entry into Wakanda.
• Villain Respect: He's astonished at just how incredible Killmonger's backstabbing and Machiavellian scheming are after seeing him kill both Rhodey and T'Challa and make it look like a Mutual Kill.

---

"And to think I saw you as some crazy American..."