As Marvel Studios continues to run damage control on its cinematic universe after the court’s conviction of Jonathan Majors for assault charges, fans wonder what’s become of his pivotal villain character, Kang, in the MCU’s roadmap to re-establishing itself as a box office behemoth in the film industry. With Majors becoming box office poison, Marvel has little choice but to recast him as the Big Bad of the MCU’s current phase of cinematic spectacles. Reports about Marvel replacing Kang as the MCU’s overarching villain continue circulating. Still, industry insider Daniel Richtman says Marvel is sticking with Kang, though Majors is no longer a part of the plan.
According to Richtman, Marvel plans to keep Kang the Conqueror as the central villain of Avengers 5 and the follow-up Avengers: Secret Wars. Initially, Avengers 5 was titled The Kang Dynasty, but Marvel scrapped the title when Major’s conviction reached the courts. However, if Marvel plans to continue using Kang as their central villain, they could revert to the original title. Somewhere, someone at Marvel is screaming into a pillow over this kerfuffle, I assure you.
As I’d said, fans continue to speculate about Majors’ replacement, with Rustin and Fear the Walking Dead star Coleman Domingo being the popular choice to walk in Kang’s mechanized boots. Domingo says he’s open to playing the character, though Marvel has yet to make him an offer, as far as we know. Replacing Jonathan Majors as Kang should not be too hard, considering Kang’s many variants. With so many versions of the character spread throughout the Multiverse, a new Kang could replace Majors’ version with little blowback, at least from a story perspective.
Another aspect of the rumor talks about Marvel introducing another significant villain to the mix, such as Fantastic Four‘s Galactus or Doctor Doom. Marvel’s heroes could defeat Kang sooner than intended, with the planet-eating titan or disfigured Doctor Doom ascending as the MCU’s biggest threat. Doom is the more likely option, as Galactus will likely be a CGI hybrid character with little mobility. Meanwhile, Doctor Doom can be a more “boots on the ground” villain, wielding science and magic with a wave of his armored hands. Doom also presents Marvel with an opportunity to introduce a scarred, traumatized villain with depth and strong ties to Marvel’s first family, the Fantastic Four.
What do you think about Marvel possibly keeping Kang as the Big Bad of the MCU, at least until someone else takes the throne? Let us know in the comments section below.
The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.
What’s Not Allowed