Summary
A recent update aboutAvengers 5has been unveiled, potentially fixing the movie’s Kang the Conqueror worries. Initially,Avengers 5was announced asAvengers: The Kang Dynasty,expected to focus on the titular team facing off against Kang the Conqueror. Since then, however,updates aboutAvengers 5’s storyhave been minimal, with many unclear what direction the movie will take after a tumultuous early production.
That said, a recent insight into theupcoming MCU moviefromThe Hollywood Reportercast some light on the subject. One such reveal was that theRusso brothers could directAvengers 5&6after helming previous MCU properties such asCaptain America: The Winter Soldier,Captain America: Civil War,Avengers: Infinity War, andAvengers: Endgame. Beyond that, it was also reported thatstory changes toAvengers: The Kang Dynastyare in play, including dropping the previously announced subtitle completely.
Changing Avengers 5’s Title From The Kang Dynasty Would Avoid Many Of The Movie’s Biggest Problems
A Very Big Elephant In The Room Is Removed By Pivoting Avengers 5 Away From Kang
Given everything that is going on with theMCU’s former Kang actor Jonathan Majors, it is not difficult to see the logic in Marvel Studios' apparent decision to moveAvengers 5away from the character. Although there was a lot of promise in Kang’s setup as a multiversal MCU villain, outside factors have naturally caused the film several big issues. This all began when Jonathan Majors was arrested on assault charges, which he has since been found guilty of and fired from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
IfAvengers 5were to stick with the original Kang plan, the film would have to sidestep several problems. A recast of Kang would undoubtedly confuse the general audience given the many appearances of Majors as the character inLokiand, especially,Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Recasting alone would cause other issues; should one actor be chosen to portray every Kang or multiple for different variants? If there is a new Kang(s), how would the film explain his different appearance from the aforementioned projects involving Majors? These are valid questions that the MCU’s newAvengers 5direction is completely avoiding.
Avengers 5 Has A Lot Of MCU Story Setups To Choose From
The Freedom Of Adaptation - & The Multiverse - Gives Avengers 5 Many Story Possibilities
While the set-up was obviously in place for Kang to becomeAvengers 5’s villain, removing him would not mean the film is completely devoid of options.One prevalent theory sinceAvengers 5was announced alongsideSecret Warsis that Doctor Doom would appear in the latter, or both, in some capacity. Doom is integral to the multiversal story of Secret Wars in Marvel Comics, and could easily be teased in the upcomingThe Fantastic Fourto have a bigger role against the Avengers.
Having the film start with Doom taking out the Council of Kangs would make the former seem immensely more formidable…
With Kang now reportedly removed fromAvengers 5, the film could position Doom as its main villain. Having the film start with Doom taking out the Council of Kangs would make the former seem immensely more formidable while also removing any questions of why the latter are not villains in the movie. This is only one possibility, with the multiverse offering many more. The MCU has never been afraid to change Marvel Comics if necessary, and another of the myriad characters from the source material could easily take his place as Conqueror of the Multiverse.
The MCU Already Showed How It Can Make Doctor Doom Kang’s Multiverse Saga Replacement 5 Years Ago
The MCU’s retroactive incorporation of Spider-Man villain Mysterio may provide a map for the studio’s handling of Doctor Doom as replacement to Kang.
Another potential possibility is thatAvengers 5has no villain at all. Someone like Doom could be saved forAvengers: Secret WarsandAvengers 5focuses on the potential collapse of the multiverse thanks to incursions. This would giveAvengers 5a distinct difference from the past four movies, as it simply focuses on the Avengers trying to save lives across the multiverse rather than battling an evil villainto do so. At the end of the movie, the incursions could overcome the Avengers, setting the stage forAvengers: Secret Wars.
How The MCU Can Still Make Kang’s Story Important Without Using The Character
The MCU’s Set-Up Of Kang Need Not Go Completely To Waste
Admittedly, the MCU changingAvengers 5to a new story without Kang as the villain would invalidate the years of foreshadowing depicted inLokiandAnt-Man 3. However,there are ways that Kang’s story could still be folded into the MCU without the appearance of the Conqueror himself.One of the best aspects ofLokiwas the exploration of the Multiversal War, which resulted in a Kang variant, He Who Remains, forming the Sacred Timeline and keeping the more malevolent Kang variants at bay.
It could be great to explore the Multiversal War from other perspectives…
Given thatAvengers 5and its sequel, theMCU’sAvengers: Secret Warsstory, will deal heavily with multiversal variants, it could be great to explore the Multiversal War from other perspectives. This way, Kang could still be mentioned as a prevalent multiversal threat who may have been removed from power by another villain, such as Doctor Doom, feeding back intoAvengers 5potentially making another character overthrow the Conqueror. Regardless of Kang’s absence, there are many ways his story and, more specifically, his lore could influenceAvengers 5’s multiversal plot.
