Summary
Marvel Studios' huge change of plans regardingAvengers 5retroactively paintsAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, theMCU’s lowest-rated Phase 5 installment, in a different light. FromLokiseasons 1 and 2 toAnt-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaandDeadpool & Wolverine, all multiverse-themed installments of the Multiverse Saga have been pointing towards Phase 6’s climactic conclusion, which will be divided into two parts: 2026’sAvengers 5and2027’sAvengers: Secret Wars. While the Multiverse Saga has followed a similar format to the Infinity Saga, Phases 4, 5, and 6 have encountered some unexpected obstacles.
Two years ahead ofAvengers 5’s May 2026 release date, it has been confirmed thatAvengers 5will distance itself from Kang the Conquerorand adopt a new subtitle. Despite multiple teases that set up Kang the Conqueror to be the MCU’s next big villain, the Multiverse Saga’s conclusion will likely focus on a different villain. Kang’s most popular replacements among fans include Doctor Doom, the Beyonder, Galactus, and an evil Iron Man variant played by Robert Downey Jr. However, no further details have been confirmed by Marvel Studios yet.
Avengers 5’s New Plot Will Give Quantumania’s Ending A New Meaning
Avengers 5’s Villain Change Will Likely Make Ant-Man A More Powerful Avenger Than Expected
InAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s final scene, Scott Lang celebrates his birthday with his family back home, but he can’t help but feel worried that Kang wasn’t truly defeated. It’s evident that this scene was setting up Kang’s return inAvengers 5andAvengers: Secret Wars, probably with a special grudge against Ant-Man and his loved ones.Now thatAvengers 5won’t center around Kang the Conqueror and his multiversal variants, however,Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s ominous tease of Kang’s imminent return will likely remain open-ended.
Marvel Just Confirmed A Key Secret Wars Element & I’ve Worked Out What It Means For Avengers 6
Marvel Studios seems to be introducing an organization to the MCU that I think will be crucial to the storyline of Phase 6’s Avengers: Secret Wars.
Avengers 5will likely focus on an entirely different antagonist and explain that Kang the Conqueror’s defeat at the hands of Ant-Man and his family was definitive. Looking back, Kang’s MCU debut will no longer seem like the beginning of the journey for a Thanos-level supervillain, but instead may be cemented as the humiliating defeat of a prideful villain who vastly underestimated his enemies, and who may have lied about his previous feats of power. Ant-Man, Wasp, Cassie Lang, Hank Pym, Janet van Dyne, and even MODOK will also boast an unexpected achievement.
Avengers 5’s villain change means that He Who Remains' warning of a powerful variant coming to destroy the multiverse duringLokiseason 1’s ending may also lose its thrill.
Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania’s Post-Credits Scene Continues An MCU Problem
The MCU Will Likely Have Yet Another Wasted Post-Credits Scene
The MCU possesses a growing list of post-credits scenes that have gone nowhere since their respective movies were released. For instance,Eternals’two post-credits teaseshaven’t been revisited since 2021, andSpider-Man: Homecoming’s Mac Gargan tease has apparently been forgotten since 2017.Doctor Strange’s post-credits scene featuring a vengeful Mordo was glossed over byDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, leaving Mordo’s battles with Strange completely off-screen. Now,Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’sCouncil of Kangs tease may be overlooked byAvengers 5andAvengers: Secret Wars, and its countless Kang variants may not be heard of ever again.
