Kevin Feige and the Marvel franchise have given their fans a grand cinematic experience through the introduction of the MCU. Beginning in 2008 with Iron Man, the narratives which have been divided into films and series belonging to 6 phases, are now currently in Phase 5 now with a whole host of exciting projects lined up.
One of the unique features of the MCU has been its effort to link future plot lines through mid and post credit scenes in their various projects. But some of these segments from certain films and television series do not seem to be leading to any concrete development in the future storylines of the franchise.
8 Post Credit Scenes That The MCU Is Yet To Explain
1. Doctor Strange
While post credit scenes in film franchises serve as connectors to future narratives, 2016’s Doctor Strange which introduced Benedict Cumberbatch as a key presence in the MCU, featured a scene that is yet to be significant (via Marvel Updates). The sequence sees Benjamin Bratt’s Jonathan Pangborn meeting with Sorcerer Supreme Baron Karl Mordo played by Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Bratt’s character, who arrived during the mid credit sequence, is seen as someone with a similar fate to Doctor Strange through his knowledge of mysticism that helped him get over his paralysis. In the post credit scene, he is confronted by Mordo who believes that people like Pangborn are a threat to sorcerers like him, and subsequently takes away his magic, leaving him paralyzed again.
Following this scene though, there is radio silence with regard to its relevance in the MCU, with Mordo not getting any mention in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as well. Apart from the fact that the 2016 film established a complicated relationship between Doctor Strange and Mordo, audiences are still in the dark about what the character is upto.
2. Eternals
Eternals ended with a post credit scene that saw pop star-turned-actor Harry Styles make his Marvel debut as Starfox. He introduces himself as Eros, who is also Thanos’ brother. The film ends with The Celestial Arishem whisking Sersi, Phastos, and Kingo away, following which a mythical creature named Pip the Troll teleports onto the ship.
He then announces the arrival of Starfox who walks in to offer his services and guidance to save Sersi and team. But apart from a suave looking Styles who got fans all excited at his presence, this scene is yet to find any relevance in the MCU till date, with no mention of what Starfox’s efforts are to bring back the captured Eternals or his significance in the Avengers saga.
3. Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings
2021’s Shangi-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings had a mid-credit scene that continues into the post credits once the titles get rolling. This sequence though, seems to have left audiences hanging in the air in terms of its relevance in future narratives.
In the scene, Wong, played by Benedict Wong, accompanies Simu Liu’s Shang-Chi and Awkwafina’s Katy into a magic arts base known as the New York Sanctum. Struggling to analyze the power and origin of the ten rings, they call upon Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel and Bruce Banner aka The Hulk for help.
The significance of these two Marvel superheroes in the legacy of Shang-Chi is yet to be explained beyond their mere appearance as advisers in the film.
4. Thor: Love And Thunder
Thor: Love and Thunder featured two post credit scenes, one coming immediately after the main credits, and the other, a good 4 minutes later. In the former, there is the introduction of the much awaited character Hercules played by Brett Goldstein, who is mentioned during the course of the film.
The character arrives when Russel Crowe’s Zeus is nursing his wounds after Thor’s attack, and laments about the lack of respect and importance given to Gods over superheroes. But with the uncertainty of a 5th Thor film and director Taika Waititi revealing (via Uproxx) that he was unsure of how the character could be woven into the future MCU narratives, there is doubt if this scene could have any relevance going forward.
5. Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania failed to make much of an impact at the box office. With Jonathan Majors officially out of the franchise as Kang and the future of the character in the MCU still up in the air, the two post credit scenes featuring the villain are still keeping fans in the dark.
The first sequence takes viewers into a place beyond space and time where three Variants of Kang look at myriad timelines before their eyes. The trio seem concerned about the Avengers messing with the Multiverse and spreading chaos, after which one variant named Immortus summons every form of Kang to a huge stadium to for a battle plan.
6. Spider-Man: Homecoming
The first post-credits sequence in Spider-Man: Homecoming features Michael Keaton’s Adrian Toomes aka Vulture wallowing in prison. He meet an unknown convict there who is extremely keen to know more about Spider-Man, possibly hinting that he could be Scorpion, one of the webbed superhero’s nemesis.
The scene ends with Toomes pointedly smiling without revealing anything significant. But following this, there has been no reference to Keaton’s character or Scorpion in subsequent films of the MCU till date.
7. Falcon And the Winter Soldier
Marvel super spy Sharon Carter played by Emily VanCamp was last seen in Captain America: Civil War before making a surprise post-credit appearance in the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Solider. Having became a fugitive for aiding Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson, she reappears in the show after she is seen getting a pardon.
But it has been 3 years now since that happened and audiences are still waiting to see if Carter’s re-introduction to the Marvel narratives will have any relevance going forward. As of now, her appearance remains a post credit cameo only.
8. Moon Knight
MCU’s miniseries Moon Knight featuring Oscar Isaac as two personalities of a man with dissociative identity disorder, left audiences deliberating quite a bit in the post credit scene that is still to be elaborated upon.
The scene begins with Ethan Hawke’s Arthur Harrow undergoing treatment following the battle in Cairo when a mysterious Spanish-speaking figure suddenly appears and wheels him out to a car. At this juncture, the Moon God introduces Harrow to Jake Lockley which audiences realize, is the 3rd and more dangerous personality of the protagonist who was seen locked up in the Egyptian sarcophagus.
With no official confirmation or details about a season 2 unfolding anytime soon, this scene which looks to have been specifically written to push the narrative forward, now seems to have hit a dead end.
The above MCU films and series are all streaming on Disney+.
