The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been floating through its own multiverse, as though a dwarf ship with no real purpose. Despite being one of the most profitable franchises to have ever existed with some of the most dedicated fans in the world, its audience has absolutely no idea what direction the future story will go into.
This, of course, wasn’t always the case as up until recently, it was concrete that the story would be thrust into its next big arc by its resident ‘big-bad’, Kang the Conqueror. However, with the firing of Jonathan Majors, there has been no indication from the studio about what can be expected from the coming projects.
The fact that the fifth Avengers film, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty has been renamed to Avengers 5 for now did not help their case. Recent news, however, points to evidence that this was Marvel’s plan from the get-go and fans are worried.
Jonathan Majors’ Exit May Have Been Planned
Jonathan Majors had been walking on thin ice for a long time when it came to his relationship with Marvel and the film industry as a whole. After the actor was accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, news spread like wildfire and nobody wanted to be associated with him and have him be a part of their projects.
While other films and shows that liked him could easily fire the actor, find someone new, and get done with it, the web that Marvel was stuck in would not be that simple to get out of. Majors had already appeared in a few projects where he played variants of Kang. So, Marvel could not simply fire him and move on.
Despite the allegations, the actor kept appearing in films and shows from the MCU, a decision that was heavily criticized by fans and spectators alike. It was not until the actor was actually convicted of these crimes that the franchise officially announced the termination of his time with them.
Interestingly enough, however, it was reported by The Hollywood Reporter that this decision was not suddenly and rashly made after the conviction and had a lot more thought put into it. As it would seem, long before all that transpired, Marvel was making plans on moving away from the Kang storyline altogether after the poor audience reception in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Fans Worry About Marvel’s Plans
After the news of Marvel’s original plans was announced online, fans were quick to enter the discussion and ponder on what it could mean for the franchise’s future. Some pointed out how they would have to be extremely wise about the steps they take moving on as the fragile franchisee could very easily crumble under the wrong move.
Moving away from Kang is gonna be very messy if they don’t execute it right.
— RJ (@ResonantJustice) February 21, 2024
so they set up kang to be the big bad of this phase and are now gonna rush a new villain, sounds like a great idea!
— harv (@harvv) February 21, 2024
Marvel downfall
— Cozy Bryant (@LowkeyCozy) February 21, 2024
The MCU in the mud 😭💔
— ETIRE (@Etireed) February 21, 2024
doctor doom time pic.twitter.com/CA219s7lNn
— brandon* (@brndxix) February 21, 2024
Some fans, however, brought forth concern about what the next villain will bring. They mentioned their worry about rushing into something that is supposed to feel like years in the making. This could lead to the next villain not feeling as daunting and more like the villain of the week.
Some fans even put forth names, pleading for Doctor Doom to become the iconic antagonist that he is in the comics.
