Kang the Conqueror Was Replaced as MCU’s Villain Before Majors’ Verdict — We Just Missed the Clue

This year’s SDCC was packed with MCU reveals, but the standout moment was Marvel Studios announcing they are moving away from Kang the Conqueror as the villain. “Avengers: Kang Dynasty” will be retitled “Avengers: Doomsday,” featuring Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom.

The news elicited mixed reactions, partly because many fans of Kang the Conqueror are disappointed that his story may not be concluded as hoped.

Kang’s storyline has been explored across several projects, including “Loki” Seasons 1 and 2 and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” While “Quantumania” was a flop, “Loki” Season 2 introduced a new variant of Kang, Victor Timely, which added depth to his story.

Ironically, the project that seemed most successful for Kang is also the one that set the stage for his exit from the MCU, even before his official departure from the studio. At the end of “Loki” Season 2, Loki effectively replaces He Who Remains and the TVA by creating a new Multiverse, eliminating the Temporal Loom that removes “dangerous” timelines.

Loki is now known as “the God of Stories,” granting everyone in the Multiverse free will without TVA interference. However, the TVA still exists but has shifted its role; instead of pruning timelines, it now hunts Kang variants.

With the Temporal Loom out of commission and He Who Remains no longer controlling the “Sacred Timeline,” countless potential Kang variants could ignite a new Multiversal War. To prevent this, the TVA’s new focus is to preemptively remove Kang variants to stop the war before it begins.

This conclusion effectively wraps up Kang’s storyline in the MCU, leaving the TVA to address Kang variants off-screen and potentially moving on from this plotline entirely.

A February 2024 article from THR indicated that Marvel Studios might be moving away from Kang’s storyline due to the poor performance of “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” potentially positioning Doctor Doom as the new primary villain. However, Loki producer Kevin Wright later clarified that there were no reshoots and that the series’ ending was always planned to wrap up Kang’s arc, with the TVA dealing with his variants off-screen.

No. This is maybe — not maybe — this is the first Marvel series to never have any additional photography. The story that is on screen is the story we set out to make. We went out there with a very specific idea of what we wanted this to be, and we found a way to tell it in that production period. It’s very much what’s on screen on Disney+.

“Loki” Season 2 was filmed from June to October 2022, four months before the release of “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” This timeline supports Wright’s claim that the series’ ending was planned to conclude Kang’s arc, and it’s a fortunate coincidence that addresses several issues.

While Kang’s storyline has some unresolved elements, it seems we might only see brief references to him in future projects. What are your thoughts? Share them in the comments below!