Marvel Studios Reportedly Considered Replacing Kang with Doctor Doom as Antagonist of the Multiverse Saga

It’s no secret Marvel Studios has a difficult decision to make regarding how to react to the ongoing legal troubles of actor Jonathan Majors. Variety has shared a long breakdown of the many issues facing the studio today, and in it they’ve mentioned that Marvel actually considered replacing Majors’ Kang the Conqueror with another beloved Marvel villain. 

  • Marvel Studios has reportedly considered shifting their Multiverse Saga’s focus from Kang the Conqueror to another villain, like Doctor Doom.
  • Variety reports this was one of the topics discussed during Marvel Studios’ recent annual retreat in Palm Springs.
  • The move would certainly pose quite a challenge as Majors’ Kang (as well as his many variants like He Who Remains and Victor Timely) is already interwoven into the ongoing story of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
  • Not to mention, the next big crossover film on the schedule is titled Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
  • Still, thanks to the nature of time travel and the multiverse already at play in the MCU, a quick pivot could be worked into the narrative.
  • Doom especially makes sense because the character played a major role in “Secret Wars (2015),” a comic crossover event on which the following Avengers film, Avengers: Secret Wars, will be based.

Doctor Doom in "Secret Wars (2015)"

Doctor Doom in "Secret Wars (2015)"

  • It does appear much more likely Marvel will explore other options for their primary antagonist in the ongoing phase, like potentially recasting the character, for example.
  • For now though, Marvel awaits the results of Majors’ legal battle.
  • Majors’ first MCU appearance came as He Who Remains in the first season finale of Loki on Disney+.
  • He then portrayed Kang the Conqueror in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which reportedly already had Marvel reconsidering the future of Majors’ role, independent of his legal issues, due to its disappointing box office performance.
  • Currently, he is playing a major role as Victory Timely, a variant of Kang and He Who Remains, in the ongoing second season of Loki on Disney+.
Mike Mack
Mack is the Editorial Director for Marvel and ESPN content and he has covered comic cons, theme park events, video game showcases and other fun events. He is a fan of theme parks, sports, movies, Marvel Comics and is a self-proclaimed "nerd."