In the last couple of months, Marvel Studios has dropped a series of official announcements covering the next three years of superhero cinema, leading up to the release of Black Panther 2 in May of 2022. That being said, since it’s well established that Kevin Feige and his team love to play the long game with their story arcs and release schedules, we can surely take it as a given that the production house already has ideas brewing for Marvel’s Phase 5 and beyond, which likely means plans for the MCU’s next Big Bad.
If recent hearsay has it right, then one major antagonist who could cause a lot of problems for our heroes over the next few phases is former Fox character Doctor Doom. And while details on the villain’s potential arc are still vague and unconfirmed, YouTube channel Lords of the Long Box has recently relayed word of one particularly fan-pleasing clash that’s on the way.
As you’ve likely heard already, the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will serve as the MCU debut for the real Mandarin, played by Tony Leung. Now, according to Lords of the Long Box, the villain will initially have a rivalry of sorts with Doctor Doom, but will eventually team up with his fellow bad guy to face a common enemy: Doctor Strange.
When exactly this might happen is unclear, but it’s said that the idea is still in the embryonic stages of planning, so if all we’re hearing is true, then we wouldn’t count on seeing any of this until Phase 5 or 6. In the meantime, you can witness the Sorcerer Supreme in action once more when Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits theaters on May 7th, 2021.