The MCU’s official policy has been to insist that they have no plans to introduce a big bad in a similar vein to Thanos for the immediate future, instead focusing on telling smaller, self-contained stories and allowing their roster of heroes some breathing space within their separate franchises.
But now, a new theory has surfaced on Reddit which posits that the next MCU big bad for Phase 5 has already been hinted at in Avengers: Endgame, when Tony Stark issues a cryptic warning, saying: “You mess with time, it tends to mess back.”
Here’s the post in full:
After the attack to the Avengers compound in Endgame, Tony says `You mess with time, it tends to mess back`.
I think this quote might have a bigger meaning. We know that after Thanos, a bigger threat will appear in the MCU. Galactus and Doctor Doom are suitable candidates for this. But after the time travel issue in Endgame the actions of our heroes in space and time continuum, might attract attention of a villain about time itself: Kang the Conqueror.
Newton’s third law suggests: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Storytelling-wise this reaction might be Kang who is a new threat which can be surfaced because of time travel events in Endgame.
I think it would be logical for Kang to be Phase 5 villain so there would be enough time and build-up for Galactus to be villain of Phase 6.
Kang the Conqueror is also a Fantastic Four villain and after Disney/FOX merger we might expect him showing up as a small introductory cameo in next Fantastic Four movie.(Probably in 2022 ?)
Of course, Kang is a villain from the comics who has the power to reorder time and space. He’s appeared in Marvel comics in various guises over the years and is an ordinary human who’s armed with 40th-century technology, which places him far above the present-day Avengers in terms of power.
Having Kang be the next big bad instead of Galactus makes sense on many levels. For one thing, while Galactus has size and power on his side to make him seem awe-inspiring to anyone who sees him, he’s never been as compelling a villain as Thanos. This is because he has no complex motivations beyond a simple need to consume worlds to sate his hunger. Galactus usually works better as a side character rather than the main villain.
Kang, on the other hand, is directly related to Earth’s heroes, being a descendant of Reed Richards and thus tying in nicely with one of the MCU’s most important upcoming superhero teams, the Fantastic Four. He’s also just as intelligent and calculating as Thanos and would work much better than Galactus in the role of the secret mastermind who’s behind everything that goes wrong for the Marvel heroes in Phase 5.
But tell us, who would you prefer to see be the next big bad of the franchise? And do you think Tony was hinting at Kang in Avengers: Endgame? Sound off below and let us know.