- The Marvel movies and TV series that will be used to weave the next Endgame-like storyline will introduce Marvel’s greatest villain so far.
- Thanos is the most iconic MCU villain at this point, and everyone else pales in comparison. But Thanos died in Endgame more than once, and a new anti-hero will be needed for upcoming movies and series.
- An insider with knowledge of Marvel’s plans says the studio will take its time to flesh out the new mega-villain that the Avengers might soon have to face.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is on a hiatus right now, as the coronavirus pandemic is still raging. There’s no telling when the world will be able to truly contain the disease. The recent COVID-19 resurgence in the US is the best proof of what can happen with communities after they reopen. Going to the movies should be out of the question right now and Black Widow’s November premiere cant be guaranteed. Just last week, Christopher’s Nolan Tenet was just pushed back yet again. Shooting other films and TV series that are part of MCU Phase 4 might be equally daunting. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was supposed to resume filming in the Czech Republic this summer, but the European Union may ban travel from the US as long as the number of coronavirus cases remains high in America.
Of course, Marvel is still working behind the scenes on the future of its Cinematic Universe, and we saw a number of reports in the past few days that detailed progress on a number of Phase 4 projects. One of the latest rumors is also a very exciting one. It tells us that Marvel is starting to prepare the MCU for the debut of its biggest villain so far, a character that could make us forget about Thanos completely.
There’s no question that Thanos is one of the standout characters of the Infinity Saga, although the Mad Titan didn’t take center stage until very late in the first three phases of the MCU. The post-credits scenes featuring Thanos were hardly exciting. It’s Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame that really allowed the character to shine. Two movies were enough to make us forget all the other villains that populated the MCU before Thanos. He’s is such an incredible threat that the Avengers had to kill twice in Endgame, and they would have done it again and again had they had to face different versions of him.
We’re expecting Marvel to weave another Infinity Saga style story or multiple storylines made of plenty of standalone films and TV series. For that to happen, Marvel needs a new Avengers team, as well as new villains for them to face. And Marvel needs at least another Thanos, a character equally complex that audiences will love to hate for years to come.
Jeremy Conrad from MCU Cosmic provided plenty of scoops and commentary about Marvel’s plans. He revealed in a blog post a few days ago that Marvel is starting to lay the groundwork for its greatest villain in the MCU. Comics fans will not be surprised to hear that bad guy will be Doctor Doom, a character that was out of Marvel’s reach until
Marvel already confirmed that Doom is very much in the picture in the MCU when Kevin Feige said last July that Fantastic Four projects are underway. We have no idea when the First Family will be introduced, but there’s no Fantastic Four without Doctor Doom.
Conrad said that Fox squandered the chance to create a decent Doctor Doom, but Marvel will give the villain “the respect he deserves.” Specifically, Marvel will paint a more complex picture of Doom by introducing his kingdom and elaborating on his background. This will be done with the help of additional key characters from the comics that will help build up the character.
Conrad heard that Marvel is planning to bring Lucia Von Bardas to the MCU. She is Doom’s successor in the comics after he’s deposed as ruler of Latveria:
As we haven’t been introduced to Doom yet, it’s possible Lucia Von Bardas could be used as a way to introduce Latveria, perhaps even as its prime minister (as in the comics), who then would be replaced with Doom.
However she’s used in the MCU, that they’re wanting to bring in a character like Lucia Von Bardas shows that Marvel Studios knows that there is a lot more to Doctor Doom than him just screaming ‘Richards!’ all the time.
As with other Marvel rumors, there’s no telling when Bardas will be introduced or who will play her. Also, we have no idea whether Doom will be introduced before that, or whether they’ll be featured in Phase 4. I’d fully expect Doom to appear in some of the films and TV series in Phase 4, hopefully more than Thanos did in the movies that preceded Infinity War.
