If the title of Doctor Strange’s solo sequel or all of the WandaVision footage we’ve seen so far hasn’t made it clear enough, then the swirl of official and theoretical casting news surrounding Spider-Man 3 should make it pretty obvious that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is set to go all-in on the concept of alternate realities and fractured timelines.
Avengers: Endgame will be difficult to top both in terms of earning power and sheer scale, but with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes inevitably assembling again in the future, the studio are going to have to pull out all of the stops in an effort to deliver something even bigger and better than the conclusion to the Infinity Saga.
A new fan theory claims that to do this, Marvel will unite the heroes of the multiverse together in a reality-spanning epic that would make Endgame look like a quaint drama by comparison. And to set the wheels in motion, the catalyst for the next crossover event will be well known time traveler Kang the Conqueror, who’ll reportedly debut in Ant-Man 3 as played by Jonathan Majors.
As per the theory, Avengers 5 could draw inspiration from comic book miniseries Avengers Forever, which revolved around teenager Rick Jones gaining a power known as the Destiny Force, which allowed him to recruit heroes from various timelines and alternate universes to assist him in battle, although changes would obviously be made to tailor the basic structure to MCU canon.
ScreenRant explains this a bit further, saying:
Having an ability like Rick Jones’ Destiny Force could unite the multiverse against a singular threat. Characters from earlier MCU films could be used, including those who died or simply aren’t who they used to be. For example, the movie could bring back a version of Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) who still transforms into the child-like Hulk. Furthermore, Avengers 5 wouldn’t be restricted to just characters from its own timeline. Whatever alternate universe superheroes that Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland) meet during their own multiversal exploits could also be recruited for the fight against Kang.
As the outlet notes, going down this route would open the door to virtually everyone from any Marvel property past or present that the studio currently own the rights to potentially showing up. And not only does it continue Phase Four’s reliance on the multiverse to power the main storyline of the shared mythology, but it would also guarantee that a fifth Avengers movie would unfold on a scale unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.