Marvel Has Now Set Up 4 Of The Comics’ Most Iconic Villains For The MCU’s Phase 6

Four of Marvel's most powerful villains have been set up for Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, perfectly replacing Kang the Conqueror and his villainous variants. When the Multiverse Saga kicked off in 2021, Jonathan Majors' debut as Kang variant He Who Remains was incredibly exciting. Despite being set to be a consistent face in the MCU going forward, building up to 2026's Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, Jonathan Majors' 2023 arrest and conviction abruptly ended his time with Marvel Studios, and left the Multiverse Saga in jeopardy.

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Thankfully, Marvel Studios didn't let Majors' controversies slow the MCU down. In fact, the removal of Kang the Conqueror and his variants, all of whom were portrayed by Majors, has created the space for some of the most notable, recognizable, formidable and beloved supervillains from Marvel Comics to be set up for the MCU's future. This includes returning enemies from classic MCU projects, as well as completely new faces that will pose a bigger threat than any villain before them, which has raised a huge amount of anticipation for the MCU's upcoming releases.

The MCU Now Has 4 Of The Franchise's Most Iconic Villains Set To Appear In Upcoming Releases

Marvel Studios Has Set Up Some Incredible Villains For The MCU's Future

In recent months, Marvel Studios has confirmed the involvement of at least four major villains in the MCU's Phase 6. Two of these have already been seen in the MCU: Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin and James Spader's Ultron. Kingpin has been billed as the Thanos-like antagonist for the MCU's street-level stories, opposing heroes such as Daredevil, Spider-Man and, perhaps, the returning Defenders. Ultron, on the other hand, will return in the MCU's upcoming Vision series in 2026, once again facing off against Paul Bettany's synthezoid after an 11-year absence.

2025's highly-anticipated The Fantastic Four: First Steps will take place in an alternate universe, but will feature the planet-eater Galactus as its primary threat. Galactus will be voiced by Ralph Ineson, so he will surely be a commanding and intimidating enemy to Marvel's First Family, but the cosmic being might not be the only villain they face. Robert Downey Jr. has been confirmed to be appearing as Doctor Doom in the MCU's Phase 6. There's speculation he'll appear in First Steps, but Doctor Doom will be introduced as the new primary antagonist of the entire Multiverse Saga, which is game-changing.

Marvel's Current Movie Setup Makes More Major Villains Appearing Soon Possible

Even More Villains Could Be On The Way

As if these four major supervillains weren't enough, Marvel Studios' slate of upcoming projects hints at even more formidable foes being introduced to the MCU ahead of Phase 6's Avengers crossover movies. This could include the demonic Mephisto, who has been heavily rumored to appear in Agatha All Along and Ironheart, as well as a new version of Norman Osborn's Green Goblin, who will first be seen in the animated Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man series. This Norman Osborn will be voiced by the iconic Colman Domingo, so he will be both sophisticated and sinister simultaneously.

Additionally, Venom: The Last Dance's final trailer just revealed that Knull will make his live-action debut. Despite being set in Sony's Spider-Man Universe, it's very possible that Knull could cross over into the MCU, just as Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock did in Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Spider-Man: No Way Home. Josh Brolin has also teased his return as the Mad Titan, Thanos, while Deadpool & Wolverine recently debuted the powerful Cassandra Nova, who could easily return thanks to the "no body, no death" rule.

Why The MCU's Multiverse Saga Needs To Introduce So Many Major Marvel Villains

The Multiverse Saga Is Exploring Many New Realities & Timelines

Introducing so many villains ahead of the MCU's Phase 6 may seem like overkill, but this could actually be the best decision Marvel Studios could make for the Multiverse Saga. Several recent MCU projects have explored alternate worlds, realities and timelines, each with their own slew of heroes and villains. Beyond that, many of the villains expected to appear in the MCU's Phase 6 are returning from previous projects, finally beating the dreaded one-and-done villain rule that has befallen the likes of Malekith, the Red Skull, Ego the Living Planet and many more.

Marvel Studios' Multiverse Saga is expected to end in a massive event, with 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars possibly detailing the destruction of the multiverse in the wake of epic incursions. This could culminate in a number of MCU characters, heroes and villains alike, being collected on Battleworld, which constitutes the debuts and returns of so many of Marvel's iconic antagonists. Hopefully, this will make Avengers: Secret Wars the biggest MCU event yet, perhaps lead to a dramatic soft-reboot of the MCU, and easily gloss over Kang's history.

The MCU's Incoming Villains Can Balance The Franchise's Kang Adjustments

Marvel Has Easily Replaced Kang The Conqueror & His Variants In The MCU's Phase 6

Prior to Jonathan Majors' arrest shortly after the release of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in February 2023, Kang the Conqueror and his variants were being actively set up as frequent and powerful threats in the MCU. Three core variants of Kang were introduced to the MCU, while Quantumania's post-credits scene also spotlighted the Council of Kangs. This would have snowballed until The Kang Dynasty marked an epic battle between Kang's variants and the Avengers, but this is no longer the case.

Marvel Studios seems to have completely moved on from Kang's storyline, and, in fact, Loki season 2's finale included the perfect way to end Kang's narrative, as the Time Variance Authority could just quietly deal with his variants in the background. Even so, Kang's removal left a gaping hole in the Multiverse Saga, and Marvel Studios has found the perfect way to fill it - with even more villains. Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is gearing up to be the most dramatic, intense, emotional and transformative chapter yet, thanks in part to its incredible supervillains.