Since the events of Avengers: Endgame, a lot has changed in the MCU, including the fact that there is no longer an Avengers team. New heroes have risen to fill the vacuum left by Iron Man and Captain America, but it will be a long time before we see another Avengers film.
Only at the conclusion of Phase 6 in 2025, when Marvel releases Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, will Earth’s Mightiest Heroes be reunited. Who will respond to the call? The following is the cast of characters you may (probably) expect to see in Phase 6.
In the absence of Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, Benedict Wong’s character Wong has taken over the role of the MCU’s glue in Phase 4. Wong has featured in a number of Phase 4 productions, including Spider-Man: No Way Home, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
We’ve reached Phase Wong of the MCU, which makes sense given that he’s inherited the role of Sorcerer Supreme from Doctor Strange. It is his responsibility to protect the globe from these new and growing dangers. And when the time comes for the Avengers to reassemble, you can bet Wong will be there there to bring everyone back together.
Shang-Chi, played by Simu Liu, is very certain to join the Avengers in Phase 6. For one reason, he was previously called by Wong at the conclusion of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in 2021. Another film directed by Destin Daniel Cretton is Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. We don’t think it’s a coincidence.
With mastery of the magical Ten Rings, Shang-Chi is an invaluable tool to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. The Legend of the Ten Rings’ mid-credits sequence hints to a larger mystery surrounding these relics, one that might very well come into play in The Kang Dynasty.
Doctor Strange Wong may now be Sorcerer Supreme, but Stephen Strange will still have a crucial part in whatever version of the Avengers emerges in Phase 6. He’s a seasoned superhero, and the Avengers need his knowledge of both magic and the multiverse.
It’s important to remember that Doctor Strange is now in another dimension, assisting Charlize Theron’s Clea in dealing with the Incursion. It’s unknown if we’ll get another Doctor Strange sequel before The Kang Dynasty, but that hint in Multiverse of Madness will undoubtedly pay off when the Avengers unite to confront Kang.
The Incredible Hulk
Is any Avengers lineup complete without Captain America? Fortunately, even though Steve Rogers retired in the past to finally have his dance with Peggy Carter, Sam Wilson has now taken up the shield as the new Captain America. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier in 2021 saw Sam begrudgingly embracing that load, and Captain America: New World Order in 2024 will depict the next phase in his heroic maturation.
Sam, can you be the inspiring team leader and icon that Steve was? We believe The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars will provide a solution to that topic. In New World Order, Sam may even attempt to reassemble the Avengers. But, considering that Marvel’s next film after Captain America: Civil War is Thunderbolts, it seems the MCU isn’t quite ready for an Avengers reunion.
The War Machine
Don Cheadle’s War Machine seems to be coming into his own as a standalone hero in Phase 5 after appearing as a supporting character in the Iron Man and Avengers films. Cheadle will appear in the Armor Wars series, which will most likely revolve on Rhodey attempting to keep Tony Stark’s technology out of the wrong hands.
From there, it seems reasonable that War Machine would be one of the characters to fill the void left by Iron Man in the Avengers. He’s an experienced soldier with a lot of weaponry to offer. He may not be Tony’s great inventor, but that’s where our next Avenger comes in.
Riri Williams, played by Dominique Thorne, is likely to become the MCU’s next Iron Man in the Multiverse Saga. Riri is scheduled to make her debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where she seems to be giving Shuri and the Wakandans her enormous brainpower. Riri will then get her own series in 2023’s Ironheart, where she will construct her own armor and costumed persona.
Ironheart should be a well established hero by the time Avengers: The Kang Dynasty arrives in 2025, ready to take her position among Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. And with a foe like Kang, they’ll need her brains as much as her flashy tools.
Spider-Man
Even if Peter Parker voluntarily opted to leave notoriety behind and return to being a Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Tom Holland’s Peter Parker is probably the MCU’s cornerstone hero. We can’t picture Spidey not playing a significant part in both The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars… unless Marvel Studios and Sony have another falling out.
One issue is that the whole planet was programmed to forget Spider-true Man’s identity. The Avengers may recall fighting with Spider-Man, but they have no idea who he is or how to reach him.
Do they, or don’t they? Some fans have pointed out that in No Way Home, the last thing Wong says to Doctor Strange before the failed identity spell is done is “Leave me out of it.” Is it conceivable that Strange unconsciously followed Wong’s instruction, and that Wong is the only person alive who knows Spider-secret? Man’s That would be one method of reintroducing the wallcrawler into The Kang Dynasty.
Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk has been a staple of the Avengers films from the beginning. While we anticipate Hulk to have a role in the new iteration of the squad, Ruffalo’s post-Endgame appearances imply Hulk will play a more supporting role in the future. Instead, Hulk’s cousin, Tatiana Maslany’s She-Hulk, is gearing up to be the Avengers’ new resident powerhouse.
The new She-Hulk teaser, which debuted at Comic-Con, lends credence to that hypothesis. We witness Bruce instructing Jen on how to use her new abilities, and it rapidly becomes clear that She-Hulk is stronger and more competent than Hulk ever was. The Avengers can undoubtedly utilize their might against an adversary like Kang.
The Fantastic Four
The world may not now have the Avengers, but Captain Marvel is set to form her own squad. The Marvels 2023 will include not only Carol Danvers, but also Monica Rambeau and Kamala Khan. We can only guess that some or all of these characters will join the Avengers in Phase 6.
Captain Marvel is an unquestionable value to the Avengers as the only figure capable of taking on an Infinity Gauntlet-powered Thanos on her alone. And, whichever moniker Monica chooses in the MCU, she definitely has a lot to give the team. But we’re most enthusiastic about Ms. Marvel joining the team. What happens when the world’s largest superhero fan becomes a member of the Avengers?
Bishop, Kate
Hulks and wizards are fantastic, but the Avengers really need someone who can shoot a bow and arrow. Unfortunately for the squad, Clint Barton seems to be ready to retire. Clint is unlikely to join the new Avengers in Phase 6, but he is no longer the lone Hawkeye.
Kate Bishop, played by Hailee Steinfeld, is another potential contender for the next Avengers team. She’s shown herself as Clint’s heir, and Marvel hasn’t given us any indication that the Young Avengers will be introduced until the conclusion of Phase 6.
With the majority of the original Avengers either dead or fading into obscurity in Phase 4, Thor may be the last hero to carry the flame for that period of the team. That’s cause enough to include him to the new team. Fortunately, the finale of Thor: Love and Thunder has Thor in an excellent position to pick up his hammers and fly to Earth’s defense. Maybe he’ll even bring his adoptive daughter Love with him.
In Avengers: Secret Wars, we could see a lot more Thors. In the 2015 Secret Wars comic, God Emperor Doom forms the Thor Corps, a group of people who serve as Doom’s peacekeepers and personal police force. Chris Hemsworth is only one of many Thors.
Ant-Man and the Wasp Family
Given that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will be the first MCU film to include Jonathan Majors’ Kang, we may presume that these characters will play a key role in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. The Quantum Realm will undoubtedly be a key storyline component throughout the Multiverse Saga. It’s how the Avengers were able to undo Thanos’ carnage, and it’s also how Kang will most likely bring a new level of disaster to the universe. Wasp and Stature have previously had the opportunity to join the Avengers, and now it’s their turn.
The Black Panther?
Whether Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther ever officially qualified as an Avenger during the Infinity Saga is controversial. Nonetheless, he provided critical assistance to Captain America’s troops during the events of Captain America: Civil War, and Wakanda served as a crucial battlefield in Avengers: Infinity War. Wakanda boasts the technology and resources the Avengers need to compete with all-powerful foes like Thanos and Kang.
Given this, we may expect Black Panther to be a member of the squad in the future. The real question is who will be wearing the outfit. After the events of Wakanda Forever, will Shuri become the MCU’s next Black Panther? M’Baku? Okoye? That’s one of the larger MCU mysteries right now, but perhaps we won’t have to wait much longer for an explanation.
Learn why Phase 6 might be Marvel’s biggest yet, and six ways Marvel could utilize Doctor Doom outside of the Fantastic Four film, for more on the MCU’s future.
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