Dear Marvel: Here’s how to fix the Kang problem

Marvel seems to be in the middle of a crisis, and we fans are starting to feel it. Replacing Kang with Dr. Doom is a bad idea, and here’s why.

We’ve all heard the latest rumor in the cascade of updates on the apparent crisis Marvel is finding itself in – there’s a chance that Kang the Conqueror could be replaced by Dr. Doom.

That’s a horrible idea, and not just because I’m a major Kang fangirl, but because these two characters are two heavyweights in the Marvel universe, and they’re not being treated as such. Of course, the rumors sprouted after Variety‘s inside source let them in on a lot of behind-the-scenes updates and eyebrow-raising issues, which highlights the ongoing challenges the franchise has had to cope with.

Unless you’re living under a rock, we all know that Jonathan Majors, who has played Kang in both Loki seasons and in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, has been in hot waters due to his ongoing domestic assault trial. As a result, there has been word of replacing Kang with Dr. Doom, and that’s entirely problematic on its own.

As I mentioned before, these two are fantastic villains in their own right, but they’re not interchangeable. Sure, some fingers are pointing at a theory that Dr. Doom is actually a Kang variant as well, but since nothing has been confirmed in the comics, it’s up in the air. Regardless, switching villains due to Major’s circumstances is not the answer. The answer is a recast.

Kang has countless variants. We’ve seen the Kang Council in the mid-credit scene of Quantumania – there are literally thousands upon thousands of them. The best thing about that? His variants do not have to look like him at all. This means Marvel could very well recast Kang instead of throwing this gigantic threat of a villain away and introducing what would be another amazing villain at the completely wrong time and in the least ideal way possible.

Dr. Doom is pretty tied to Marvel’s Fantastic Four – he, as well as his other variant Rama-Tut, encounters them in comics as the big baddie. Keeping things in line with the comics, Dr. Doom would be better introduced in the new MCU Fantastic Four movie, whenever and if it ever comes out.

Do not introduce a top-notch villain as a plan B. Do not underestimate your audience’s understanding of recasts. 

There have been much less subtle recasts (looking at you, Game of Thrones) and besides, Marvel has already performed a very successful recast: Terrance Howard had played War Machine in 2008’s Iron Man, only to have Don Cheadle replace him in the following sequels and Avengers movies, and it was more than fine.

What I’m trying to say is that though it’s understandable that Marvel is facing big challenges that stem from casting to the overall superhero fatigue in the movie world, there are many ways to go around something like this and a complete scrapping of everything that has been done to establish Kang in the MCU is not the way to go. Loki‘s second season isn’t even over yet, and it is said to be the setup for Avengers: Kang Dynasty as well as solidifying Kang even more as a threat bigger than Thanos.

Tensions are high and ideas are floating everywhere. Taking time to breathe and think about good solutions would be the smart move for Marvel at this point. Moments of crisis require a lot of planning, and not just winging it – and this replacement would be more damaging than helpful. Speaking of, if you do want a Marvel crisis, I suggest the miniature game Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

And, while we’re at it, it’d be lovely if Marvel took back their confirmation of Scarlet Witch dying in Multiverse of Madness. But that’s another rant for another time.