After the release of Avengers: Endgame, the Marvel Cinematic Universe began crafting an expansive narrative called the Multiverse Saga, which explores the dangers of venturing too far into alternate dimensions. Heroes from parallel realities have debuted on the big screen, and characters we never thought we'd see again have made a surprising comeback. However, this chapter is coming to an end with the release of Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. Now, fans have the same question in mind: What will the MCU look like in its next saga?
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed that the franchise will undergo a "reset" after Secret Wars. While he has since clarified that there won't be a complete reboot, it's clear some things will change moving forward. Feige teased that there will be a singular timeline in the future, and that Marvel is looking at Jonathan Hickman's Secret Wars comic run for inspiration. That means some big changes are bound to happen, and a new report has revealed one of them.
Marvel will reportedly recast the roles of Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne after Avengers: Secret Wars
According to industry insider James Mack, Marvel will introduce young versions of Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne in the next MCU saga. This marks a striking contrast for the studio, which isn't usually known for recasting roles unless it is for story purposes (like a character growing old) or for a serious reason.
During its early days, Marvel found itself in a position where it had to recast the roles of James Rhodes and Bruce Banner. Since then, it's been mostly smooth sailing, with most actors playing their respective characters for years. Granted, there have been a handful of exceptions, like Cassie Lang. But for the most part, the MCU hasn't recast roles, even when it seemed like the way to go with Kang the Conqueror. Instead, they simply dropped the character altogether.
However, the end of the Multiverse Saga is completely different. It presents Marvel with the perfect chance to retcon some storylines while most others remain unchanged. Heroes who have already died could be back in the mix and get a proper chance at the spotlight. After all, characters like Hank Pym, Janet van Dyne, and Quicksilver never really got the chance to jump into action and repeatedly save the day, even if they are part of plenty of iconic comic book storylines.
Hank Pym didn't even create Ultron on the big screen, despite the fact that his character is responsible for the villain's invention in the comic books. So not only does reintroducing the hero give him a chance to be more involved in the MCU, but it also allows for some heartbreaking deaths to unfold in the upcoming Avengers movies.
If we see new multiversal iterations of Hank and Janet in the future, there's a case to be made that their current versions—played by Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer—could pay the ultimate price at the end of the Multiverse Saga to raise the stakes. This same idea could also apply to any other heroes the studio wants to recast further down the line.
There's a chance Marvel will also try to adapt the original Avengers lineup on the big screen moving forward if we get new versions of Hank and Janet. That would also mean we'll eventually see a new iteration of Iron Man take over the big screen. Anything is possible after the release of Avengers: Secret Wars, and it will be interesting to see how it all plays out.
Avengers: Secret Wars will be released on Dec. 17, 2027.
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