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When it comes to villains in theMarvel Cinematic Universe,Thanoslooms large over the entire franchise. He might not have been the first villain in the series, but his presence is felt over the Infinity Saga, and then bothAvengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgamefleshed him out as a character with compelling motivation. Thanos has become a villain that transcends the realm of film and comics and has become a go-to shorthand for ultimate evil in pop culture, the same way Darth Vader or Voldemort have.Thanos impacted the MCU so much that the franchise struggled to find a new villain for their multiverse saga,fumbling Kang the Conquerorand now pivoting to fan-favorite Doctor Doom.
Thanos was killed at the end ofAvengers: Endgame, yet in the vast Multiverse, anything is possible, and Thanos could always return in some way.Josh Brolin has already hintedat wanting to return. The news that Robert Downey Jr., best known for playing the MCU’s most iconic hero in Iron Man, will now play the “new Thanos” in Doctor Doom could hint at the previous villains' return.Marvel Studios might flip the script and bring in a multiversal variant of Thanos, but this one is a heroic figure that helps defeat Doctor Doom. Thanos could return, but the MCU’s greatest villain might work as a hero. Instead of destroying half of all life in the universe, he could fight to save all lives in the multiverse.
A Heroic Thanos Is Both Thematically Appropriate (And Marketing Savy)
Since Robert Downey Jr. was announced as playing Doctor Doom in the MCU,many fans have criticized the decision, with it appearing desperate on Marvel’s part to recapture the Infinity Saga magic. Bringing Thanos back inAvengers: Secret Warsas a multiversal variant might seem that way on the surface, but two things can be true at the same time. Bringing Thanos back could be a strong marketing hook to get people’s attention but also be thematically appropriate for the MCU and bring the franchise full circle.
If the plot ofAvengers: Secret Warsgoes the way many people suspect, and Doctor Doom combines various universes to form Battleworld, thena heroic Thanos from another universe opens many storytelling possibilities. The best case for Thanos returning inAvengers: Secret Warsis there is no way Marvel Studios will pass up the iconic image of Doctor Doom ripping Thanos’s spine out of his body from theSecret Warscomic. It is a jaw-dropping moment and establishes how powerful Doctor Doom is since he can make short work of the previous greatest threat to the MCU.
8 Versions of Doctor Doom Robert Downey Jr. Might Take Influence From
With Robert Downey Jr. set to play Doctor Doom in the MCU, these versions of the character could inform the villain’s characterization.
A heroic Thanos variant also opens the door to give new insight into other MCU heroes. Getting a chance to see many of the heroes who stood against Thanos inAvengers: Endgame, like Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel, Sam Wilson/Captain America, and more, having to now work witha Thanos variant, one who is an ally, would undoubtedly test many of the heroes own beliefs. The heroes working alongside a heroic Thanos also digs into a recurring theme across the Multiverse Saga and how choice, even one small one, can change and define someone.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,Loki, andWhat If…?have all been projects that have reimagined heroes as villains, villains as heroes, and just because someone shares the same face does not mean they share the same background and therefore are different people.
There is the apparent meta nature of reversing fans' expectations seeing Robert Downey Jr. face off against Thanos. While fans were rooting for Tony Stark to defeat Thanos in the Infinity Saga, in the Multiverse Saga, the roles would be reversed as audiences would root for Thanos to stand up to a man wholooks like Tony Starkbut is not. Even if it isn’t a heroic Thanos, the heroes of the MCU might find themselves needing to side with the lesser of two evils.Thanos should not be the main focus ofAvengers: DoomsdayorAvengers: Secret Wars, but introducing the variant has plenty of upsides from both a storytelling and marketing perspective.
Heroic Thanos Is Nothing New to the MCU
Some fans might have a hard time buying the idea of a heroic Thanos, but it is something Marvel Studios has already tackled. InWhat If…?Season 1 Episode 2, “What If…T’Challa Became Star-Lord”, audiences see in this reality that T’Challa was able to persuadeThanos to abandon his planof eliminating half of all life in the universe, and by joining the Ravagers, they could reallocate the galaxy’s resources.
Thanos clearly has a strained relationship with his adopted daughter, Nebula, and is still a bad parent who upgraded Nebula with cybernetic advancements until he met T’Challa; he eventually reconciled with her when he saved her in the episode.What If…?Season 1 was the fifth entry in Phase 4 of the MCU and an early chapter in the Multiverse Saga.Early on, the idea of a heroic Thanos was something they wanted to approach.
Thanos’s comic counterpart might never have been a hero, but he has found himself forming uneasy alliances with various Marvel characters to take on larger threats. FollowingInfinity Gauntlet, Thanos was recruited to become a member of Infinity Watch, a team of six cosmic heroes, each tasked with guarding one of the six Infinity Stones. In theory, Thanos should be the last person responsible for protecting an Infinity Stone, but following his use ofthe Infinity Gauntlet, he realized using them would not satisfy him and, therefore, was not tempted by them anymore.A Thanos who works with the MCU heroes doesn’t seem that out of the question.
The Multiverse Saga Has Introduced Some Key Elements to Thanos' Comic History
While the MCU appeared to be finished with Thanos followingAvengers: Endgame, as they adapted his most famous storylines, “The Thanos Quest” and “Infinity Gauntlet,“Phases Four and Five introduced key elements from his comic history after his death. The first came in the post-credit scene ofEternals, where audiences met Eros/Starfox (Harry Styles), who was introduced as Thanos’s brother. Recently,Agatha All Alongintroduced Death(Aubrey Plaza) to the MCU. In the comics, Death is Thanos' motivation for retrieving the Infinity Stones and wiping out half of all life in the universe because he is in love with her and looks to impress her. Despite the MCU depiction of Thanos being gone,the presence of two key characters he is associated with suggests the MCU is not done with Thanos.
Despite Kevin Feige seeminglyruling out anEternalssequel, leaving the Starfox tease up in the air, andAgatha All Alongcreator Jac Schaeffer seemingly saying Death has no ties to Thanos, these two characters being introduced now of all times could indicate where Marvel Studios is heading.
7 Ways Agatha All Along Sets up the Future of the MCU
As with any Marvel TV series, Agatha All Along lays the groundwork for several potential storylines in the future of the MCU.
Maybe this other Thanos variant is a younger version of the one fans know fromAvengers: Infinity War, allowing the MCU to dig deeper into his backstory. Just like how a younger, more violent Thanos from 2014 was brought forth into the MCU timeline inAvengers: Endgameafter his prime universe version died, an even younger version of Thanos could appear and be brought forth into the future to fight Doctor Doom. Possibly a Thanos before his planet died, one who was young and optimistic before he would become the Mad Titan. That would certainly have shades of the Nathaniel Richards/Iron Lad vs. Kang, the Conqueror dynamic Marvel Studios likely wanted to tackle before they tossed out their plans for Kang.
Avengers: Secret Warspromises to be an epic crossover, uniting the many heroes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the X-Men from the 20th Century Fox timeline and the new Fantastic Four. It could also be seen that Thanos returns, likely through a variant.Avengers: Secret Warsis rumored to be rebooting the Marvel Cinematic Universe shortly before its 20th anniversary, and it feels only fitting that its greatest foe makes a return in the grand finale. Hopefully, it will turn out better thansomehow Palpatine returninginStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.Stream the MCU franchise onDisney+.
