Did Marvel Waste Everyone’s Time With Kang?

After years of hype, Kang the Conqueror suddenly isn’t the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s overarching villain anymore. It’s an ignominious end to an already dubious chapter in the MCU’s history and begs the question: did Marvel Studios waste their time — and ours — with Kang?

Honestly, it’s not that simple. Nothing involving subjective taste and Hollywood wheeling and dealing ever is. Heck, there are almost as many factors to consider here as there are multiversal variants of Kang himself. Some things Marvel could’ve handled better; others were well and truly outside their control. Plus, isn’t the whole point of escapist entertainment like the MCU to kill a couple of hours?

Still, I posed the question of MCU Kang’s pointlessness, so I’ll answer it — and to do that, I’ll need to tackle the subject from both sides.

What Could Marvel Have Done Differently With Kang?

Right off the bat, let’s be clear: Marvel Studios could’ve done a lot to make the MCU Phases Four through Six’s Kang-headlined “Multiverse Saga” feel more worthwhile.

For one thing, they could have picked a different baddie. Kang’s a cool character, and he’s responsible for some epic Avengers storylines in the comics; however, he’s not a heavyweight in the way Phase One through Three’s Thanos was. The Mad Titan was instantly recognizable as a credible threat to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and their allies, physically as well as intellectually. Kang? Not so much. Having Kang come off second-best against Ant-Man in his first proper MCU outing didn’t exactly boost his credibility, either.

Related: Best Kang Marvel Comics Stories to Read

Just as importantly, Kang’s motivation never crystallized like Thanos’ bonkers (yet easy to understand) “wipe out half the universe to save the rest” modus operandi did. Actor Jonathan Majors worked overtime to bring depth to the part, but he didn’t have much to work with. Presumably, we would’ve gotten to know Kang better as Phases Five and Six stretched on, but as it stands, his “Napoleon in exile” schtick — and complicated alternate-selves baggage — fell flat.

The same goes for the multiverse that revolves around him. True, this conceit has produced some wildly popular films (Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine spring to mind), yet just as many have missed the mark (critically, if not always commercially). The creative impulse behind Kang as a multiversal menace makes sense. After all, what’s bigger than Phase One through Three’s reality-wide threat? A threat to multiple realities, that’s what. But casual viewers had trouble keeping all the variants and timelines straight (the Kang-centric Loki Season 2 was especially tough, at times).

Even worse, they had trouble caring. What does it matter if our heroes die when there are others just like them a few universes over? Kang’s introduction doesn’t raise the stakes, it lowers them.

What Was Outside Marvel’s Control With Kang?

Those are Marvel’s missteps; what about the stuff they couldn’t help? Obviously, there’s Majors’ spectacular (and very public) fall from grace. When the studio signed up Majors — then an acclaimed, increasingly in-demand actor — they couldn’t have predicted he’d be convicted on domestic violence and harassment charges. There’s also no way they could’ve kept Majors in post once the verdict came down. It didn’t matter that they’d built their entire slate of movies around Kang or that his story wouldn’t be resolved. Majors had to go.

Related: ‘Heartbroken:’ Jonathan Majors Reacts to RDJ’s Doctor Doom Replacing Kang in the MCU

Then there’s the Doctor Doom of it all. With Robert Downey Jr. onboard as Doom in the now-retitled Avengers: Doomsday, plenty of folks are wondering why Marvel didn’t just use the legendary supervillain from the jump. But here’s the thing: they couldn’t. Marvel didn’t hold the rights to Doctor Doom (and the wider Fantastic Four stable) until parent company Disney bought 20th Century Fox in 2019. That’s not nearly enough time to prep three full phases of films starting in 2021 — especially when it wasn’t 100% confirmed the Fox deal would go through. Marvel had to play it safe and build the Multiverse Saga around Kang, a character they knew they could use.

Did Marvel Studios Waste Everyone’s Time With Kang?

Okay, it’s not all Marvel Studios’ fault — but even so: did they waste our time? At a very basic level, yes. The Kang storyline is effectively dead, which means Marvel devoted entire movies and seasons of TV to a go-nowhere narrative. So, if you’re someone who insists on “all killer, no filler” superhero entertainment, you’re bound to feel cheated (and fair enough). If, however, you enjoyed Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Loki, and other Kang-related MCU efforts, you probably won’t feel too hard done by, pay-off or not.

Related: Marvel Drops Kang Dynasty Title For Avengers 5

And hey, for better and for worse, Kang’s abandoned arc gave us the MCU multiverse. Without that conceit, Marvel Studios would’ve had a tough time bringing the likes of the X-Men and Fantastic Four into the fold. True, they could’ve done this with Doom instead of Kang, but as we’ve discovered, rights issues would’ve slowed things down. So, as janky as it was, Kang’s ill-fated stint as the MCU villain ultimately served a purpose. Was that purpose worth hours of audience investment? That’s something each of us has to decide for ourselves.

The now Kang-free fifth Avengers installment, Doomsday, hits cinemas on May 1, 2026.