More Signs Point to a Kang-less Future as ‘Avengers: The Kang Dynasty’ Loses Its Director

Marvel’s seemingly settled plans for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe are changing. That change is for the best, as it no longer will involve Kang. At least, that’s what the recent wave of news has been pointing towards.

With reports that Jeff Loveness is no longer working on Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, rumors began to swirl that those in charge at Marvel are beginning to move away from Jonathan Majors and his Kang variants—and for good reason. The latest news is that the next Avengers movie has also lost its director.

According to Deadline, Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton left Avengers: The Kang Dynasty on good terms with Marvel. So much so that he is still in talks to direct other projects, including Wonder Man and Shang-Chi 2. While this doesn’t outright confirm that the franchise as a whole is leaving the Kang storyline behind, it does seem to point to a future where maybe Kang isn’t the focus as much as he was going to be.

This news follows reports that Marvel is trying to distance itself from Majors amidst allegations of assault, as well as a reshuffling of the franchise with new release strategies and a new series, Marvel Spotlight, that will let characters exist within their own show that isn’t directly connected to the larger cinematic universe.

Having all of this change at once suggests they can easily move away from Majors, but it also has fans wondering about the future of Kang.

Why not just recast?

Kang, his variants, and characters connected to him (namely Iron Lad, who plays a part in the Young Avengers) are important to the overall arc Marvel has been setting up. Whether this means the plan is to reset time or to simply just ignore what has been going on with Kang thanks to the events at the end of Loki, I don’t know. But it does raise the question: Why won’t they just recast Jonathan Majors?

Marvel has recast actors in the past. It started when Don Cheadle took over as Rhodey in Iron Man 2, replacing Terrence Howard, who played the character in the first Iron Man. Quickly after that, Mark Ruffalo was cast as Bruce Banner, replacing Ed Norton in the role. Harrison Ford is taking over for the late William Hurt as Thaddeus Ross. This isn’t a new thing. Is it the idea that replacing someone problematic is different?

If you’re so willing to separate yourself from Majors that you’re not moving forward with the Kang-centric story, isn’t that the same kind of deal? I think a recasting could keep some of these stories in motion. Or maybe if they introduce Nathaniel Richards (Iron Lad), who is younger, then we could still move on with the Kang stories in the future. This news makes it seem like telling Kang’s story isn’t a priority for Marvel anymore.

(featured image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)