Avengers 5 to move away from Kang and lets go of Quantumania writer, Jeff Loveness

Last Updated on November 21, 2023

For the first three phases, the Marvel Cinematic Universe seemed to be bulletproof. Even when a wrench was thrown into the machine, and Marvel Studios had to recast for someone like Edward Norton or replace a director like Edgar Wright, Kevin Feige’s ultimate vision would keep the train from derailing. The studio’s bubble is currently expanding to the point that many feel it will burst from the tension. One of the biggest hurdles going forward is how the studio plans to handle actor Jonathan Majors in his role as Kang the Conqueror. Majors’ ongoing controversy and a lingering trial, which will either convict or release the actor of domestic abuse charges, is casting an unforeseen shadow on the future of the multiverse era.

Many have been waiting to see what Marvel decides to do with either the Kang character or Majors in the role. Some think they can recast since the character can lend himself to different forms. There has also been a theory that the new over-arching Thanos-type villain can shift to another popular character like Dr. Doom. ComicBook.com has now reported that the writer of Avengers: Kang Dynasty, Jeff Loveness, is no longer attached to the project as Marvel now aims to move away from Kang. Joanna Robinson, who is a Vanity Fair reporter and MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios co-author, recently made an appearance on the House of R podcast where she revealed that the studio has let go of the Quantumania writer and will likely see a shift in focus.

This comes off the heels of Loki‘s second season premiering on Disney+, which saw the return of a Kang variant, He Who Remains, who is portrayed once again by Majors. As the Majors controversy hit prior to this season, many wondered if the narrative would be altered in any way. The show’s executive producer, Kevin Wright, insists the show remained as planned despite the lingering trial, “The story that is on screen is the one that we set out to make, remarkably so. No one was coming down telling us we had to connect or set up anything for the future. It was sort of like, ‘Finish our story that we started.’ As far as where it’s all going, I can’t say. Not because I’m being coy, [but because] we’re not part of those projects.”

Wright continued that the steadily building setup of a Kang threat is something he hopes to see explored. He references writer Michael Waldron, who penned Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and Loki season one and will be writing Avengers: Secret Wars, (slight spoilers for Loki season two) “I know Michael Waldron is working on them, and he loves, obviously, this world [of Loki], as he helped create it. The threat that we establish at the end of [the Loki finale] is: multiversal war will come. Sylvie is saying, ‘Let us have a chance.’ So I hope that people continue to run with that, because I would love to see what that story is.”