Kang Is A Red Herring: 10 Villains Who May Be The Next TRUE Big Bad Of The MCU

Kang the Conqueror is coming to the MCU.

For years, fans have wondered who will be the next big bad of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Confirmed in Avengers: Endgame, most assumed well-before The Infinity Saga’s conclusion that Thanos would figuratively bite the dust (and he did so literally as well).

With the Mad Titan presumably dead and gone, there is a void to fill and plenty of notable villains who could move into the vacuum. The time-travel shenanigans of Endgame opened up a perfect introduction for Kang the Conqueror.

And now he’ll make his debut in the third Ant-Man film…

…but will he be Marvel’s next big-bad?

We were introduced to a number of villains in the early MCU films before Thanos made his appearance in the stinger of Avengers. This included Red Skull, an iconic character who surely had the potential to be the MCU’s first big-bad. Instead, he was used as an antagonist in Captain America: The First Avenger and didn’t return seven years.

What if Kang’s MCU tenure is similar?

Kang would be a perfect big-bad…and perhaps that’s what Kevin Feige wants us to think. What if there is another big bad up the architect’s sleeve?

If not Kang then who?

With the universe, microverse, and multiverse in play, it’s only a matter of time until the astral plane is explored. The MCU could take a few creative liberties and let this dimension be the home of Mephisto. The astral plane, and Mephisto's arrival, can be a consequence of the Soul Stone's destruction.

Mephisto is not Satan or the devil, per se, and personifying evil in the Biblical sense may be something that the MCU steers clear of. He can simply be painted as a ruler of demons in his own realm, finally free to enslave as many souls as possible.

Mephisto has ties to numerous Marvel characters including Doctor Doom, The Beyonder, Doctor Doom, and Ghost Rider. His first appearance was actually in a Silver Surfer title, with Mephisto determined to claim the soul of the herald of Galactus.

Though not the most popular of villains, Mephisto would make for an interesting big bad and offer the MCU another opportunity to make another relatively obscure character a household name.