A new era in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is beginning with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. For the first movie of Marvel’s Phase 5, Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Michael Douglas return, exchanging small-scale mischief for high-stakes action in the Quantum Realm.
Despite emphasising such insignificant characters, Quantumania has lofty goals. With regard to its villain in particular, the movie establishes the plot for the upcoming years of Marvel storytelling. In his role as the time-traveling, multiverse-hopping bad guy Kang the Conqueror, Jonathan Majors makes his professional acting debut. Majors previously made an appearance in Loki’s season 1 finale as He Who Remains, an alternate reality Kang. Although Kang is ultimately defeated by Ant-Man and company in Quantumania, the two end-credits scenes show that his reign is still far from ended. The movie also has a menacing stinger that says, “Kang will return.”
Here, we analyse Quantumania’s two post-credits scenes and discuss how they affect the MCU as a whole.
A gang of Kangs
About halfway through the credits, the first scene appears and confirms that Kang hasn’t left us yet. or, to be more precise, Kangs.
The sequence introduces a complete squadron of Major-played Kang variations from across the multiverse. Immortus, an imposing leader, Rama-Tut, an ancient pharaoh, and what appears to be the Scarlet Centurion are some that seem to be straight out of the comics. They were actually the ones who banished Kang to the Quantum Realm, and they’re worried that heroes like Ant-Man will be able to take him down. They resolve to gather every Kang variety in response and get ready for multiversal war.
Thousands more Kangs are seen assembling in a massive amphitheatre towards the scene’s conclusion, all eager to stir up some interdimensional mayhem. This artwork, which is also taken directly from a Marvel comic book, alludes to the so-called Council of Kangs, which was first mentioned in an Avengers issue published in 1986.
Though Kang won’t appear in every new Marvel production, it is obvious that he and his several variations will continue to cause trouble. All of this will come to a head in the upcoming Avengers movie, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which will be released in theatres in 2025.
Loki returns
In the concluding post-credits sequence, Kang reappears, however this time he appears slightly different from previous appearances. Kang introduces himself as Victor Timely while on stage in what appears to be an auditorium in the early 1900s.
Then, the action shifts to the spectators, where Tom Hiddleston’s Loki and Owen Wilson’s TVA friend Mobius are seen taking in the action. Loki says to Mobius, “That’s him,” as he immediately recognises Victor from his last encounter with He Who Remains.
Not particularly pleased, Mobius. He asks, “I thought you said he was terrible. He is,” responds Loki.
Kang’s alter ego Victor Timely, who appears in comic books, goes back in time to Wisconsin in the early 1900s. (Get it? “Timely”?) There, he takes office as mayor of the community and creates cutting-edge technology in the hopes of gaining enough strength over the coming decades to eventually destroy the Avengers.
Victor’s inclusion here serves as a direct preview for Loki season 2, which is anticipated to premiere on Disney+ later this year. Loki is the only Marvel Disney+ show to receive a second season, though it is still unclear how he will fit into the MCU.
