Jonathan Majors’ Kang the Conqueror Has Been Recast at Marvel

Marvel Studios has been reshaping its long-term plans for Phase Six, and one major change is now confirmed: Kang the Conqueror has been recast. The studio has pivoted from its former central villain, replacing him as the MCU shifts focus toward the rise of Doctor Doom.

The news comes amid Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe—not as Iron Man, but in as Victor Von Doom. While fan conversation continues to center on this casting surprise, questions have lingered over the fate of Jonathan Majors’ Kang. Despite Kevin Feige’s public statements suggesting a creative redirection, the reality appears more complex—and some former creatives are calling it out.

Since 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, the MCU has seen its fair share of ups and downs. Films like Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) managed to generate excitement and strong box office returns, but other recent projects haven’t fared as well. 2025’s Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* both fell short of the franchise’s typical commercial standards.

The mounting pressure was compounded in 2023, when Jonathan Majors—who had taken on the key antagonist role of Kang across multiple titles—was accused of battery, assault, malicious prosecution, and defamation by ex-partner Grace Jabbari (via The Hollywood Reporter). The fallout eventually led to Majors’ exit from the MCU.

Rather than dwell on the legal controversy, Marvel pushed forward quickly. At San Diego Comic-Con 2024, Feige made waves by confirming that the Russo brothers would direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. With both films slated for release in December 2026 and 2027, the announcement effectively shelved the previously planned Kang Dynasty arc.

In its place came a new symbol of power: Doctor Doom.

Fans were stunned when Downey Jr., fresh off his Academy Award win for Oppenheimer, stepped onto the stage and was revealed as the actor playing the iconic villain. The casting choice—transforming a franchise-defining hero into a looming antagonist—is one of Marvel’s most audacious moves yet.

Details remain under wraps, but many believe Downey’s Doom will first appear in a post-credits stinger for The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025). As Doom steps into the spotlight, Kang’s future is now in doubt.

The character was last seen as Variant Victor Timely in Loki Season 2 and clashed with Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023). Recasting had long been speculated, but Feige now confirms the studio had already moved away from Kang before the legal crisis hit.

“We had started even before what had happened to the actor happened, we had started to realize that Kang wasn’t big enough, wasn’t Thanos, and that there was only one character that could be that, because he was that in the comics for decades and decades,” Feige told The Hollywood Reporter.

“Because of the Fox acquisition, we finally had it, and it was Dr. Doom. So we had started talking about Dr. Doom even before we officially pivoted from Kang,” he said. “And in fact, I had started talking with Robert [Downey Jr.] about this audacious idea before Ant-Man 3 even came out. It was a long plan that we had, to take one of our greatest characters and utilize one of our greatest actors.”

But not everyone buys that timeline.

Beau DeMayo, the recently ousted X-Men ’97 showrunner, took to social media to dispute Feige’s narrative and shed light on what he says really happened.

“In 2023, I was working on Season 2 of #xmen97 who has Kang in it. Majors was definitely who would’ve voiced the character. I remember seeing John Wick 4 in March 2023 with a top exec at Marvel…discussing how Kang was def the gameplan and the studio was afraid.

He is straight up lying.”

“@Variety need to do journalism and stop being a contracted PR firm for @MarvelStudios pathetic attempts at damage control.”

In another post, DeMayo confirmed Kang’s recast in the animated world:

“After the Majors news broke, @MarvelStudios told me Majors would likely be off the table…I then [cast] John de Lancie as #Kang as I felt Q would be a great template for him in animated form.”

“It actually makes far more sense both logically and emotionally for KANG to come back to kidnap Franklin Richard’s (his ancestor) than it does Doom.
He was absolutely the endgame.”

Whether de Lancie’s Kang will ever leap to live-action remains unclear. But Marvel’s current focus on Doctor Doom suggests the franchise is ready to leave the character behind.

Even as plans shifted, one name repeatedly came up in casting speculation: Colman Domingo. The Rustin actor confirmed Marvel had been in contact, though initially in vague terms.

“My team has had conversations with Marvel about some aspect of the MCU for years. Do I know this to be true or not? I actually don’t know,” Domingo told Vanity Fair in February.

Later that year, he shared more specifics with Screen Geek: “I have had a meeting with Marvel, yes. But it wasn’t specifically about anything. They literally sat down and said, ‘What do you want to do?’…We’re having engagement, of course […] Who would not want to be a part of the MCU?…So we’ll find out what that is. I don’t know what it is yet, but I’m patient.”

Domingo is already part of the Marvel voice acting world, having voiced Norman Osborn in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, which debuted in January 2025.

So, where does Marvel go from here? While Doom appears to be leading the charge, the door may not be fully closed on Kang, at least not in animated form.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments.