We’d heard rumblings this might be the case, but Deadline has just confirmed that Loki season 1 (Eric Martin replaced him on season 2) and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness scribe Michael Waldron will write Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
He remains attached to Avengers: Secret Wars, meaning both movies now have a single writer attached to them. Previously, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’s Jeff Loveness was set to pen The Kang Dynasty, but there were rumblings earlier this year that he'd been dropped from the movie after the Ant-Man threequel underperformed both critically and commercially.
The same writer taking charge of both titles makes sense as it ensures a more cohesive vision. Originally, The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars were meant to come out in the same year, and while there’s now a bigger gap between them, it was always strange to think they’d have completely different creative teams.
While it’s not mentioned in this report, we recently heard that, following Dustin Daniel Cretton's departure, Marvel Studios wants one director (or directing team) to tackle the two-part conclusion to the Multiverse Saga.
It was last October when we heard Waldron had been chosen to write Secret Wars, so even with the WGA strike, he’s had a fair bit of time to work on it. Of course, if recent reports are to be believed, both Avengers projects are being creatively overhauled to reflect the changes this Saga is undergoing. Will that involve Doctor Doom replacing Kang? Time will tell.
It’s hard to say what we should expect from either Avengers movie. If Jonathan Majors is out as Kang, there’s a chance the villain will be recast, though we can’t discount the possibility the character is dropped altogether. Previously, it was rumoured that The Kang Dynasty would see Earth’s Mightiest Heroes assemble to battle the time-traveller’s army of Variants.
From there, the ultimate Kang, The Beyonder, would emerge as the true threat, leading to a Secret Wars where only a handful of remaining heroes - Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man and Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, for example - are left to fight back. That’s what we’ve pieced together from rumours, anyway, and it’s safe to say none of it is set in stone as things stand.
Waldron was Head Writer on the first season of Loki, introducing He Who Remains in the finale. With the Doctor Strange sequel, he threw us into the Multiverse, explored Earth-838 and, controversially, transformed the Scarlet Witch into a villain.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters on May 1, 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars to follow on May 7, 2027.