Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania writer Jeff Loveness could begin drafting his screenplay for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty sooner than expected.

According to Murphy's Multiverse, Loveness made an appearance at Grand Canyon University's Inside Entertainment! panel on Sept. 16, where he seemingly revealed plans to begin work on The Kang Dynasty "in two weeks." The full post from GCU read, "Drum roll, please... Our mystery guest is THE Jeff Loveness!" The GCU post reads. "Jeff is set to start writing Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in two weeks!"

It should be noted there have been no official announcements concerning the development or production of the upcoming Avengers film, which was officially announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2022. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton is attached to direct the film, though reports suggest he will not be attached to its follow-up.

The Kang Dynasty appears to be the first part of another two-part Avengers finale, akin to the one-two punch of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame that closed out Phase 3. That second Avengers film, titled Avengers: Secret Wars, has yet to have a director or screenwriter announced.

As the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase 4 nears its end with the November release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the seeds have been planted for its seemingly Kang-focused Phase 5. Quantumania, written by Loveness and directed by Peyton Reed, will feature the MCU's first film appearance of Jonathan Majors' Kang following the actor's debut as a variant of the classic Marvel Comics villain in the 2021 Disney+ series, Loki.

While details concerning the plot of Avengers: The Kang Dynasty are scarce, the film shares its title with the 16-part comic book storyline, "Kang Dynasty," which ran between 2001 and 2002. Written by Kurt Busiek and illustrated by Alan Davis, Kieron Dwyer, Ivan Reis and Manuel Garcia, "Kang Dynasty" saw the titular supervillain Kang and his son Marcus conquer Earth, albeit temporarily.

Despite the perception that Phase 4 has been largely standalone stories, Marvel Studios President and Chief Creative Officer Kevin Feige confirmed each entry has left hints about the overaching story to come. Prior to the announcement of the Avengers films, Feige stated, "I think there have been many clues already, that are at least apparent to me, of where this whole saga is going. But we'll be a little more direct about that in the coming months, to set a plan, so audiences who want to see the bigger picture can see a tiny, tiny, tiny bit more of the roadmap."

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is currently slated to hit theaters on May 2, 2025.

For the first time in a long time, fans have not one, but two Avengers films to look forward to on the MCU calendar. The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars were announced back at San Diego Comic-Con, both set to release in 2025. 

While Secret Wars has remained shrouded in mystery, small tidbits have begun trickling out in relation to The Kang Dynasty. The fifth Avengers film will see Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings' Destin Daniel Cretton in the director's seat, with Rick and Morty writer Jeff Loveness penning the script. 

The hiring of Loveness specifically potentially points to a different kind of Marvel movie, and fans are eager to hear anything more from the upcoming epic. It looks like The Kang Dynasty has gotten an update as it moves further along the dusty production road. 

Jeff Loveness' Kang Dynasty Timeline

As pointed out by Murphy's Multiverse, an event listing at Grand Canyon University has indicated that script work for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is set to begin imminently. 

GCU's September 16 Inside Entertainment! panel saw Kang Dynasty writer Jeff Loveness appear as a special guest. The event schedule lists that the Marvel scribe is "two weeks" away from starting the script for Avengers 5, pointing to an early October date for official writing to begin. 

This detail confirms that while Loveness has not yet dove into screenwriting work on the film, he has presumably agreed on a solid direction for the movie's story with Marvel Studios.

This will be the second MCU movie the screenwriter has worked on, with the Kang-centric Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania being his first. Marvel Studios has already made it clear how integral a role Quantumania will play when it comes to The Kang Dynasty, so it makes sense as to why Loveness was tapped for the upcoming team-up. 

As for what all this means for the production schedule of The Kang Dynasty, it could mean that cameras could roll on the project as soon as next year. Other MCU ventures have begun shooting while the script is still being finalized, so a late 2023 or early 2024 shoot date seems likely. 

Is Avengers 5 on Schedule?

Seeing as news of Jeff Loveness' involvement in Avengers 5 was only just revealed, it would make sense that the screenwriter is this early in the process on the film. Plus add in the fact that he is just coming off of work Quantumania, and it is easy to see why he is not further along on his next Marvel blockbuster. 

But if the writer sticks to that 'two-week' deadline of getting started, things are looking pretty good for The Kang Dynasty hitting that May 2025 release date. Depending on how the writing process goes, this means that filming on the movie will likely commence sometime late next year. 

And if Feige and co. opt to start shooting before a finalized script is handed in, it could push that production timeline up even more. 

No, this does not mean that The Kang Dynasty could potentially get pushed up, but it is looking like everything is running smoothly on the Avengers 5 front. 

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty hits theaters on May 2, 2025.

After the first three phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe culminated in a battle with Thanos, Phases 4-6 will culminate with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, a conflict with Kang the Conqueror, and Secret Wars. However, just like the battle with the Mad Titan, the war with Kang comes from the comics and could mean the return of a forgotten Avenger. Ever since Vision disappeared at the end of WandaVision, no one has mentioned any word on where he went or what happened to him. Even with Wanda Maximoff returning to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as a villain, Vision never appeared to help try to stop his former love. But could the threat of Kang bring him back into the fold?

Where Is the MCU's Vision?

Vision first appeared in Avengers: Age of Ultron when the villainous Ultron created him as the perfect host body. However, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner took the body and uploaded the remnants of Stark's AI, J.A.R.V.I.S. In the end, Vision remained independent, refusing to accept Ultron as his creator or J.A.R.V.I.S. as his former self. Thanks to this, he became an Avenger and worked with the team until Thanos killed him by stripping the Mind Stone from his body. And that was the last anyone heard about Vision until WandaVision.

In what looked like a miracle, Wanda went to reclaim her beloved Vision's body and brought him back. However, in reality, she suffered a mental break and used magic to create an ideal town based on classic sitcoms. Wanda then formed a new version of Vision as her husband, had two children with him and lived happily until learning what she had done. But while Wanda destroyed almost everything, one thing survived.

A corrupt government agent, Tyler Hayward, successfully reactivated Vision's original body in an emotionless white form and sent it in to kill Wanda. In the battle, White Vision and Wanda's Vision battled, and the heroic Vision sent his memories into the other, who declared he was the true Vision and left Westview. But only a select few knew Vision returned, and no one has mentioned him since the incident.

Vision's Role in Marvel Comics' Kang Dynasty

The Kang Dynasty was a major event series in Avengers comics by Kurt Busiek and Alan Davis. Lasting over a year, the Avengers had to battle to stop the evil Kang the Conqueror, who arrived with the perfect plan to divide and conquer. He almost succeeded and killed countless people in an attack on Earth that left many of Earth's Mightiest Heroes shellshocked at the devastation. Captain America was horrified, and Thor shed tears at the corpses surrounding him. However, also playing an important role in the series was Vision.

Vision was going through a difficult time during this period. He and Wanda Maximoff were no longer together, and she started dating Wonder Man. He was there at the start of the attack when Kang sent his son Marcus to attack the United Nations before stating his intentions. Eventually, the heroes learned Kang wasn't the only threat, and Vision had to work with a team including Captain America, Quasar and more to stop this threat before learning Kang had conquered Earth while they were away. But this story could mean Vision will return to help in the battle against Kang and whatever threat follows in the MCU.

Two main Avengers played a vital role in the war with Kang. Iron Man was a player in the battle, and he is dead. Steve Rogers is also gone, and he was the man who fought Kang one on one to end the conflict. However, it will take an army of heroes to beat Kang, and Vision remains one of the heaviest hitters in the MCU. So, while he never showed up to help against Wanda, with the entire planet in danger from Kang and the old Vision's memories still intact, expect the forgotten Avenger to show up when the world needs him most.

Marvel Studios already spoiled Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in Avengers: Infinity War. Hailed by many as the best MCU film, the 2018 Joe and Anthony Russo-directed blockbuster changed the franchise forever in more ways than one. Aside from its buzz-worthy cliffhanger ending, it proved that an ensemble crossover event can actually work without being convoluted or emotionally empty. Avengers: Infinity War, however, also inadvertently reveals story details for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.

After Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Studios move forward with the Multiverse Saga which culminates in back-to-back Avengers movies both releasing in 2025. Plot details for Destin Daniel Cretton's Avengers: The Kang Dynasty are still scant, but as the title suggests, it will pay off the MCU's set-up for Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) to be a major villain in the franchise. It would be followed by Avengers: Secret Wars, which remains without a helmer. While technically, the Multiverse Saga is separate from the Infinity Saga, MCU's first storytelling chapter actually informs what can be expected from its follow-up, particularly with what went down in Avengers: Infinity War.

The Avengers lost to Thanos (Josh Brolin) due to a multitude of reasons, but one of the biggest factors contributing to their defeat is not putting a united front. In Avengers: Infinity War, Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans) fought the Titan separately, with Thor (Chris Hemsworth) busy with his side quest until his last-minute arrival in Wakanda. Coming into Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, there is no team-up film that would establish a clear Earth's Mightiest Heroes roster, which means that everyone would be assembling in the movie itself. Based on what happened in Avengers: Infinity War, this leads to another heartbreaking failure for the Avengers as it’s almost unlikely that the heroes end up winning fighting Kang the Conqueror with a poorly-assembled and untested team.

Kang Needs To Defeat The Avengers To Not Ruin Infinity War

There are still debates as to why exactly Thanos won in Avengers: Infinity War. Considering that the only tangible difference that the group faced in Avengers: Endgame was fighting the villain together, there's an idea that they could have won the first bout against the Titan if they worked together from the get-go. Pitting Captain America against Iron Man in Captain America: Civil War was a deliberate set-up for their eventual defeat in the 2018 blockbuster. Considering the state of Earth's Mightiest Heroes in the Multiverse Saga, it's imperative for Kang the Conqueror defeat them in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty to not cheapen Avengers: Infinity War. If for some reason, this new Avengers team that has spent barely any time with each other and doesn't have a previous working dynamic succeeds in defeating Kang the Conqueror, then it invalidates the primary reason why their predecessors initially lost to Thanos.

The challenge now for Marvel Studios is how to do this without simply rehashing what has been done before. Given how Infinity Saga and Multiverse Saga's culmination are seemingly similarly set up, comparisons between them are inevitable. However, Marvel Studios needs to find a way to differentiate Avengers: The Kang Dynasty from Avengers: Infinity War without ruining the film. Even though the circumstances may differ, it's vital that Phase 6 doesn't inadvertently undermine what came before.