Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Ant-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaAlthough Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania featured Kang the Conqueror and a multitude of his variants in the multiverse, there's one very important version who's yet to make it to the MCU. Across the different known and unknown realities that exist, Kang is a time-traveling despot seeking multiversal dominance in most. However, there's one notable exception.
In Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's two post-credits scenes, several Kang variants are introduced. In the first, the three major variants seemingly responsible for the Kang exiled in the Quantum Realm summon a massive Council of Kangs. This trio appears to be Immortus, Rama-Tut, and The Centurion from the original comics. Likewise, the second post-credits scene features another major variant Victor Timely who is being set up for a role in Loki season 2. However, there are still more versions of Kang who could and probably will be introduced in the future, including one who could be the key to saving the multiverse (rather than conquering it).
Iron Lad Is The Biggest Kang Variant Missing From The MCU Now
In the original comics, Iron Lad is a younger version of Nathaniel Richards in the 30th Century whose entire future is drastically altered thanks to the arrival of his future self, the Avengers villain Kang the Conqueror. Being given a neuro-kinetic suit and the offer to fulfill his destiny ahead of schedule, Nathaniel is instead horrified by the man he becomes and does everything in his power to prevent his future as one of the most powerful supervillains of all time. Resisting the influence of Kang, Nathaniel uses his new suit to travel to Earth-616 in the present, where he then fashions his armor after Tony Stark's Iron Man.
Existing in the present-day Marvel Universe and doing his best to be a hero, Iron Lad is an incredibly unique Kang variant whose presence in the MCU would have major implications for the future of the Multiverse Saga as it heads for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. He'd certainly be a powerful ally for the Avengers, with the primary motivation of fighting his future self as the desire to prevent his own transformation into a time-traveling despot. However, Iron Lad is also directly responsible for creating a new team in the comics that may soon debut in the MCU as well: The Young Avengers.
When Will Iron Lad Appear In The MCU?
Considering future projects such as Armor Wars and Ironheart, which will both touch on Iron Man's legacy in the MCU, it wouldn't be surprising to see an Iron Lad appearance due to his clear inspiration from Tony Stark. However, it's also possible that an MCU Iron Lad could be featured in a project that officially assembles the Young Avengers, as many of them have already been introduced to the MCU thanks to Phase 4. Perhaps they just need Nathaniel to bring them all together. Despite his absence in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Iron Lad is a major Kang variant who will hopefully be featured soon in the MCU.
