WARNING: Spoilers for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania may have just introduced the villain of Marvel’s new Fantastic Four movie. For now, there’s no official word on who Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, the Human Torch, and the Thing will have to fight when they make their MCU debut. However, it’s possible that their foe is already in the MCU.
The general expectation for a Fantastic Four story is that the main antagonist will be Doctor Doom, but there’s really no reason why their greatest enemy has to be encountered first. After all, Doom is one of dozens of viable candidates for Fantastic Four’s villain. During their long history in the comic books, Marvel’s First Family has gone up against a long list of challenging opponents, many of which being characters now eligible for an MCU appearance. In fact, one of the options for the villain now exists in the MCU thanks to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Quantumania’s Egyptian Kang Variant Could Be MCU Fantastic Four’s Villain
In Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s first post-credits scene, Marvel showed off three new Kang variants. One was dressed like an Egyptian pharaoh. His costume identifies him as Rama-Tut, a character who represents a specific point in Kang’s Marvel Comics timeline. The implication of this gathering of Kang variants, is that the three of them will be among the villains fighting Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. Given the film’s setup for the next Avengers movie, that scenario certainly does seem likely, but that doesn’t mean these characters won’t be seen again until then.
Clearly, Rama-Tut has a leadership role in the Council of Kangs, meaning that he may be at the forefront of the conflict when the characters begin to put their schemes in motion. Since it’s surely a multipronged plan, the Council of Kangs may work toward getting what they want before their inevitable clash with the Avengers. Each of the three central players in the Council of Kangs could start enacting their respective parts of the plan, with Rama-Tut’s role potentially being the focus of its own movie. Since Rama-Tut has comic ties to the Fantastic Four, their movie could host his next live-action appearance.
Who Is Rama-Tut In The Marvel Comics? Fantastic Four Villain Explained
Introduced before the true Kang the Conqueror, Rama-Tut first appeared in Fantastic Four #19 as a time-traveler from the future who visited ancient Egypt and took up resident there as its pharaoh. He ruled the region for a while, but eventually came to feel that his life had become mundane. Seeking to add some excitement to it, Rama-Tut hid clues in Egypt, knowing they’d be seen thousands of years later by the Fantastic Four, who had a time machine. By following this strategy, Rama-Tut successfully lured the team straight to him for a battle in the past.
When debuting Kang in Avengers #8, Marvel used Rama-Tut to explain the former’s backstory. Apparently, Kang and Rama-Tut are the same person, but the two personas represent different periods in the character’s life. In the beginning, he was Nathaniel Richards, a man from the 31st century who discovered the time travel technology invented by Doctor Doom. With it, Richards ventured into the past and satisfied his desire for power by becoming the ruler of Egypt. After getting defeated by the Fantastic Four, Rama-Tut fled back into the timestream and rebranded himself as Kang the Conqueror. Later, Marvel brought back Rama-Tut as an alternate timeline counterpart of Kang’s and a character eager for redemption.
Why Rama-Tut Should Be The Villain In Marvel’s Fantastic Four Movie
Similar to the situation with Phase 4, not all Phase 5 movies can be expected to tie directly to the overarching story, but it would be surprising if Loki season 2 is Marvel’s last stepping stone toward The Kang Dynasty. With six movies in-between Quantumania and The Kang Dynasty, Marvel should have ample opportunity to continue its Kang setup. Fantastic Four would be in an excellent position to advance the Kang storyline, especially since it’s the last MCU movie before Avengers 5. If a Kang variant – specifically Rama-Tut – is its main antagonist, its story can lead directly into The Kang Dynasty.
Through Rama-Tut, Marvel has a way to keep Fantastic Four in line with the main themes of the Multiverse Saga, while also being different from all other Marvel movies at the same time. If Marvel takes inspiration from Fantastic Four #19’s time travel plot, the team could end up fighting Rama-Tut in ancient Egypt. A Fantastic Four movie set at least partially in this era would obviously distance it from all other movies centered on the team. Plus, it would allow Marvel to use Kang in a way that wouldn’t risk overusing Jonathan Majors’ MCU character since Rama-Tut can bring out elements of him that haven’t been seen from him yet, such as his hunger for power. Going in this direction would make Fantastic Four a deeply meaningful installment in the Multiverse Saga.
How Marvel’s Fantastic Four Movie Can Set Up Avengers 5: Kang Dynasty
Not unlike Marvel’s approach to Avengers: Infinity War, The Kang Dynasty may not be a proper Avengers story and may actually be another crossover movie that incorporates multiple corners of the MCU. If so, the Fantastic Four could be in play. If that’s the case, their battle with Rama-Tut can end with the team learning of the Council of Kangs’ existence, thus setting the Fantastic Four up for a role in The Kang Dynasty. It may be that defeating Rama-Tut will give the heroes of the MCU an early victory over the Council of Kangs, particularly if it will deprive the villains of a major member of their group. Alternatively, the MCU could lean into the Rama-Tut story where the character came to regret his actions and ultimately chose to help the heroes beat Kang.
Also, Fantastic Four can set up Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in a way that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania couldn’t. Due to Qauntumania’s Kang not being a member of the Council of Kangs, the MCU was able to tease their goals but wasn’t in a position to really dive into them. But by putting Rama-Tut in Fantastic Four, Marvel can use the movie as the first phase in their masterplan and then segue into the next stage in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. Depending on how successful he is against the Fantastic Four, Rama-Tut can return to join forces with his fellow Kang variants in the crossover film.