Concept art from Loki’s season 1 finale reveals that Marvel Studios’ newest villain, Kang the Conqueror, might have a deeper connection to Iron Man.
Although they were never seen together on screen, it’s possible that Iron Man and Kang the Conqueror have met each other in the MCU. Robert Downey Jr. portrayed Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man, between Marvel Studios’ first film, Iron Man, and Avengers: Endgame at the end of the MCU’s Infinity Saga, sacrificing his life to eliminate Thanos before the threat of Kang the Conqueror presented itself. Phase 4’s Loki on Disney+ introduced a variant of Kang, He Who Remains, portrayed by Jonathan Majors, who explained the coming danger presented by his variants to Earth’s remaining heroes, but this unfortunately doesn’t include Iron Man.
Since RDJ’s departure from the MCU, speculation has been rising about if and when he could return, with even Majors getting in on the action by stating how he’d love to share the screen with RDJ’s Tony Stark (via Lifehacker Australia). However, concept art from the MCU’s Loki series could suggest that Kang the Conqueror and Iron Man have already met, since one of Iron Man’s helmets can be seen in He Who Remains’ chambers in the Citadel at the End of Time. While this creates a great opportunity to see RDJ in the MCU again, it also poses massive questions concerning when these two legendary characters would have met.
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Kang (Or He Who Remains) Fought Iron Man From Another Universe
It’s possible that the Iron Man helmet that He Who Remains keeps in his office is a souvenir from a battle in an alternate reality to the main MCU continuity. The Citadel at the End of Time is situated outside of time and space, allowing He Who Remains to maintain the Sacred Timeline, so it could be that this helmet came from a different reality where Iron Man and Kang the Conqueror fought. This could even be the helmet of a variant Iron Man which He Who Remains fought himself during his younger days, before he tasked himself with ensuring the Sacred Timeline stayed intact.
With the introduction of the concept of the multiverse in the MCU’s Phase 4 came the debut of many variants of the MCU’s heroes, most prominently during projects such as Loki, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. This means that there are infinite versions of Tony Stark’s Iron Man across the multiverse, so it stands to reason that a variant of Kang the Conqueror came in contact with Stark at some point. While this battle may never be seen in the MCU, it’s still a fun reference to include in He Who Remains’ chambers, reinforcing the fact that anything can happen in the multiverse.
Tony Stark Could Have Sold Avengers Tower To A Kang Variant
As well as debuting Kang the Conqueror’s first MCU variant, Loki also introduced the world to many variants of the titular God of Mischief, all inhabiting the Void, a place at the end of time where the TVA send everything they prune. The Void features many references to the MCU and its Marvel Comics source material, including appearances from a Yellowjacket helmet, the Thanos-copter, and even Throg, a frog variant of Thor, but it’s a building with QENG signage on the side that drew the attention of Kang the Conqueror fans, as this points to Mr. Gryphon, a Kang variant, and the building in question is the old Avengers Tower.
In Marvel Comics, a variant of Kang the Conqueror finds himself trapped in the 21st Century, but decides to start his own empire, becoming a businessman, assuming the name Mr. Gryphon, and buying Stark Tower for his company, QENG Enterprises. It’s this building that was seen in the Void during Loki, suggesting that in one of the MCU’s universes, Tony Stark sold Avengers Tower to Mr. Gryphon. While this reality obviously ended up being pruned, this suggests that alternate Starks and Kangs have met each other, and could perhaps point to the current owner of the 616-universe’s Avengers Tower, which hasn’t been revealed after it was sold during Spider-Man: Homecoming.
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Iron Man Could Have Met Kang When Discovering Time Travel
Robert Downey Jr.’s final adventure in the MCU saw Tony Stark inventing a device that would allow him and the remaining Avengers to travel through time, retrieve the Infinity Stones for themselves, and reverse Thanos’ Avengers: Infinity War snap. Even though there was no mention of Kang the Conqueror during Avengers: Endgame, it’s possible that it was this meddling with the time stream that brought Tony Stark and Kang face-to-face with each other. This is especially believable as the Avengers needed to use the Quantum Realm to time travel, which had been acting as Kang the Conqueror’s prison-come-empire for a number of years.
Kang the Conqueror’s most notable ability is that of his mastery over time, due to the advanced technology of his home in the 31st century. This means that he’s sure to notice when someone other than himself creates technology that would allow travel between timelines, which is effectively what Tony Stark achieved. This would certainly be enough for He Who Remains to want to hang onto pieces of Iron Man’s suits, as at the very least it’s likely Kang respects Stark’s genius and innovation in being able to develop this remarkable technology. Perhaps Kang even looked up to Stark, seeing him as a role model when developing his own technology.
Iron Man & Kang Could Meet In Secret Wars (But In The MCU’s Past)
Although RDJ’s return to the MCU is currently still rumored, and hasn’t been confirmed by Marvel Studios, it’s possible that the upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars could see many unexpected actors reprise past roles. This could include characters from Fox’s X-Men franchise, and Sony’s Spider-Verse making their ways to the MCU, as well as the return of dead or retired MCU heroes, including Tony Stark. This could lead to an epic battle between the original Avenger and Kang the Conqueror, which He Who Remains would remember from his Citadel in the distant future.
However, even if Avengers: Secret Wars doesn’t feature RDJ’s return in the MCU’s present-day, Kang the Conqueror’s ability to time travel could still mean that he and Iron Man may battle each other, only in the MCU’s past. This would create a new timeline concurrent to the main MCU continuity, but could see a battle between Kang the Conqueror and some long-gone heroes throughout history, which would make for a spectacular ending to the MCU’s Multiverse Saga. He Who Remains could keep trophies of his variants’ conquests, such as Iron Man’s helmet, and this epic fight between Kang the Conqueror and Iron Man would certainly make the cut.
