A major MCU Phase 6 theory suggests that Avengers 5 could bring Marvel Studios’ Avengers and the X-Men together in an epic, world-changing battle.

Marvel Studios may have already set up the perfect storyline for Phase 6’s Avengers 5, which could see the Avengers battle the X-Men in the MCU. Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige first announced the development of Avengers 5, then titled The Kang Dynasty, in 2022, along with its sequel, Avengers: Secret Wars. Since then, however, the upcoming Phase 6 crossover project has undergone huge changes, as director Destin Daniel Cretton and writer Jeff Loveness departed production, Jonathan Majors’ arrest and conviction caused confusion, and a title change has been reported, throwing the status of Marvel Studios’ Avengers 5 into uncertainty.

Following the news of Jonathan Majors’ conviction in December 2023, and his firing from Marvel Studios, there was speculation that the MCU would be moving away from storylines featuring multiversal villain Kang the Conqueror. Rumors of Avengers 5 dropping The Kang Dynasty from the title may support this, and the hiring of Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Michael Waldron to write Avengers 5 hints at a narrative change. While it’s unclear what direction Avengers 5 will take, a new theory may have presented the perfect opportunity to adapt one of Marvel Comics’ most exciting crossover events.

Monica Rambeau In The Marvels’ X-Men Universe May Cause An Incursion

Monica Rambeau Became Trapped With The X-Men In Phase 5

While Marvel Studios has been setting up Kang the Conqueror as a major threat in Avengers 5, other multiversal dangers have also been teased. One of these is the concept of incursions, which John Krasinski’s Reed Richards introduced in Multiverse of Madness. Incursions occur when two universes collide, leading to the destruction of one of both in the process, so they pose a significant danger during the MCU’s Multiverse Saga. These collisions happen when the borders between universes weaken, which can be a side effect of multiversal travel, so several possible incursion events may have already occurred in the MCU.

Reed Richards: The larger the footprint you leave behind, the greater the risk of an incursion.

Doctor Strange: Incursion?

Reed Richards: An incursion occurs when the boundary between two universes erodes, and they collide, destroying one or both entirely.
The most recent example of a possible incursion event could be seen at the end of 2023’s The Marvels, which saw Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau wake up in an alternate reality after fixing a hole in the fabric of the universe. During The Marvels’ post-credits scene, Rambeau finds herself in a universe inhabited by members of the X-Men, including Kelsey Grammer’s Beast, Charles Xavier and Lashana Lynch’s Binary. According to Earth-838’s Reed Richards, Rambeau’s existence in this alternate reality will cause a devastating incursion, which could see the MCU’s main reality of Earth-616 and Monica Rambeau’s new X-Men-inhabited universe collide.

Marvel Studios Can Adapt Avengers Vs. X-Men For Avengers 5

Marvel Comics’ Avengers Vs. X-Men Released In 2012

The fact that The Marvels’ ending may lead to the collision of a universe inhabited by the Avengers and one inhabited by the X-Men means that Marvel Studios has the opportunity to adapt Marvel Comics’ Avengers vs. X-Men for the MCU. Released in 2012, Avengers vs. X-Men featured a battle between the two titular teams amid the return of the Phoenix Force to Earth. The X-Men consider the Phoenix Force’s return a positive thing that will reinvigorate mutantkind, but the Avengers believe it to be a threat to all life on Earth, creating a huge rift between the two groups.

While Marvel Studios would certainly need to adapt Avengers vs. X-Men to better fit the MCU’s current narrative, this can be done in Avengers 5 thanks to The Marvels. In the lead-up to Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars event in 2015, which saw incursions destroy the multiverse, the Time Runs Out storyline saw heroes from a variety of realities fighting to destroy the others and stop the incursions. The Avengers of Earth-616 and the X-Men of Monica Rambeau’s new universe can explore this storyline in Avengers 5, battling each other across the multiverse to destroy the others’ world and save themselves.

Marvel Comics’ Time Runs Out storyline has been rumored to be adapted for the MCU’s as-yet-unconfirmed Doctor Strange 3 .

Avengers Vs. X-Men Theory Solves Marvel’s Major Kang The Conqueror Problem

Jonathan Majors Starred As Kang The Conqueror In Loki & Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania

Adapting Avengers vs. X-Men as the storyline for Avengers 5 would provide Marvel Studios with the perfect opportunity to remove Kang the Conqueror from the MCU. Following Jonathan Majors’ firing from the role, after appearances in Loki and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, rumors suggested that Kang the Conqueror could either be recast or removed from the MCU. There hasn’t yet been any official word from Marvel Studios, so the status of the multiversal villain remains unclear, but an adaptation of Avengers vs. X-Men negates the need for Kang the Conqueror and his variants’ attack in the MCU’s Phase 6.

Indeed, it’s possible a new actor could assume the role of Kang the Conqueror, and Marvel Studios can continue as planned. However, the new stigma surrounding the villain perhaps means the MCU may move in a completely different direction, and instead of introducing a new villain to replace Kang, Marvel Studios can make the Avengers and X-Men teams each other’s villains. This would put more focus on the heroes, allowing Avengers 5 to be more personal, and will show the more vulnerable, and perhaps brutal, sides to some of the MCU’s most noble characters, while avoiding any negative Kang-related connotations.

Avengers Vs. X-Men In Phase 6 Could Cause Issues For The MCU’s Official X-Men

Even though adapting Avengers vs. X-Men for the MCU’s Phase 6 would solve a lot of problems for Avengers 5, this storyline could also pose huge issues for the MCU’s official X-Men team. Introducing a new team of X-Men from Monica Rambeau’s new reality in Phase 6 would perhaps confuse many ahead of the introduction of the MCU’s actual X-Men team. Marvel Studios is set to reinvent the X-Men with new actors, following Disney’s acquisition of Fox, so debuting a new team from an alternate reality that won’t be the MCU’s primary version of the X-Men may be a mistake.

However, Marvel Studios already has the perfect way to rectify this issue, as Monica Rambeau could be revealed to have traveled to Fox’s X-Men Universe. This means that the X-Men team featured in Phase 6’s potential Avengers vs. X-Men adaptation could be comprised of Patrick Stewart’s Professor X, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, Halle Berry’s Storm, James Marsden’s Cyclops and Famke Janssen’s Jean Grey, among others. In this way, Avengers 5 could provide a fantastic chance to bid a final farewell to some of the beloved heroes from Fox’s X-Men Universe before Marvel Studios reinvents them in the MCU’s official X-Men reboot.

Note: Avengers 5 is currently scheduled for release on May 1, 2026, as part of the MCU’s Phase 6.