Theory: Doctor Doom's the Real Villain in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

The Marvel fandom is once again rife with rumors, theories, and speculations, but this time, it’s directed toward the final MCU movie of the year: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Responding to talk of the entry’s big bad, we discuss the evidence that suggests Doctor Doom will be Wakanda Forever’s main villain instead of Namor.

Fans will also be clinging on to this movie for now in light of the recent delays of many MCU projects, including the Fantastic Four reboot, Deadpool 3, and Avengers: Secret Wars. 

Co-written by Coogler and Joe Robert Cole, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a sequel to the 2018 debut of the Marvel character and stars Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Dominique Thorne, Florence Kasumba, Michaela Coel, Tenoch Huerta, Martin Freeman, and Angela Bassett.

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Marvel Fans Address the Doctor Doom Rumors

The Marvel fandom is now certain that the iconic Fantastic Four foe Doctor Doom will be the main villain in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

The Latverian politician is yet to make his MCU debut and we’ve also still to hear which actor will be playing Victor Von Doom in the Fantastic Four reboot.

Many fans are saying the fandom is not ready for the villain’s appearance in Wakanda Forever, and there’s convincing evidence to suggest the green-cloaked enemy will appear in next month’s feature.

Wakanda Forever Leaked Post-Credits Scene

Earlier this year, an image was reportedly leaked that specified the post-credits scene of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever featuring Doctor Doom.

As the image’s source is unconfirmed, we will not show it here, but the screenshot in question shows Kingsley Ben-Adir’s Gravik from Secret Invasion standing in front of Doctor Doom.

Reports suggest the image is a form of concept art, said to be from Wakanda Forever and not the Secret Invasion series.

Similar to how Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s appearances in Spider-Man: No Way Home leaked, and indirectly fuelled the hype around the movie, this leak could be orchestrating the same buzz.

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Tenoch Huerta Confirms Namor is an “Anti-Hero”, Not a Villain

Speaking with Empire Magazine, via Paste Magazine, actor Tenoch Huerta offered confirmation on whether his character Namor was a villain or not:

“Latin-Americans are always the bad guys in Hollywood movies. And now we are the heroes—or an anti-hero, in this instance.” What exactly makes Namor an anti-hero, we’ll have to wait and see.” 

This quote is further proof that Namor will not be the villain of the movie, and in the MCU’s tradition, there is always a main, opposing force driving the narrative. 

Doctor Doom is the Real Villain, Not Namor

In conclusion, the evidence suggests Namor, the Sub-Mariner, has been marketed as a red herring by Marvel Studios to make us believe he is the main villain of the movie.

Even though Doctor Doom may only appear in person during the post-credits scene, there’s still a high possibility that he’s the one pulling the strings throughout Wakanda Forever’s narrative.

While there is obvious tension between the Atlantians and the warriors of Wakanda, we don’t yet know Namor’s true motives in this movie, despite the two forces’ conflicting history in Marvel Comics.

We know Doctor Doom will be the next big villain in the MCU, alongside Kang the Conqueror, and since Phase 4 of the MCU will be ending with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it makes sense to reveal the big bad of the next two phases within this feature.

By Jo Craig – [email protected]

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is scheduled to be released in the United States on November 11, 2022.