Marvel Studios is officially taking on the challenge of introducing the multiverse as a real player in Phase 4 after only small teases for it were laid out in the Infinity Saga.
The team behind the MCU took some huge steps toward making this a reality with the Season 1 finale of Tom Hiddleston's Loki. This series introduced one of many Kang the Conqueror Variants before Sylvie ended his life and sent the multiverse into a downward spiral; the ramifications of this could even be felt as early as the MCU's next project, What If...?.
In late 2021, the theatrical side will feel the effects of this shift in Tom Holland's Spider-Man: No Way Home with more than a handful of characters from other timelines finding their way into the MCU timeline.
Reports have already detailed Marvel's teams having meetings about the multiverse, which makes sense considering how tightly they have to interweave with one another.
This was confirmed further by the head writer of Loki, who spoke on specific people he contacted during Marvel's jam-packed production schedule.
WALDRON IN TOUCH WITH SPIDEY WRITERS
Loki head writer Michael Waldron sat down with The Playlist Podcast to discuss Marvel Studios' plans for using the multiverse.
When asked if he was consulted on the work of other MCU movies like Spider-Man: No Way Home while working on Loki, Waldron confirmed that he did, admitting that the teams are "constantly communicating... to make sure that you're not screwing each other up."
Opening up about his interactions with Spider-Man: No Way Home writers Chris McKenna and Eric Summers, Waldron spoke on how it "benefits the projects" when this kind of collaborative opportunity is available:
"Your producing teams are constantly communicating with those producing teams to make sure that you’re not screwing each other up. I had the benefit on Spider-Man: No Way Home, Chris McKenna and Eric Summers wrote that, I was their writer’s PA on Season 5 of Community, so I can call McKenna and get bullied by him whenever I want, but also say ‘Hey, what the hell are you guys doing? Let me make sure I’m not ruining it.’ So there’s communication to the extent that the creative teams themselves, the filmmakers, the writers, whoever, can become friendly, it certainly benefits the projects."
THE MCU IS MORE CONNECTED THAN EVER
The MCU has always been recognized as the standard for movie franchises with numerous interconnecting stories working toward one overarching narrative. Phase 4 is looking to take that concept to an entirely new level, and it appears that the ever-elusive multiverse will be one of the biggest tools used in that endeavor.
It only makes sense that Waldron had so much communication with the writing team from Spider-Man: No Way Home, especially since that film will bring the first after-effects of what went down in Episode 6 of Loki.
While branches of the multiverse started forming as Kang moved toward his rise to power, realities will begin coming apart at the seams with at least two timelines finding their way into Tom Holland's Spideyverse.
This will continue with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which also boasts Waldron on the writing team, as the MCU dives further into madness over the coming years. Communication appears to be one of the biggest keys to making this all work with so many teams going all-in on the same endgame for the imminent future.
All six episodes of Loki are available to stream on Disney+. Spider-Man: No Way Home will release in theaters on December 17, 2021.
