While we’re little more than a year away from the premiere of the sequel to Captain Marvel (2019), The Marvels, it’s never too early to start the speculation mill when it comes to a Marvel movie. And this time, we’re focusing on the potential return of a character for this upcoming film – Maria Rambeau.
[This article will delve into some heavy spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. This is your only spoiler warning.]
Some months ago, Lashana Lynch was seemingly confirmed to be appearing in The Marvels (see the evidence here and via the Direct here). However, details about what kind of role Lynch could play in the sequel are currently unknown.
As you might recall from WandaVision, Maria Rambeau died due to cancer complications during the snap. So, the character’s death limits the possible roles that Lynch could play as Rambeau from a narrative standpoint.
Maria Rambeau as a Flashback
Having Maria return as a flashback might be the safest way Marvel could incorporate Rambeau returning for the sequel. I could see these flashbacks serve as a way to build some character development for Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) as they explore the relationship Monica and Maria had growing up.
It could also serve as a way to explain everything Monica and Maria went through post-Captain Marvel, all the way to the events leading to Avengers: Endgame. Lastly, flashbacks with Maria could also give fans insight into Monica’s apparent disdain for Carol following her absence at the end of Captain Marvel.
Maria Rambeau as the Supreme Intelligence
Now, this is an exciting idea that I could see Marvel Studios executing for The Marvels. We are aware that the Kree will be returning for the upcoming Captain Marvel sequel. So, why not incorporate their leader, the Supreme Intelligence, into the mix?
We know from Captain Marvel that the Supreme Intelligence’s true form is never shown to the person it’s speaking to because the person’s subconscious makes the entity take the form of the person they most admire. For Carol, the Supreme Intelligence took the form of Mar-Vell. For Yon-Rogg, it took the form of himself.
Suppose the Supreme Intelligence does make a return to this film. In that case, I could see it potentially taking Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) hostage, entering their subconscious and taking the form of the people they most admire. For Kamala, that person might be Carol Danvers. And as for Monica, that person would likely be her mother, Maria.
Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel
If you saw Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, you might recall that the film introduced Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel. In a previous article I wrote, the MCU (Earth-616) is currently on a collision course with another universe, as explained by Clea in the post-credit scene of the Multiverse of Madness. This phenomenon is known as an “incursion.”
In that article, I speculated that the universe the MCU is currently colliding with might be Earth-838, where Rambeau’s Captain Marvel resides. This incursion would allow characters from both universes to cross freely into each other, and I believe that Maria Rambeau-838 might be one of them.
Now, to some, that might seem very unlikely, given how Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness played out, with Wanda Maximoff killing off the majority of the Illuminati. But I have reason to believe that the Maria Rambeau of that universe is still alive.
Out of all of the deaths of the Illuminati, the only one that didn’t seem all that certain was Captain Marvel. Yes, she was crushed by that statue, and we saw her hand flop to the ground, but given the powers that she possesses and the number of far more powerful hits that she took from Wanda prior to the statue. Combine that with the formidable strength and durability of Carol Danvers’ Captain Marvel, I doubt that a statue would be enough to kill someone as powerful as Rambeau.
But what do you guys think? What theory do you guys like more? Sound off in the comments or on social media @mycosmiccircus!
