The Marvel Cinematic Universe began with Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man, and for many fans, it ended with his death in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame.
With less-than-stellar ratings for Phase 4 (2021-2022), the MCU might find its answer in bringing back one Stark we haven’t seen since Endgame.
Morgan Stark was the adorable daughter of Tony Stark and Pepper Potts, a child born during the five-year blip.
Her line, “I love you 3000,” quickly became among the most-quoted lines of the franchise, and her character served an important purpose for Tony.
She was the reason he wasn’t immediately willing to go back in time to save the trillions of lost lives; he wasn’t willing to give up what he’d gained to bring back what was lost.
As beloved as Morgan was, she was ultimately a MacGuffin for the overarching storyline. Her purpose was to give Tony hesitation, then to make his death sting just a little bit more.
She was in a deleted scene of Endgame, here played by the adult Katherine Langford, rather than the child Lexi Rabe.
Tony met his now-adult daughter in the Soul Realm, a scene that potentially could have set up Langford in future films. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen her since. She hasn’t even been mentioned.
The return of Morgan Stark in the upcoming Avengers: Kang Dynasty or Secret Wars might fix the problem Phase 4 has been facing: all of our recognizable heroes are fading away.
Stark, Captain America, and Black Widow were all gone after Endgame. Hawkeye found his heir apparent in his self-titled Disney+ show.
Thor and Hulk were both featured in Phase 4, but both with different characterizations and storylines that hint their time is coming to an end.
Phase 4 saturated the MCU with a lot of new heroes – and while many were well-received, Marvel is limited with how deeply they can develop their characters when there are so many stories to tell.
Including Morgan in the future of the MCU could be a breath of fresh air – a blast from the past as the living legacy of the great Tony Stark.
In this Multiversal Saga, rumors abound regarding if (or, to some, when) we’ll see another version of Tony Stark. Many thought it would come with the Illuminati in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, while some think the Illuminati’s Earth-838 Stark might come into Earth-616 for revenge.
Re-introducing Tony into the MCU would be a huge mistake – it would be sloppy fan service that could only serve to harm Stark’s legacy. He died in the perfect way: as a hero. Let him stay dead.
But his daughter? She could serve as the perfect heir to Tony’s legacy and his suit of armor.
She’d deal with the repercussions of his mistakes and try to live up to his massive standards – all while bonding with Peter Parker, who’s dealing with all the same issues.
