Doctor Strange Finally Killed Off An Iron Man Return Theory

Iron Man’s sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame is one of the most heartbreaking moments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far, and even though the multiverse offered some hope for his return, Doctor Strange has finally put an end to those theories. After the Infinity Saga covered Thanos’ quest for the Infinity Stones, the MCU continued its expansion with the exploration of its multiverse. The TV series Loki and the movie Spider-Man: No Way Home have given the audience a taste of what the multiverse holds, with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness showing the dangers of it and the chaos it can unleash.

Doctor Strange’s second solo movie was all about the dangers of traveling across the multiverse, exploring the aftermath of No Way Home’s multiversal chaos. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness saw Scarlet Witch dreamwalking through the multiverse thanks to the Darkhold, and even took the audience to one universe that was completely destroyed by the reckless multiversal travel of one of Strange’s variants. Through this, Doctor Strange put an end to theories about Iron Man’s return thanks to the multiverse, as this could trigger even bigger problems.

How Multiverse Of Madness Killed Iron Man’s MCU Return

With the introduction of the multiverse in the MCU came the concept of variants, which are the different versions of every person across the multiverse. These don’t necessarily have to look like their versions from the Sacred Timeline (like Strange’s variants in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), as they can look completely different, like the three Peter Parkers in No Way Home and the various Lokis in Loki. This gave viewers hope for Iron Man’s return as a variant from another timeline in the multiverse, but Multiverse of Madness also introduced incursions, and these are what kill the theories of Iron Man’s return.

An incursion is the result of prolonged multiversal travel, which can cause one or more universes to be entirely destroyed. Earth-838’s Strange triggered an incursion after dreamwalking through the multiverse to find a way to destroy Thanos, and in another universe, Sinister Strange (who was corrupted by the Darkhold) caused an incursion that destroyed his own universe, as he dreamwalked across the multiverse to kill his own variants. Doctor Strange’s travels in Multiverse of Madness also caused an incursion, as informed by Clea, proving that no one can stay in a universe that isn’t theirs without triggering major catastrophes, so Iron Man can’t return as a multiverse variant.

Could Secret Wars Undo Doctor Strange’s Illuminati Warning?

The Illuminati from Earth-838 warned Doctor Strange about traveling across the multiverse given what their version of Strange did, but as seen in the rest of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, he didn’t really follow their advice. Now, the upcoming crossover event Avengers: Secret Wars could see a massive multiversal battle for the final surviving timeline, which could put an end to incursions for the rest of the MCU. If that’s the case, a new Iron Man could be introduced, with his presence explained as him being from another lost timeline, thus not creating an incursion. While Iron Man is one of the most beloved MCU characters and his death was shocking, the truth is that this universe has already moved on from his story, and there’s no need to bring him back even if just as a variant.