Cinematic Multiverse List: MCU, DCEU, Spider-Man, Star Trek

TThe multiverse is all around. This niche concept, which is geeky and long talked about by comic book fans has been featured in shows such as Doctor Who has taken over the movies—and not just superhero films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Entertainment Universe, but indie films like All You Need at One Time.

The term “mutiverse” describes the idea that there are many, perhaps even infinite, parallel universes. Different versions of the same person can exist in different universes: think Tom Holland’s Peter Parker meeting Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker in Spider-Man has no way home. Different circumstances may also lead to characters following similar routes in different universes. Think Miles Morales as Spider-Man and Gwen Stacy as Spider-Woman. Spider-Man: In the Spider-verse. Many multiverse stories involve multiple versions of the same characters appearing in one movie.

Multiverses may also prove to be useful for corporations as a way to unify characters that have previously lived in separate worlds. Marvel Studios, for example is looking at ways to incorporate the X-Men in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s much simpler to welcome the mutants from a parallel universe than explain where they were at the time Thanos attacked Earth.

This can be confusing. But we’re here to catch you up. In this cinematic multiverse list, you’ll find everything you need to know about these big, sprawling universes. From superheroes to Star Trek, here’s what’s coming next:

Multiverse of X-Men

Are there any relevant films?

X-Men’s Days of Future Past2014, perhaps Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Kitty Pryde in X-Men, Days of Future Past

How did it happen?

20th Century Fox produced three X-Men films in the 2000s (X-Men, X2: X-Men UnitedAnd X-Men: The Last Stand) with a cast that included Patrick Stewart as Professor X and Ian McKellan as Magneto. After a Wolverine spinoff movie called X-Men Origins Fox saw the need to refresh after the film failed to attract critics. A prequel movie was released by the studio. X-Men First Class This 2011 documentary told the origin story for the super-team, with James McAvoy (as Magneto) and Michael Fassbender (as Professor X and Magneto).

Next, the creators had an amazing idea. What if Stewart, McKellan and McAvoy could all be in one movie, jumping back-and forth in time.

X-Men: Days of Future PastThis movie is quite nifty and basically erases all of the bad things that happened. X-Men: The Last StandAnd X-Men OriginsIt makes the best of its highly-skilled cast while drawing inspiration from its cinematic universe. The film begins in an “apocalyptic future,” which in this case is the year 2023 (oof!). Stewart and McKellan’s Professor X and Magneto are evading robots called Sentinels that seek to destroy anyone with the mutant gene. The only way to save mutant-kind’s existence is to send an emissary back to 1970s to stop Sentinels being created. Kitty Pride (Elliot Page) helps them send Wolverine back to 1970s to recruit Professor X (McAvoy) and Magneto (Fassbender and McAvoy) to help stop the creation of Sentinels. Wolverine’s team wins and he returns to 2023 with a newfound knowledge: there are no Sentinels. Characters who died before him are also alive.

Fox has always remained a bit unclear on whether Wolverine’s traveling back in time created branching timelines, or whether the “new” timeline replaced the old, apocalyptic one when Wolverine returned from his journey. It is the X-MenThe movies that came next Days of Future The past has not been particularly interested in answering this question. They don’t even seem particularly concerned with why Fassbender’s Magneto didn’t seem to age between the the Cuban Missile Crisis in First ClassThe Clinton Era of Dark PhoenixOr how McKellan became gray-haired in just a few years. But it’s safe to assume that X-Men: Apocalypse, X-Men Dark Phoenix, Logan, Deadpool,And Deadpool 2All were set up in the updated timeline by Days of Future Past.

Unfortunately, for mutants everywhere Logan,The story, which takes place in 2029 also portrays an apocalyptic world where Professor X accidentally kills most of the X-Men. He now has deadly seizures and dementia. The X-men had only six years to live before they died in another gruesome manner. This is the final of Logan, Wolverine’s protege Laura (a.k.a. X-23) is the leader of a group of mutants that have escaped capture by government authorities and been subject to experimentation in Canada. Jackman hinted at this. LoganIt took place in parallel universes from Days of Future Past, but it’s unclear if that’s the case.

Continue reading: Breaking Down the X-Men Timeline

What’s next?

Disney bought 20th Century Fox in 2019 and presumably has been planning how to bring the X-Men to the MCU since then. Wanda Maximoff, Elizabeth Olsen is an obvious option. The technical reason Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. Scarlet Witch and Pietro, her twin brother (a.k.a. Quicksilver and Avengers are mutants, and both Fox and Disney own the rights. Quicksilver appeared in the movies. AvengersAaron Taylor-Johnson plays the role of Aaron in movies and Evan Peters portrays the role as Evan Peters in X-Men movies.

The following are the steps to take before you buy. AvengersThe movies implied that siblings were granted their powers after they were tested with the Infinity Stone. The show was not as convincing. WandaVisionWanda was actually able to use her powers even before being made into a laboratory rat. The experiments just increased her capabilities. She and her brother likely had the mutant gene. WandaVision briefly teased some unification of these two universes by casting Peters as a man masquerading as Taylor-Johnson’s Quicksilver.

Continue reading: Everything You Need WandaVision Answers to your questions

Marvel Studios confirmed today that the X-Men will now be appearing in an officially licensed cameo. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness: Patrick Stewart’s Professor X is set to appear in that film. His role will be as part of The Illuminati which, according to comics, also includes Tony Stark (who passed away in). Avengers: Endgame Fantastic Four’s Reed Richards. John Krasinski is believed to be Richards’s actor in the MCU. He was previously played in an earlier episode by Miles Teller and Ioan Gruffudd. Fantastic FourThe film is being remade, but it’s not certain. The trailer suggests that the Illuminati will include representatives from all the cinematic universes Marvel owns. This includes the X-Men. It is a clever solution to many problems by creating a scenario in which the X-Men are able to enter the MCU story via a parallel universe.

Marvel Studios would have fans wondering where mutants were during Ultron and Thanos’ attempts to end the world if they suddenly added them into their MCU. The EternalsSimilar questions were asked about the god-like creatures in that movie, but they did not respond in a satisfactory manner. Also, one of the best and most important X-Men characters, Magneto, is grounded in a specific timeline: he’s a Holocaust survivor, and that’s an essential part of his origin story and motivation. Marvel might be able to preserve the origin stories of the X-Men if they enter the MCU in a parallel universe.

Does it work?

There are many people who found it. Days of Future PastThe movie was very confusing upon its release. Moviegoers were not familiar enough with multiverse concepts to make this movie a good entertainment piece. X-Men offerings. Regardless of any flaws found in later X-Men films, which were many, James McAvoy was brilliant as Professor X. Michael Fassbender played Magneto.

Multiverse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Which movies and shows are relevant?

Avengers: Endgame (2019), Loki (2021), What If…? (2021), Spider-Man has no way home (2021)Doctor Strange is in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Captain America in Avengers: EndgameKang, the Conquerer from the Disney+ Show Loki, The movie features Doctor Strange and Doctor Strange Spider-Man: The Way Back. (It’s complicated!)

How did it happen?

There’s plenty of blame to go around for breaking the single timeline in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), could be the first to blame. You can also read more about In Avengers: Endgame, Captain America and the other Avengers had to steal Infinity Stones from different moments in the MCU’s past in order to gather them together and defeat the villain Thanos (Josh Brolin). To avoid accidentally creating multiple timelines, Captain America was assigned the task of returning the Infinity Stones from their original places in the timeline. He succeeded, however. He also went back in time to meet his beloved Peggy Carter, and lived his life completely unrecorded. It is possible that another form of him was kept in ice up until 2000 before he became an Avenger. The movie implies that he didn’t actually break any rules. This movie employs the time loop logic which explains why modern-day Steve got married to Peggy during 1940s. AlwaysIt happened earlier Captain America movies hinted that Peggy was married; now we just know it’s to a Steve Rogers who traveled back in time.

So let’s assume Steve is off the hook. We will next look at Kang, the Conquerer. It’s a TV program. Loki centers on Loki traveling through the multiverse and discovering that there are variant Lokis in other timelines, including ones that look like him (Tom Hiddleston) and ones that don’t—there’s a female Loki, a child Loki, even a alligator Loki. Jonathan Majors portrays He Who remains, an eminent scientist. He reveals how he found the multiverse, and that it was populated by different versions. He Who Remains overcame his rivals to create chaos and death and created a stable, single timeline, the Sacred Timeline. He rules it. He kills all variants that are not on the main timeline in order to preserve it. Loki (Sophia Di Marto), and Sylvie, a female form of Loki confront He Who Remains. He gives them the option to choose. Loki and Sylvie can kill He Who Remains and unleash the chaos of the multiverse—including an evil variant of He Who Remains named Kang the Conquerer—or let He Who Remains live and allow Sylvie and the other variants to die. Sylvie takes out He Who Remains. The Sacred Timeline is dangerously branched off by an endless number of timelines. Loki wakes up in a universe that’s been conquered by Kang the Conquerer.

Continue reading: Here’s What the LokiWhat does Finale mean for the Future of Marvel Movies?

Animations by Disney+ What If…? Illustrations of a variety of alternate universes include one in which the Avengers fight zombies and some become undead, one where Doctor Strange is corrupted with power and one where Peggy Carter uses the super-soldier serum to battle a multidimensional space alien octopus. All of these seem relevant plotlines. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness).

We have not yet seen the consequences of Sylvie’s murder of He Who Remains in the MCU movies, but we did see the timeline shatter in yet another way in Spider-Man has no way home. Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) casts a spell to make everyone forget that Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is Spider-Man, but the spell backfires and summons characters from parallel universes into the their universe—including Spider-Men played by Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. By the end of the film, Doctor Strange seemingly repairs the damage to the universe and sends all the heroes and villains who don’t belong in their universe back home. To do this, he has to cast a spell which makes all the universes forget about Peter Parker.

However, trailers are for the upcoming movie Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness imply that Doctor Strange’s actions may have had unforeseen consequences, and the universe is officially fractured.

What’s next?

It’s the first! Doctor StrangeHe will have to deal with multiple threats including an evil version, an interdimensional octopus monster and possibly some zombies. LokiThe second season of Kang the Conquerer will be aired. This drama, which is sure to feature Kang and the confusion caused by the branching timelines, is expected to air in the fall. And there’s a Fantastic FourMovie underway, with Jon Watts as director and a third DeadpoolThis film will, no doubt, cement the X-Men presence within the MCU.

Ultimately, we’re probably headed towards some sort of multiversal war. There’s a famous comic book storyline called Secret Wars. It’s actually been written twice. This latest version sets up war between heroes in different timelines.

Does it work?

Marvel is still unsure if the events in LokiIt has been impacted Spider-Man has no way home, Doctor Strangethe future Marvel films. The next film in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe will feature Jonathan Majors as Kang, the Conqueror. Ant-Man and The Wasp film, Quantumania. Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige stated explicitly that people who wish to stay up to date with the latest developments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe must watch both the movies and the TV series. WandaVisionThey will be confused. Doctor Strange.

Marvel Studios is still trying to clarify the confusing plots. This is something that is not possible for many studios. So, sure, it’s working!

Spider-Man Multiverse

Which movies and scenes are relevant?

The ending credits scene Venom 2 (2021), Spider-Man has no way home (2021), The end credits scene Morbius (2022)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Doctor Strange is Spider-Man has no way home again (even though he’s not in this universe)

How did it happen?

Here’s where things get seriously weird. Sony holds the rights to Spider-Man as well as all Spider-Man characters. But the studio agreed to collaborate with Disney’s Marvel Studios on three Spider-Man movies (all the ones starring Tom Holland) and lend Holland to them for a few Avengers and Captain America films. Sony wants Spidey to return, so it is creating its own Spider-Man cinematic universe.

This entire area of land is Spider-Man has no way homeThe idea that Peter Parker might disappear without Marvel Studios noticing was the basis of this movie. This worked. If Tom Holland’s Peter Parker is sucked into a parallel universe, Doctor Strange and Captain Marvel won’t miss him because Doctor Strange conveniently cast a spell that made all of Peter’s friends and family forget him.

So, remember Doctor Strange’s spell that summoned characters from different universes to the main MCU Universe? In the final credits, we find out. Venom 2Venom (Tom Hardy), and Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy), are two of the conjured people. It’s unclear why, exactly: in There is no way homeDoctor Strange informs Peter Parker, “The only characters that broke into their universe were those who knew Peter Parker was Spider-Man.” Some universe. That’s fine and dandy, except we have no reason to believe based on the Venom movies that Peter Parker exists in Venom’s universe or that, even if he did, Venom would have any idea who he is.

We learn the ending credits scene, but that doesn’t matter. Spider-Man has no way home that before Venom could make his way to Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, he was zapped back to his own universe. I hope Tom Hardy was paid well for the throwaway scene. If the studios decide to merge again, he does not leave behind a Venom symbiote to cause havoc in MCU.

Continue reading: How to Break Down Spider-Man has no way homeEnd Credits Scene

The end credits scenes are still in progress Morbius—which are both very confusing and have little to do with the film itself—reveal that Vulture (Michael Keaton), the villain from the first Tom Holland Spider-Man movie Spider-Man’s Homecoming, was transported to Morbius’ universe when Doctor Strange sent the various Spider-Men and their enemies back to their home universes. This is the only explanation we have. There are no other characters we can think of that were taken to the wrong universe. Here he is. The two meet up with Morbius (Jared Leto), a man who is generally a nice guy. He plots to kill Spider-Man. Morbius accepts the offer, even though he shouldn’t know who Spider-Man really is. This is all chaos.

Continue reading:What’s the Deal? Morbius End-Credits Scenes and What They Mean for Spider-Man’s Future

What’s next?

It’s unclear what Spider-Man’s future holds. Holland is reportedly still debating whether he wants to return to the character, and Sony doesn’t have any new Spider-Man films slated yet. But it is possible SomeActor will portray Some Spider-Man soon to serve the studio’s bottom line. Sony is however working on a Spider-Man film that will be a villain. Kraven the HunterIn development, Bad Bunny has been announced to play El Muerto (a Spidey villain) in a film solo.

It’s a fun fact that Kraven will now be played by Aaron Taylor Johnson, who may also have played Quicksilver on the MCU. This seems to be a theme for Sony’s bad guys: Michael Keaton, of course, played Batman in the 80s and 90s, and Jared Leto played the Joker in that first Suicide Squad movie we’d all rather forget happened.

That’s not particularly pertinent to the plot of these films. But maybe some day when one corporation eats up all the other corporations, and there’s only one studio left in Hollywood, we’ll get some giant crossover movie where Keaton’s Batman fights Keaton’s Vulture and the Leto Joker pals around with the Leto Morbius.

Multiverse Spider-Verse

Are there any relevant films?

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018),Spider-Man Part I: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Kingpin Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

How did it happen?

The animated film features Miles Morales as a teenager who is attacked by a radioactive Spider. While he briefly trains to be Spider-Man with Peter Parker (Liev Schreiber), Kingpin soon takes over and engulfs Peter. Kingpin, in a bid to see his dead wife and child again, opens up portals to parallel universes, and Miles’ world is flooded by other Spider-people (and animals), including a much older and more depressed version of Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy’s Spider-Woman (Hailee Steinfeld), and a talking pig named Spider-Ham. Together they fight Kingpin to restore the multiverse.

What’s next?

We’re getting at least two more Spider-Verse movies: Across the Spider-Verse Divided into 2 parts They haven’t yet revealed how the characters were able to travel between parallel universes and re-open their multiverse.

It’s unclear whether the Spider-Verse films are part of the larger Sony-Marvel canon—or if they are just animated dimensions in the multiverse. But I hope that’s not the case since that first, Oscar-winning Spider-VerseThe movie was great and shouldn’t be mixed up with the rest of the film. VenomAnd Morbius nonsense.

Does it work?

You’re right. Credit where it’s due: Into the Spider-VerseA large audience was exposed to the idea of a multiverse and it set the stage. Spider-Man has no way home, Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, You Can Have Everything at OnceYou can also find all other multiversal crazyness here.

Continue reading: Spider-Man: In the Spider-verseIt’s full of Spider-People. Here’s Who They Are

Star Trek Multiverse

Are there any relevant films?

Star Trek (2009)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Spock and Nero

How did it happen?

The technical answer is yes, technically speaking, there are several Star Trek iterations, characters have traveled back-and-forth from a “mirror” universe where their doppelgängers behave in strange and inverted ways. (See: Spock’s goatee in the Mirror-verse.) But we’re going to concentrate specifically on the branching timeline created by the J.J. Abrams-directed 2009 Star Trek movie.

As the other Star TrekProperties, this story centers around James Kirk, Spock and Uhura who are played in this iteration by Zachary Quinto and Zoe Saldana. But it’s set in a parallel timeline to the “prime” timeline where the other Star TrekMovies and TV series are both possible.

In 2387 of the original “prime” timeline, a few decades after Star Trek: The Next GenerationA deadly supernova destroys Romulus and threatens to end the galaxy. Red Matter, a substance known as Red Matter, is used by an elderly Spock (Leonard Nimoy). Spock stops a Supernova from happening, but Nero (Eric Bana), a Romulan citizen blames Spock. Nero crashes his and Spock’s ship into a black hole created by the red matter, sending them back to the year 2233.

It appears right in front the U.S.S. Kelvin, where Kirk’s pregnant mother (Jennifer Morrison) and father (Chris Hemsworth) happen to be stationed. Nero attacks the federation ship, and kills Kirk’s father on the very day of Kirk’s birth. The black hole jump creates an alternate timeline that spins in a different direction than the original “prime” timeline. Many of the same characters appear in both timelines. Khan is played by Benedict Cumberbatch on the Kelvin timeline).

What’s next?

Running Star TrekTelevision series like DiscoveryAnd PicardKeep operating in the Prime Timeline. In the meantime, Star Trek 4The Kelvin timeline was in development for many years. It’s currently set for 2023, with Pine returning to star as Captain Kirk.

Continue reading: How Picard The Fits into the Star TrekTimeline

DC Multiverse

Are there any relevant films?

The Flash (2023)

This multiverse was opened by who?

According to reports, the Flash will be the one responsible for breaking down the multiverse in next year’s Flash movie, though the fate of that franchise is up in the air following star Ezra Miller’s recent arrests.

How did it happen?

Warner Bros. has taken a “throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks” approach to the DC Entertainment Universe. It’s often unclear whether its movies exist in a united cinematic universe or not—and whether all that may change at any time. (Learn more about this later.)

At some point, DC executives were maintaining that the DCEU was set across many different “earths.” Earth 1, let’s say, contained Ben Affleck’s Batman, Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Jared Leto’s Joker, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, Ezra Miller’s The Flash,And Jason Momoa’s Aquaman from the Justice League and Suicide Squad movies. Another Batman. Perhaps the Robert Pattinson one. Batman, might live on Earth 2. Another Batman is the little boy from Joker, might live on Earth 3. And Michael Keaton’s Batman from the 80s and 90s might live on yet Other earth. It’s obvious: There are many Batmen.

Continue reading: All the Batman Movies Ranked

It’s unclear what that means for, say, the two Suicide SquadThere were movies with some similar characters and others that omitted them without explanation. It was a sequel. It was a reboot. We don’t know. The DC TV universe is a whole other can of worms: during a crossover event, called the “Crisis of Infinite Earths,” the shows actually destroyed its multiverse and forged ahead with a plan for “Earth Prime” that unites the storylines of shows like Supergirl, ArrowAnd The Flash. (And yes, that’s a different Flash than Miller’s Flash.)

Several scenes in Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman – Dawn of JusticeHis cut of the Justice League Movie envisioned a future when the Flash would travel back in history to inform Batman about Superman’s plans to make evil. Both heroes and villains will be informed. Suicide Squad, Justice League, Aquaman, Wonder WomanAnd Man of SteelTo defeat a dictatorial Clark Kent, all of us must work together. But the studio has not announced plans for any future Snyder-DC movies, so that world is unlikely to see Superman’s evil turn manifest on the big screen.

The planned outcome is in theory possible FlashMovie was to unite the earth with all other earths. The Flash is able to run fast enough that he crosses the borders between parallel universes. Affleck’s Batman and Keaton’s Batman were both supposed to appear in that movie. The film is expected to unite DCEU members and provide the foundation for future crossovers.

But, in 2020, the video of FlashEzra Miller was seen hitting a woman at a bar. This viral video went viral. And in 2022, the actor was arrested twice in Hawaii—for disorderly conduct and harassment the first time, and second-degree assault the second time. Miller also stars in another Warner Bros. film, “The Commodore”. Harry PotterSpinoff Incredible Beasts) The Flash movie is still set for 2023, but given the publicity surrounding Miller’s arrests (and a Discovery-Warner Bros. merger that leaves the entire DCEU hanging in the balance), it’s unclear if and when that movie will premiere. Even if it does drop, it’s difficult to imagine the studio will be inclined to build the future of the franchise around Miller.

What’s next?

It is not clear. Reportedly, following the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger, the studio’s new corporate overlords are considering a total overhaul of the DCEU to align its disparate elements. It is unclear if this means attempting to unify the films or starting over with all new projects.

Recently, the studio approved a sequel. BatmanRobert Pattinson Movies like Aquaman 2And Wonder Woman 3These are not in the Pattinson Batman universe. They’re also being developed.

Does it work?

If Warner Bros. wants to create a coherent universe, then no, it’s not working. Marvel Studios meticulously created backstories for many major characters, before combining them into team-up movies like the Avengers. Warner Bros. didn’t bother taking that time, instead crammed origin stories for characters like The Flash, Cyborg, and even Ben Affleck’s iteration of Batman into the Justice League movie —and it showed.

If Warner Bros. doesn’t particularly care about a coherent story across its projects, then sure, it’s sort of working. Joker and Batman both performed well commercially, even though they had nothing to do with one another and theoretically took place on “different earths.” Nor were either of those movies particularly affected by the failures of the Batman storylines in the Batman v. SupermanFilm as a result.

Still, the DCEU movies don’t tend to perform as well critically or commercially as the more united MCU films. It’s also tiresome to think of three or more different Batmen running around at the same time, so it makes sense that the studio was planning to unite its many plot lines with the Flash movie. The studio might want another method to unify its characters if that movie never makes it to the big screen.

The You Can Have Everything at OnceMultiverse

Are there any relevant films?

All You Need at One Time (2022)

This multiverse was opened by who?

Jobu Tupaki

How did it happen?

Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh), a mother who is dissatisfied with her life choices, learns of an evil presence that threatens to unravel all of reality, and she’s the only who can save the multiverse. She learns to tap into the powers of her other selves—a movie star, a fighter, a rock—by “verse jumping,” which requires doing something bizarre like declaring your love for someone you hate or wearing shoes on the wrong feet. She finally discovers what caused the interdimensional rupture. It turns out that her mother is actually Joy Tupaki’s daughter from another universe. Joy has the ability to cross lives and this power leads her to believe nothing really matters. Jobu Tupaki tried to get her mom to annihilate herself together. Eveyln’s husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan), helps Evelyn and Joy learn that if nothing matters, than at least be nice to other humans, and the family finds newfound meaning in their bond together.

What’s next?

Hopefully, nothing. It’s possible, however. You can have everything at onceThe film has received a lot of praise from critics and was a big hit at the box-office. It wraps up well. There doesn’t seem to be a reason to make a sequel. The directing team should think of something new to do with the movie, rather than making another sequel.

Does it work?

Everything is EverywhereThis is an example of multiversal storytelling that can be emotionally rich. That said, I hope this doesn’t mean we’re plunged into a world of indie multiverses, because I’m already exhausted trying to keep up with the ones created by major studios.

Send an email to Eliana Dockterman at eliana.dockterman@time.com.