Could The Illuminati Be Introduced To The Main MCU?
"Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" has made its way to Disney+ and, with it, an "Assembled" documentary detailing the making of the movie. Directed by Sam Raimi, "Multiverse of Madness" is a horror-tinged romp through a handful of alternate realities as Strange attempts to protect America Chavez from a crazed Scarlet Witch. The film introduced many new concepts, such as incursions, dream-walking, and (obviously given the title of the film) multiversal travel.
With alternate realities comes infinite possibilities, and for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, that means cameos. While Benedict Cumberbatch plays multiple versions of himself in the film, viewers also get the introduction of an iconic Marvel Comics group: The Illuminati, albeit from alternate earth 838 as opposed to the main continuity earth 616. While the members differ from the comic Illuminati, we get MCU cast members old and new in exciting roles. The film features the likes of John Krasinski as Mr. Fantastic, Haley Atwell as Captain Carter, and Patrick Stewart as Professor X.
This group's incarnation has significant changes from the comics, but more or less serves the same purpose: to make the difficult decisions no one else can and be incredibly smug while doing it. Unfortunately, every member of the Illuminati (save for Baron Mordo) meets a grisly end at Scarlet Witch's hands because when you're not in the main continuity, all bets are off. "Multiverse of Madness" is the end of the Illuminati's story on this earth, but what about the mainline MCU?
The Illuminati is inevitable
In "Assembled: The Making of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," co-producer Richie Palmer spoke about the group and their potential of being introduced to the main earth 616 of the MCU:
"They're a secret organization that works off the grid. They do the things that the other groups like the Avengers, wouldn't be too happy about. To do it in an alternate universe in the multiverse was a really exciting thing because we get to meet a version of this group in this other universe, and then we still might get to see an Illuminati of our main MCU one day, which is also very exciting."
Kevin Feige and the creatives behind arguably one of the biggest blockbuster franchises of all time didn't get this far by ignoring possibilities. Almost every character and organization in the MCU that's been hinted at came to fruition. Although some may have taken longer than others (I'm looking at you, "Ten Rings"), it feels like a certainty that the Illuminati will become established in the main MCU, especially now that Stephen Strange has had the idea planted in his head. Moreover, "incursions," which are introduced in "Multiverse of Madness," are a crucial part of the massive comic event "Secret Wars," with the Illuminati at the center of it. All the pieces seem to be falling in place for the MCU's next big event and for the Illuminati to be a part of it.