Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness introduces a version of Marvel’s Illuminati to the MCU, only to kill the characters off immediately and leave viewers to wonder why. The appearance of the infamous team seemed to be a big deal for the franchise, heavily teased in trailers and highly anticipated by moviegoers. Unfortunately, the Scarlet Witch decimates the lot of them just as quickly as they are revealed. But there’s a logical reason Marvel Studios chose to wipe out the superpowered team in a matter of minutes.
A version of Marvel’s Illuminati is introduced to the MCU in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but the members of the team are killed out right away, leaving fans to wonder the reason behind. Moviegoers eagerly expected the return of the famed squad, which appeared to be a major event for the franchise. Sadly, as soon as they are revealed, the Scarlet Witch annihilates the entire group. However, there is a plausible explanation for why Marvel Studios decided to quickly eliminate the superhuman squad.
Source: Marvel
In fact, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness eventually displays some universe-jumping action, even though the multiverse has been a topic throughout Phase 4 of the MCU. In the movie, Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) escape from Wanda/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and journey to Earth-838, a parallel dimension, where they encounter the Illuminati, a superhero council in charge of that planet. The team includes Professor Charles Xavier, Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Maria Rambeau/Captain Marvel, Peggy Carter/Captain Carter, Anson Mount as Black Bolt, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Karl Mordo, and Lashana Lynch as Captain Marvel (Patrick Stewart). Despite the Illuminati’s apparent might, Wanda swiftly and effortlessly eliminates all but one of them by dream-walking into her variant.
In the MCU, fans have been eager to see Wanda use all of her power, and this specific sequence in the follow-up to Doctor Strange surely delivers. She quickly deals with each member of the Illuminati, demonstrating the strength of her skills, especially while affected by the Darkhold (a.k.a. the Book of the Damned). Wanda’s fall into villainy as a result of the horrific circumstances she encountered in Avengers: Infinity War and WandaVision is just being illustrated by the Illuminati as a plot device.
Source: Marvel
Since the events of Endgame, several superheroes from Earth-616’s heroes have either quit, left the planet, or unfortunately passed away, with the Avengers actually dispersed—at least temporarily. This meant that Wanda/Scarlet Witch’s list of prospective high-profile targets in the Earth-616 universe was severely insufficient. Thanks to the Illuminati’s presence in Earth-838 in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, Scarlet Witch had a chance to display her full power while having small-scale effect on the stories of characters still in development in the main universe. While keeping the possibility for the team to still be established in Earth-616, Wanda was able to wipe out almost every member of the Illuminati in horrifyingly distinctive ways, still leaving certain rooms for future probability of X-Men and Fantastic Four in the MCU.
On the other hand, the Scarlet Witch’s rapid and painless elimination of the Illuminati in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness also served to highlight America Chavez‘s entrance and her extraordinary power, providing her the most impactful MCU debut imaginable. Viewers can anticipate what else she might accomplish as her character develops because she was able to halt the enemy who almost completely destroyed the Illuminati without using all of her power.
Wanda’s slaughter of the Illuminati served to highlight her nearly unstoppable power and incentive in the pursuit of her kids as well as the influence of the Darkhold and the new MCU character America Chavez. With a new Fantastic Four in the near future to come and the team’s brief appearance and swift demise in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, viewers may not have to wait long to see the 616 Illuminati in the MCU.
