The following contains spoilers for Season 2 of Loki, now streaming on Disney+, and The Marvels, now playing in theaters.
When it comes to heroic deaths in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there have been quite a few. It makes sense as the MCU existed since 2008's Iron Man. These moments add extra layers of gravitas while upping the emotional ante by showing no character is safe from death. Sacrifices such as Tony Stark dying after his Snap in Avengers: Endgame, as well as Black Widow giving up her life for the Soul Stone stand out.
However, as the Multiverse Saga unfolds, it's a new era where both heroes and villains give their lives up in the most selfless of ways. This continues to show that Marvel Studios is charting out not just a universe, but a multiverse where the stakes are extremely high. This helps create a sense of unpredictability that enriches viewers' experience with MCU characters and stories. Below are among the most heartbreaking sacrifices from the Multiverse Saga.
10 Gorr Gave His Up Mission For His Daughter
In Thor: Love and Thunder, Christian Bale's Gorr became the God Butcher, using All-Black the Necrosword to carve a bloody path to Eternity. Once he got to that wishing well, it seemed like he would erase all the gods in the MCU. He was bitter that his daughter died, plus, his faith was broken. This left him angry that deities such as Rapu showed no compassion over the sanctity of life.
However, Gorr ended up being inspired by Thor ducking their fight to spend the last moments with a dying Jane. Dying from wielding his own sword, Gorr decided to change his mission: he revived his child to be raised by Thor. He trusted Jane as she passed, sensing that the Odinson would give his daughter a semblance of family. It's why she's named Love, adding sentiment to Thor's new journey, and a human edge to Gorr's story.
9 MODOK Died a Hero, Kind Of
REPORT: Marvel Studios to Abandon Jonathan Majors' Kang Storyline
A new report suggests that Marvel might be dropping Jonathan Majors' Kang the Conqueror as the main villain of The Multiverse Saga.Darren Cross (aka Yellowjacket) was thought to have been killed by Scott Lang. However, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania confirms he was found by Kang the Conqueror in the Quantum Realm and turned into an enforcer. This giant machine was known as Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing, aka MODOK.
Shockingly, Cassie Lang played on his humanity in the finale; she reminded MODOK he had a hero inside. MODOK flipped sides and worked with Hank Pym's ants in the microverse, but after raiding the citadel and breaking Kang's shield for the ants to cart the villain off, MODOK paid the ultimate price. Darren was mortally wounded, though the death scene was undercut by his thinking Scott loved him like a brother and that he was an Avenger as well.
8 Wenwu Redeemed Himself as a Father
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings focused on Wenwu trying to free the Dweller-in-Darkness, a dragon-like creature at the Dark Gate. The finale had Simu Liu's Shang-Chi battling his father, making it clear that his mother, Ying Li, wasn't behind the gate. The creature tricked Wenwu into thinking he would be resurrecting his wife, when in reality, Wenwu would be unleashing the apocalypse.
This kicked Wenwu into heroic mode, using the Ten Rings to save Shang-Chi from being devoured. Sadly, it allowed the monster to wrap Wenwu up and suck his life essence out. Shang-Chi was mentally healed at this moment, remembering the warmth his entire family once had. Seeing his father lose his soul bolstered Shang-Chi to use the rings' power and stop the Dweller.
7 The Mighty Thor Perished In a Heartbreaking Scene
Love and Thunder had Jane Foster using Mjölnir to become the Mighty Thor when the Odinson was off-planet. However, it was a death sentence as it drained her life even more. Her entire journey became a sacrifice, because she switched from needing the hammer to live to using it to stop Gorr and his shadow monsters.
In the end, Jane didn't even want Thor using Eternity to save her. She just wanted Gorr to remember the power of love again, and for Thor to heal with this new responsibility. In doing so, Jane gave up her life to become this catalyst for a more mature, fatherly Thor.
6 Gilgamesh Gave His Life for Thena
Eternals dealt with the titular team being attacked by Kro and the Deviants on Earth. The villains wanted to make the Celestials (their creators) pay for killing them and many other worlds. Thus, they raided Druig's compound to steal the Eternals' powers and memories.
Sadly, Thena's powers were malfunctioning due to a mental disease known as the Mahd Wy'ry. Gilgamesh tried to save his beloved Thena by fighting with Kro. However, the creature stabbed him and drained his essence, all before flinging his body away. Thena escaped with the others and cremated her partner. In time, she'd use this unforgiving death as fuel to murder Kro and avenge her soulmate.
5 Najma Atoned In a Brutal Manner
In Ms. Marvel, Najma worked with the Clandestines, a faction of Kamala Khan's people who were exiled from the secret dimension known as the Noor. She eventually opened a portal to go back home, but soon learned it would destroy Kamala's world. Realizing Kamala was right and that she had to make amends to save her son Kamran, who was trapped on Earth-616, Najma used her powers to close the rift.
Shockingly, it incinerated her in one of the MCU's most brutal scenes. Her skeleton turned to ash, illustrating to Kamala how dangerous messing with space and time could be. Najma did transfer some of her power to Kamran, hoping he would become a hero. However, Kamran initially tried to garner revenge, knowing the price his mother paid to save a world that always misunderstood them. Kamala would recount the soul-crushing sacrifice to bring him back to the light.
4 Scarlet Witch Took Her Life to Protect the Multiverse
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness had Scarlet Witch trying to harness America Chavez's powers to locate a world where her twins, Billy and Tommy, survived. Corrupted by the Darkhold after WandaVision, Wanda became a killer, murdering Earth-838's Illuminati. However, the Earth-838 version of Wanda taught her a lesson about grief and letting go.
She reminded Evil Wanda it wasn't natural to steal the twins from someone else. Wherever they existed, they'd be loved. As such, Wanda brought down Mount Wundagore on her head upon getting back to Earth-616. She destroyed all Darkholds across the Multiverse, ensuring no villain could use their power for evil. Even though she's thought dead, it remains to be seen how the MCU will bring Wanda back and redeem her, as some reports suggest.
3 Aunt May Died In Horrific Fashion
Spider-Man: No Way Home found Tom Holland's Peter Parker working with Sony's Spider-Men to get variants back to their worlds. Sadly, Norman Osborn became the Green Goblin again, using his glider to attack the Earth-616's Peter. It led to May trying to protect her nephew, only to get impaled.
She bled out and died, reminding Peter about great power and the responsibility affiliated. It was a tragic remix of the many Uncle Ben deaths across several mediums. Peter broke down because he couldn't stand losing the only person he could really call a mother. Thankfully, the other Peters reminded him how Aunt May has always believed in forgiveness, which quelled his rage and helped take away the sting of her sacrifice.
2 Monica Rambeau Stopped Earth From Dying
The Marvels' explosive ending had Monica trying to repair a rift Dar-Benn accidentally opened up when the Kree leader used Kamala's bangles. She asked Kamala and Carol to charge her with quantum energy, enabling her to get to the other side of the portal. Unfortunately, as Monica sealed it, she got lost on the other side. It's quite sympathetic, as Monica had just reestablished her bond with Carol. She also found a little sister in Kamala.
Monica originally died in the Blip and returned to life, only to learn her mother, Maria, died from cancer. It does feel like the MCU doesn't like giving her happy endings. However, when she wakes up in the Fox X-Men universe in The Marvels' post-credits scene, she finds herself reunited with that world's version of her mother. This leads her to have an emotional moment with the X-Men's Maria (who is Binary in this reality) before realizing this woman isn't her mother.
1 Loki Offered His Time Up
Season 2 of Loki ended on a temporal bang when Tom Hiddleston's Loki realized he had to take the reins as the Keeper of Time. He couldn't kill Sylvie to reverse her sins, nor did he want He Who Remains back on the time throne. As such, Loki used his powers, destroyed the Temporal Loom and began stitching the Sacred Timeline back together.
He reactivated all the dead branches and timelines in the Multiverse, literally dragging them to the throne where he became an avatar for the Asgardian World Tree, Yggdrasill. It's bittersweet because he gave up the life he wanted to spend with Sylvie. This completed his redemption, giving Loki glorious purpose in the most tear-jerking manner.
Marvel Cinematic Universe
Created by Marvel Studios, the Marvel Cinematic Universe follows heroes across the galaxy and across realities as they defend the universe from evil.
- First Film
- Iron Man
- Latest Film
- The Marvels
- First TV Show
- WandaVision
- Latest TV Show
- Loki
- Character(s)
- Iron Man , Captain America , The Hulk , Ms. Marvel , Hawkeye , Black Widow , Thor , Loki , Captain Marvel , Falcon , Black Panther , Monica Rambeau , Scarlet Witch