Loki and Sylvie came face-to-face with He Who Remains in the Loki finale. However, the man behind the curtain wasn’t who they expected. While they thought they would come across a Thanos-like figure, He Who Remains seemed shockingly… normal.
So, who is He Who Remains? The character is a very important one as the Marvel Cinematic Universe moves ahead in Phase 4. He Who Remains explanation of the TVA also reveals how Kang the Conqueror is going to come into play. Here’s what you need to know about He Who Remains.
1. He Who Remains discovered the multiverse.
When Loki and Sylvie arrived at the Citadel at the End of Time, they come across He Who Remains. He Who Remains explains life before the TVA and how he became its creator. Before the TVA, a “variant of myself lived on Earth in the 31st century,” He Who Remains explains. “He was a scientist and he discovered that there were universes stacked on top of his own. At the same time, other versions of us were learning the same thing. Naturally, we made contact. And for a while, there was peace.”
2. He Who Remains created the TVA.
The other versions of He Who Remains used the “best of their universes to improve the others. However, not every version of me was so… so pure of heart.” Some saw the universes as “new lands to be conquered.” The peace between realities “erupted into all-out war. Each variant fighting to preserve their universe and annihilate the others.”
He Who Remains, the first variant, “encountered a creature created from all the tears in reality, capable of consuming time and space itself.” This creature is Alioth. “I weaponized Alioth, and I ended the multiversal war,” He Who Remains says. “Once I isolated our timeline, all I had to do was manage the flow of time and prevent any further branches.” Thus, the TVA was created.
3. One of He Who Remains’ variants is Kang the Conqueror.
During his explanation of how the TVA came to be, He Who Remains tells Loki and Sylvie that there are several different versions of himself out there: “A ruler, a conqueror, He Who Remains, a jerk.” The inclusion of “conqueror” is a clear nod to Kang the Conqueror. Kang the Conqueror is a character from the Marvel Comics, who will have a major presence moving forward. Kang is a variant who uses “all his resources and technology from the future to rule as many universes as possible while there’s still time,” according to his Marvel profile.
Kang also creates variants of himself as he seeks to conquer everyone and everything. Some of those variants include Immortus, Rama Tut, and Iron Lad. Kang becomes a major foe for The Avengers and Fantastic Four.
4. Sylvie kills He Who Remains.
Sylvie betrays Loki and sends him through the Time Door with He Who Remains’ TemPad. Prior to this, Loki warns her that taking down the TVA isn’t going to be as satisfying as she thinks. Sylvie thinks she knows best and kills He Who Remains. “I’ll see you soon,” He Who Remains says to Sylvie before he dies.
The moment he dies, branches in the Sacred Timeline begin to form. And there’s no one to stop or stabilize them. The multiverse is open again. He Who Remains knows the other versions of himself, especially Kang the Conqueror, will now seek power in this multiverse of madness.
5. He Who Remains is played by Jonathan Majors.
Jonathan Majors was first announced as a new player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in September 2020. His character was never confirmed, but Deadline reported that he was set to play Kang the Conqueror. While Jonathan’s debut in the MCU was Loki, he will have a leading role in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which is set to be released in 2023. Jonathan is expected to bring his Kang the Conqueror into the MCU with Ant-Man 3.