AvengersEndgame weekend has come and gone, leaving all sorts of emotions for fanboys, fangirls, and casual fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to deal with. Besides the sense of closure that comes from ultimately bringing a saga that's a decade in the making to a close, there's inevitably going to be conjecture and speculation regarding the next phase of the cinematic Marvel Universe experience. One of the more popular topics of speculation has to do with who (or what) will be the next big villain to threaten the safety and continuity of the MCU. General details regarding the roll out of Phase 4 remains vague, but it's still fun to speculate on who'll we'll see coming for the crown of top villain now that Thanos has taken the proverbial dirt nap. Here are some potential names that could be making that claim before it's all said and done:

1) Galactus

Yeah, anybody that's got a base understanding of Marvel's comic book landscape should know who the big guy is. He's literally one of the biggest forces in the Marvel comic landscape. He's also played the role of the antagonist in multiple comic storylines, ranging from the Fantastic Four to The Guardians of the Galaxy. He's not necessarily a "villain" in the traditional sense, as he's been shown to exhibit a ton of non-villainous flexibility in both comic and TV depictions of the character. That being said, dude's a problem for the entire Marvel Universe when he doesn't get his grub. That factor alone makes him a perfect candidate to be the next universal antagonist threat the MCU sees. And, of course, it will give the eggheads game-planning the next phase of the MCU the window to introduce one of the more powerful HEROES in Marvel Canon, The Silver Surfer.

2) Kang the Conqueror

Kang has had many names during his run in the Marvel Comic landscape. Immortus, Rama-Tut, Scarlet Centurion, Iron-Lad (Yeah, I know... It ain't Tony Stark related, though), etc. In terms of sheer technology and manipulation of time, Kang definitely approaches the level of Universe-wide threat that would be attractive to MCU writers to include in Phase Four. His inclusion would also be a good way to introduce the new heroes acquired in the Disney merger (Paging Victor Von Doom and the Fantastic Four). It might take some tweaking, but it's something that could definitely be done, given what looks to be a renewed focus of this phase on the greater universe outside of Earth.

3) The Beyonders/The Builders

Both of these antagonists (and their respective storylines) are pretty obscure to all but the most seasoned of Marvel comic stans, but the sheer scope of their effect on the entire Marvel Universe in those stories could be enough to prompt the MCU brain trust to work them in some time during the phase four rollout. Both groups are insanely powerful. Both can literally re-write the reality of the MCU. The Beyonders torched the Celestials for christ sake... ALL of them. Yeah, I think either one of these options would definitely be healthy options to fill that Universal threat that Thanos was.

There are other villains that the MCU has yet to see, given that we're still breaking in characters and stories from the Disney merger. There's bound to be more options coming to bear for audiences to speculate over. the good news is that we really won't have to wait too long to see what Marvel's going to do, as there are bound to be end-credit e\Easter eggs galore in the first film post Endgame, Spiderman: Far From Home.

Until then, may there be excitement and fun in the conspiracy theories out there... LOL