Avengers: Doomsday: Why Magneto's Lost State May Not Be in Tobey Maguire's World

Ian McKellen himself revealed that Magneto destroys a state in the lower 48 in Avengers: Doomsday, and I saw that quickly turn into a theory, then an immediate rumor, that he must be destroying Tobey Maguire's universe. On the surface, that doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to me. I think there's a huge chance Magneto was destroying the New Jersey in the 616, and the trailers may have already proved it.

For almost eight years of covering Marvel scoops, I've found the line between rumors and reported news has always been blurred, which is why I try to trace things back to their source so you can decide how much weight to give them. There's another line that's even more blurred, and maybe it shouldn't exist in the first place: the line between rumors and theories. In a lot of cases, they're being generated from the same place. This story is a little of everything. Later in this piece, I'll also explain why I'm not even sure I buy my own theory.

Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man was seemingly set to fight Hugh Jackman's Wolverine

Tobey Maguire was not among the very first round of cast announcements, but that didn't rule him out. Marvel had already shown with the preview trailers that Steve Rogers was returning, and Chris Evans wasn't in those announcements either. To me, that proved we'd be seeing more characters than just that initial cast.

Tobey Maguire had been part of several rumors about the opening scene of Avengers: Doomsday, and around the time I was covering this, it was seemingly revealed that he'd be fighting none other than Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in that opening scene. No other context was offered, but that sort of implies Spider-Man versus X-Men.

In a world of incursions, where characters might have to fight each other to preserve their universe, it could be that one of the first universes the X-Men stave off is Tobey Maguire's. That would explain the fight in the opening scene. Under that theory, whatever happens between Spider-Man and Wolverine, you then have Magneto destroying an entire state to stave off the incursion that would kill their universe.

The X-Men's universe may be another Fox variant

What we'd been saying was that the X-Men were coming from 10,005, but what I was hearing more recently was that it may just be yet another version of the Fox X-Men in a different variant universe. That version wouldn't be beholden to the discontinuity, if you want to call it that, from the Fox X-Men films.

That would let other heroes exist there as well, like we saw during the Monica Rambeau scene. We know that at least Binary is part of that team, and she was nowhere present in any of the original Fox X-Men movies. Maybe it's its own unique timeline.

Why Tobey Maguire's universe doesn't fit New Jersey

Here's the truth: outside of Tobey Maguire and Wolverine fighting in an opening scene, there's no real proof that the X-Men are going to be fighting Tobey Maguire's universe. And this is Peter Parker. The big Spider-Man moments from the Sam Raimi movies, and from his typical history, take place in New York City, Manhattan and Queens, not really New Jersey.

The only New Jersey locations that are really of note in the recent MCU have more to do with Captain America, and that doesn't really make much sense either. What I considered confirmed, more than just rumor, because of what we'd heard from other actors, is that the X-Men will be fighting the Fantastic Four and probably some members of the Avengers. They're definitely going to face off. So rather than it being the New Jersey in Tobey Maguire's universe, we're pretty sure it's the New Jersey in the 616.

The empty ocean beds near Talokan could point to Magneto

In our original breakdown of the preview trailer, we pointed out there's a good chance we're looking at an ocean bed, because of the temple that the Talokan are standing in front of. That's the same temple that should have been underwater the last time we saw it. Instead, it's sitting in an ocean bed with no water.

At the time, we suggested this could be due to the hypergravity of two worlds approaching each other in a collision, something like what was depicted over the people of Wakanda in Jonathan Hickman's 2015 Secret Wars. But it also could be Magneto doing something like he did in X-Men '97.

I sometimes see people getting that scene wrong. Basically, he acted as an enormous global EMP, an electromagnetic pulse, which is what that yellow line is, disabling anything electronic across the whole globe. If he could do something similar, interacting with the globe's electromagnetic field and maybe even doing something with the polarity of the poles, he could 100% generate some sort of global catastrophe that could empty the oceans. That's not to say he will in the 616, but he is an omega level mutant capable of something like that.

I'm not sure I buy my own 616 theory

If I'm being totally honest, I'm not sure I buy into my own theory about this being the 616 universe. I really do feel like these are ocean beds that have been emptied, and I think our original appraisal is probably right about it being a major gravity situation, in the same way the moon affects the tides. You could imagine what a whole other Earth that close to our planet would do to the oceans.

Captain America: Brave New World's post-credit scene might have been spot on

As crazy as it sounds, and as disconnected and thrown together as the post-credit scene for Captain America: Brave New World seemed, it may matter here. The letdown in that scene is basically a microcosm of the film's problems itself: it should have meant more. They should have spent Captain America 4 putting together Sam's Avengers. All in all, though, it wasn't as bad as people said it was.

Still, the post-credit scene might have been spot on. It refers to a group called the others, another superhero group from a different Earth in a different part of the multiverse.

Avengers versus X-Men with the highest stakes could push Magneto

This fight might be important, and different from other times heroes have fought each other in the MCU. Usually, it's a case of we don't know each other yet, so we're enemies, and then we become friends, sometimes over an act, sometimes over a film, or almost immediately, as in Infinity War when the Guardians fight the Avengers and then talk and realize they're on the same side.

In this case, it's going to be the Avengers versus X-Men for literally the existence of their timeline, their Earth and their multiverse, with the stakes as high as possible. That's crazy to think about, and so is what it'll look like to see these teams go all out. That's what could ultimately lead Magneto to destroying New Jersey.

To take this one step further, it's very obvious that the X-Mansion on the X-Men's Earth is being attacked in the trailer. So could we see action between the two worlds, the X-Men's Earth and ours, in close proximity, with the teams battling across both terrains? Honestly, that's mind-blowing. That's the kind of thing I feel industry insiders meant when they said the movie is on a whole other level. Even James Marsden, Cyclops himself, said the movie is going to absolutely blow people away. I cannot wait for this scale and this type of action, and for a film called Avengers: Doomsday, that's exactly what that scenario sounds like.

How do you think Magneto destroys New Jersey: with a flood, or something else?