Marvel Just Made Ghost Rider's MCU Debut Way More Likely

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Moon Knight episode 5's afterlife reveal makes it all the more likely that Ghost Rider will make an appearance at some point in the MCU's future.

Warning: Spoilers for Moon Knight episode 5

Moon Knight episode 5’s afterlife reveal makes it all the more likely that the MCU will eventually use Ghost Rider. The Spirit of Vengeance is among the many characters in the supernatural side of the Marvel Universe who could potentially have a place in the MCU’s movies and TV shows. For now though, it remains to be seen if Marvel has any current plans for him.

The Robbie Reyes version of Ghost Rider played a major role in Agents of SHIELD season 4, but the MCU has demonstrated time and time again that though the series was seen as an MCU spinoff, its events aren’t actually canon with the movies and Disney+ shows. In other words, Agents of SHIELD’s Ghost Rider still doesn’t count as an actual MCU character. That creates room for a future movie or TV series (possibly one of Phase 5’s releases) can reintroduce the iconic anti-hero. There’s a chance he could work as the star of his own Ghost Rider show or film. Alternatively, he could play an instrumental role in a team-up story, such as Midnights Sons or Legion of Monsters.

A scenario where Ghost Rider makes an appearance was made a stronger possibility by Moon Knight episode 5’s exploration of the afterlife concept. The confirmation that there are multiple different planes a person’s “untethered consciousness” can enter after dying opens the door for Marvel’s version of Hell to be introduced as a real place. Tawaret’s comments about there being more one than one afterlife has made it clear that there are indeed various forms of heaven and hell in the MCU. One of them could be Hell itself. In the comics, Hell is the domain of the all-powerful Mephisto and the true source of Ghost Rider’s power. Due to a deal made with Mephisto, Johnny Blaze became the host of the Spirit of Vengeance, a demonic entity that resides in Hell.

For Ghost Rider to work in the MCU, the debuts of Mephisto (or someone similar) and Marvel Comics’ Hell would become necessary for whatever project he’s involved in, and it would make a lot of sense for Marvel to set them up a bit early. However, the MCU diving into Hell when it already has other versions of the afterlife might have been complicated if it wasn’t for Moon Knight’s handling of the issue. Now, places like Valhalla, Hel, Hades, and Hell can easily coexist in the same universe without any of these ideas contradicting each other.

Hell hasn’t been explicated confirmed as one of the MCU’s afterlifes yet, but Moon Knight laid the groundwork for Marvel to go down that road whenever the time is right. If Hell really is one of the many planes in the MCU’s universe, it could be directly teased or mentioned in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse Madness, Disney+’s untitled Halloween special, or even the Moon Knight finale.

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Moon Knight releases new episodes on Wednesdays on Disney+.