10 Characters We Need To See In Kingdom Hearts 4
Assemble the Avengers and prepare to do the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs - Square Enix is officially working on Kingdom Hearts 4. The frankly brilliant brainwave of merging Final Fantasy character with Disney favourites means Kingdom Hearts is a fantasy favourite for the whole family.
Over the years, we've seen everyone from Captain Hook to Cloud, Stitch to Sephiroth, meaning there might not be many left who haven't stopped by for a cameo. Where Kingdom Hearts 4 comes into its own are continued claims that the wide worlds of Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe could join the party.
It all started with a cryptic tease of an AT-ST walker in the Kingdom Hearts 4 trailer, giving players "a new hope" that the crossover to end all crossovers is on the way. Of course, the cosmos of characters from Star Wars are just the tip of the potential for the next chapter, with a multiverse of Marvel favourites also out there, these two juggernauts could join forces. But who we would we like to see joining Sora's fight?
Darth Vader
Click to enlargeStarting off with the big guy himself, it's hard to imagine any form of Star Wars crossover that doesn't feature Darth Vader. Having six movies of a nine-movie saga dedicated to your life is pretty good going, and even after Vader kicks the bucket in Return of the Jedi, his shadow looms large.
Transcending far beyond the Star Wars name, Darth Vader is alongside Joker as the greatest villain of all time. We understand why rights issues have stopped him blasting his way into Kingdom Hearts with the Death Star, but now that things are nearly lining up, the charred Anakin Skywalker is poised to join Square Enix's fantasy favourite.
Rocket And Groot
Click to enlargeStick in your Awesome Mixtape for some chaos courtesy from the Guardians of the Galaxy. The idea of Star Wars will already have us blasting off for the stars, and if this is the case, we could easily cross paths with the Guardians. Star-Lord is a popular choice, but if you want to appease the masses, Rocket and Groot are an easy sell.
Despite the pairing of a raccoon and a tree might sound weirder than when Star Wars introduced a green rabbit called Jaxxon, it works for the madcap adventures of the Guardians. Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel have two of the easiest MCU jobs when providing the vocals to Rocket and Groot, but still, they're a delightful double act we can't wait to see more of.
Babu Frik
Click to enlargeWe'll get onto Grogu in a minute, but let's spare a thought for Babu Frik. No one (we hope) is going to crown Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker as the "best" Star Wars entry. Still, that doesn't mean there weren't some golden moments. Namely, the babbling Babu Frik was an adorable addition from the Jim Henson puppet department.
Babu Frik didn't have much to do in the concluding chapter of the saga - reduced to little more than a side character to C-3PO's lame arc. What little we saw of Babu Frik, he stole the spotlight and proved he's a pint-sized powerhouse worthy of Kingdom Hearts.
Iron Man
Click to enlargeCaptain America might get the honour of being the First Avenger, but come on, he's no Iron Man. Tony Stark is the man behind the mask, while Iron Man has been taking flight since 1963 as one of the co-founding members of the Avengers. Assuming Kingdom Hearts 4 assembles its own team, we can't see how Iron Man won't be there.
Robert Downey Jr. perfectly encapsulated the spirit of the billionaire businessman in 2008's Iron Man, and if it wasn't for this, there's no way the MCU would be what it is today. RDJ is seemingly down and out of the world's highest-grossing franchise, but we can honour the legacy of his performance - and Iron Man in general - with a role in Kingdom Hearts 4.
Chewbacca
Click to enlargeYou'd better start practising your best Wookiee howl because it just wouldn't be Star Wars without this furry fuzzball. Up there with R2-D2 and C-3PO, Chewbacca has become a non-human cornerstone of the galaxy.
Appearing in seven of the Skywalker Saga movies, as well as Solo: A Star Wars Story and Clone Wars, Chewie is one of the franchise's most recognisable faces - even under all that hair. If the Millennium Falcon is destined to fly into Kingdom Hearts 4, it'll need a co-pilot to sit alongside Han Solo.
Scarlet Witch
Click to enlargeIt should be something wicked this way comes in Kingdom Hearts 4, with Ms. Maximoff sure to make her mark on any sort of Marvel crossover. Elizabeth Olsen has been described as the backbone of the MCU, and with a potential villainous turn for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, we're sure it'll soon be gospel.
Comic book Wanda has some major ties to the likes of Magneto and the X-Men, but in the MCU, she's currently steering clear of her mutant roots. Taking Wanda on either the hero or villain path would make her a complex addition to Kingdom Hearts, but as long as we see some of her Scarlet Witch persona, we don't really mind.
Grogu And The Mandalorian
Click to enlargeWe'll admit that Jar Jar Binks had us once thinking we'd never see a good original Star Wars creation again, along came Jon Favreau with The Mandalorian. Proving that Din Djarin isn't just another stoic bounty hunter in the vein of Boba Fett, the Disney+ series expanded the massive Mandalorian lore in the best way possible.
More than just a one-man space western, part of Mando's popularity has been his fatherly relationship with Grogu, aka Baby Yoda. Just on the right side of being cute instead of annoying, Grogu feels like he's been part of the family for decades. On cute factor alone, this dynamic double act HAS to fly into Kingdom Hearts 4. This is the way!
Spider-Man
Click to enlargeGo web, go. It's no secret that Spider-Man was comic book legend Stan Lee's favourite creation. Some 60 years after Spider-Man was first introduced, he's arguably bigger than ever thanks to his various silver screen iterations and continued fan-favourite status of the comics.
Although Tom Holland has brought Peter Parker to a new generation, remember the hype of Spider-Man: No Way Home also bringing back Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Picture the scene where Kingdom Hearts 4 has its Spider-Verse that adds the holy trifecta to the story.
Princess Leia
Click to enlargeIn terms of strong female characters, they don't come much harder than Princess Leia. As the first female lead of the Star Wars movies, the daughter of Darth Vader himself simply has to be part of any crossover. As a no-nonsense woman, Leia could neatly slot in against the other ass-kicking princesses of modern Disney.
More than just helping carry the OG trilogy, the late Carrie Fisher popped up in Disney's sequel trilogy to help round off Leia's story. Forget Padme or Rey, we need Leia to fight the good fight in Kingdom Hearts 4.
Loki
Click to enlargeBringing a little mischief to proceedings, who's to say the trouble of Kingdom Hearts 4 won't be down to this tormented trickster? Even though Loki has always been a favourite of Marvel Comics, it's thanks to Tom Hiddleston he's hit the mainstream.
After his introduction in Thor, Loki has had one of the MCU's most interesting arcs. As well as being the big bad of The Avengers, he's softened, sacrificed himself, and even led his own spin-off series with the aptly named Loki. Just imagine what the God of Mischief could do with a troubled realm like Kingdom Hearts.