If you’ve spent any time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe lately, you’ve probably seen Michael Waldron’s name pop up in the credits. He’s basically become the go-to guy for "weird sci-fi that still feels human." But the thing about Michael Waldron movies and tv shows is that they don't actually start with capes or multiversal portals.
They start with a vat of acid. Honestly, if you want to understand why his version of Loki works so well, you have to look back at Rick and Morty.
Waldron didn't just stumble into the MCU. He cut his teeth as a production assistant on Dan Harmon’s Community and eventually moved into the writers' room for Rick and Morty. If you remember the "Vat of Acid Episode"—the one that won an Emmy—that was him. He co-wrote it with Jeff Loveness. It’s a perfect example of his style: a high-concept, ridiculous sci-fi premise that turns into a gut-punch emotional story about consequence.
The Weird Multiversal Rise of Michael Waldron
When Disney+ announced Loki, the stakes were weirdly high. How do you take a villain who has died three times and make people care about him again? Waldron's answer was to stick him in a beige office.
Why Loki Changed Everything
Before Loki, the MCU felt a bit... grounded? Even the space stuff followed a certain logic. Waldron blew the doors off that by introducing the Time Variance Authority (TVA). It was Brazil meets Doctor Who.
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Most writers would have focused on the action. Instead, Waldron focused on the bureaucracy of existence. He treats the multiverse not as a playground for cameos, but as a mid-life crisis for a Norse god. You've got these two versions of the same person—Loki and Sylvie—falling in love, which is both peak narcissism and strangely touching.
Stepping Into the Multiverse of Madness
Then came the big one. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
This project was a bit of a whirlwind. Original director Scott Derrickson left, Sam Raimi stepped in, and Waldron was brought on to rewrite the script from scratch. He’s talked about how he and Raimi basically started over while the clock was ticking.
The result was divisive, but you can’t deny it had a specific flavor. It turned Wanda Maximoff into a full-blown slasher villain. It gave us 838-Universe Reed Richards getting turned into spaghetti. It felt like a Michael Waldron project because it was chaotic, fast-paced, and deeply obsessed with the "what ifs" of life.
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It’s Not All Superheroes: The Starz Era
If you only know him for Marvel, you’re missing the best thing he’s ever written.
Heels.
It’s a drama on Starz (now on Netflix) about indie pro wrestling in a small Georgia town. No magic. No time travel. Just two brothers—played by Stephen Amell and Alexander Ludwig—fighting over their dead father's wrestling promotion.
Honestly, Heels is where Waldron’s voice is the clearest. He grew up a wrestling fan, and it shows. The show is about the "kayfabe" of life—the stories we tell ourselves to get through the day. It got canceled by Starz after two seasons, which felt like a crime at the time, but it recently hit Netflix and started gaining a massive second life. Waldron’s been vocal about wanting a "Suits moment" for the show, hoping the new viewership leads to a Season 3.
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What’s Next for Anomaly Pictures?
Waldron isn't just a writer-for-hire anymore. He’s got his own production company, Anomaly Pictures, which he runs with Adam Fasullo.
- Chad Powers: This is his latest big swing. It’s a Hulu series starring Glen Powell (who is everywhere right now). It's based on an Eli Manning sketch where a disgraced QB goes undercover at a southern walk-on tryout. It just got a Season 2 renewal, and the buzz is that it’s the kind of smart, fast-paced comedy we haven’t seen in a while.
- Avengers: Secret Wars: This is the big one. The "Endgame" of the current era. Waldron was originally set to write Avengers: Doomsday too, but he moved off that to focus purely on Secret Wars. Considering he’s the guy who built the current rules of the MCU multiverse, it makes sense he’s the one tasked with tearing it all down.
- The Star Wars Mystery: For a long time, he was working on a Star Wars movie with Kevin Feige. That project is officially dead/shelved/non-existent depending on which executive you ask, but the scripts reportedly had that same "original, fresh" energy Waldron brings to everything.
The Waldron "Secret Sauce"
What most people get wrong about Michael Waldron movies and tv shows is thinking they are just "geek" properties.
If you look closely, they’re all about control.
- Loki wants control over his destiny.
- Jack Spade in Heels wants control over the narrative of his town.
- Stephen Strange wants to be the one holding the knife.
He writes characters who are fundamentally broken but have enough ego to try and fix the universe instead of fixing themselves.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Writers
If you’re trying to keep up with his work or learn from his trajectory, here’s how to navigate the Waldron-verse:
- Watch Heels on Netflix immediately. If the numbers stay high, we actually get a conclusion to that Season 2 cliffhanger. It’s arguably more "prestige TV" than anything else on his resume.
- Study the "Vat of Acid" structure. If you're a writer, that episode is a masterclass in how to use a sci-fi gimmick to reveal character truth. It’s the blueprint for how he handles the TVA.
- Don't expect "standard" Marvel. His work tends to lean into the weird and the slightly uncomfortable. If a plot point feels "off," look at it through the lens of a character's ego—that’s usually where the answer lies.
- Keep an eye on Chad Powers. With Season 2 in the works, this is Waldron's shift back into pure comedy-drama, and it’s likely to be a major awards contender for Glen Powell.
The "Waldron Era" of Hollywood is basically defined by one question: How do we make the impossible feel like a Tuesday morning at the office? Whether it's a multiversal war or a wrestling match in Duffy, Georgia, he’s proved that the setting doesn't matter as much as the mess inside the characters' heads.