Manny Pacquiao's existence in Marvel Cinematic Universe confirmed after 'VisionQuest' namedrop

Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao was mentioned in an episode of the Marvel series "VisionQuest," which affirms his existence in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

The reference came in the series’ third episode, during a conversation between Vision (Paul Bettany) and Tommy Maximoff, also known as Speed (Ruaridh Mollica). 

When Tommy revealed that he was left-handed, Vision turned to his AI companion, E.D.I.T.H. (Emily Hampshire), for help in keeping the conversation going. E.D.I.T.H. brought up Pacquiao’s achievement as an eight-division boxing world champion.

Vision repeated the information, saying, “Manny Pacquiao, eight world titles.” Tommy, however, questioned if Vision was actually interested in boxing or if he is just using technology to make small talk.

“Are you actually into boxing or are you Googling small talk?” Tommy asked.

The conversation followed an incident in which Tommy accidentally injured himself while using his powers on a vending machine. 

When Vision checked on him, Tommy assured him that he would be fine and explained that he was a southpaw, a term commonly used to describe a person or athlete who have a dominant left hand . 

His fighting posture prompted the reference to Pacquiao, who is widely recognized for his southpaw stance.

Although Pacquiao did not appear in the episode, the brief mention was enough to catch the attention of Marvel fans and boxing enthusiasts.

Interestingly, Pacquiao is not the first Filipino figure to be associated with Marvel. Filipino rapper Shanti Dope previously had his song “Amatz” featured on the soundtrack of "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier."

Several Filipino and Filipino-American talents have also appeared in MCU productions. Jacob Batalon plays Ned Leeds in the "Spider-Man" films, while Dave Bautista portrays Drax the Destroyer in "Guardians of the Galaxy." 

The late Mary Rivera played Ned’s grandmother, and Eugene Cordero portrays Casey in Loki, among others.