Marvel outlines the future of their cinematic universe

Marvel head honcho Kevin Feige has taken to the stage at the San Diego Comic-Con to outline the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Feige confirmed an ambitious release schedule taking the franchise through its fourth and fifth phases and even into a sixth, and even confirmed that the second major arc of the MCU will go by over-arching title The Multiverse Saga, just as the first three phases became known as The Infinity Saga.

The next instalment of the franchise launches on 17 August 2022 with the 9-episode Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, which has a lighter tone. It features Jennifer Walters (Orphan Black's Tatiana Maslany), a skilled attorney and the cousin of Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). When Walters is injured in a car crash, Banner has to use his scientific know-how to save her...which inadvertently grants her powers similar to his own. Whilst the media is excited over the emergence of the "She-Hulk", Walters has to balance her new abilities with her career and her own life. Walters' newfound fame sees her assigned to defend Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), the Abomination who tried to kill her cousin in The Incredible Hulk (2008). Benedict Wong also reprises his role as Wong, the new Sorcerer Supreme, and Charlie Cox makes his second appearance in the MCU as Matt Murdock/Daredevil. Jameela Jamil, Ginger Gonzaga, Renee Elise Goldsberry also star.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will mark the end of Phase 4 on 11 November. The plot deals with Wakanda dealing with the passing of King T'Challa, the Black Panther (reflecting the untimely passing of star Chadwick Boseman in August 2020 from cancer) and the question of the succession. Ramonda (Angela Bassett), has taken over as the Queen Mother of Wakanda until the matter is settled. However, Wakanda is threatened by a new conflict with an underwater kingdom led by Namor (Tenoch Huerta) and a group of allies led by Shuri (Letitita Wright) and Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) must help lead Wakanda to safety. Dominique Thorne debuts as genius inventor Ririr Williams/Ironheart. Ryan Coogler directs.

Airing around Christmas this year is The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, a live-action special focusing on the titular Guardians. Inspired by the disastrous Star Wars Holiday Special, the episode features the main castmembers of the Guardians of the Galaxy film series: Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Groot (Vin Diesel), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Nebula (Karen Gillan) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff). The special takes place between Thor: Love and Thunder and Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3, and was filmed alongside and on the same sets as the latter. According to rumour, the plot may involve Groot returning to his mysterious homeworld whilst Quill tries to imbue the Christmas spirit in his baffled ship-mates. James Gunn directs.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania kicks off Phase 5 on 17 February 2023. The third Ant-Man film sees the return of Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Hope Pym/Wasp (Evangeline Lilly). The two team up to  defeat a new multiverse-spanning threat unleashed by Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors). Majors previously portrayed "He Who Remains" in the first season of Loki and notes that Kang is an alternate timeline version of the same character, but has a very different personality. Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer also return as Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne. Bill Murray will also star and the popular Marvel Comics villain MODOK will also appear (the conclusion that Murray will play MODOK does not appear unreasonable). Peyton Reed directs.

The 6-part Disney+ mini-series Secret Invasion arrives in Spring 2023 and sees Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) teaming up with Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) and James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle) to face down a serious threat to Earth emanating from outer space. SHIELD's successor/spaceborn partner organisation SWORD is expected to feature. Kingsley Ben-Adir plays the lead villain, with Olivia Colman, Emilia Clarke, Killian Scott, Christopher McDonald and Carmen Ejogo in undisclosed roles. Dermot Mulroney plays US President Ritson.

Launching on 5 May 2023, Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3 will mark the end of the space franchise, almost nine years after it began. The film's plot appears to revolve around Peter's ongoing attempts to win back Gamora, despite "this" version of Gamora being from another timeline who has no memory of him, whilst the Guardians are hunted down by Adam, a powerful being unleashed by the Sovereign at the end of Volume 2. The team also has to explore Rocket's origins, as he is being tracked by his creator for nefarious purposes. The main antagonists are expected to be Adam Warlock (Will Poulter) and the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). The main Guardians cast returns: Peter Quill/Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Groot (Vin Diesel), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Nebula (Karen Gillan), Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Kraglin (Sean Bugg). Ayesa of the Sovereign (Elizabeth Debicki) and Stakar Ogord (Sylvester Stallone) are also returning. Maria Bakalova will play Cosmo the Spacedog and Daniela Melchior, Nico Santos and Callie Brand will appear in undisclosed roles. James Gunn directs.

Launching in Summer 2023, Echo is a Disney+ series focusing on the character of Maya Lopez/Echo (Alaqua Cox), who debuted in Hawkeye. The plot sees Echo returning to her home town to confront her past and reconnect with her Native American roots. The series will see Zahn McClarnon reprise his role as Maya's father, William Lopez, in flashback scenes. Vincent D'Onofrio will also return as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin, and Charlie Cox will return as Matt Murdock/Daredevil. According to rumours, Daredevil is searching for his former ally Jessica Jones, who has gone missing, and enlists Echo's help. However, there have been no reports of Jessica Jones actress Krysten Ritter joining the project.

Arriving on 28 July 2023, The Marvels sees Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) joining forces with Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) and Monica Rambeau/Spectrum (Teyonah Parris) to tackle a new threat related to the mysterious Nega-Bands. Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury, whilst Saagar Shaikh, Zenobia Shroff and Mohan Kapur reprise their roles as Kamala's family members Aamir, Muneeba and Yusuf respectively, from Ms. Marvel. Zawe Ashton plays a villain and Park Seo-joon has also been cast in an unrevealed role. Nia DaCosta directs.

Returning in summer 2023, Loki is the first Disney+ show to get a second season. The premise sees the Time Variance Authority having been transformed by a shift in the timeline, with the TVA now under the authority of Kang the Conqueror and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) having to navigate this transformed world. Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Ravonna), Eugene Cordero (Casey), Owen Wilson (Mobius) and Sophia Di Martino (Sylvie) also return from Season 1. Rafael Casal also joins the cast. There is no word on if Jonathan Majors will return as Kang.

Staking his way to 3 November 2023, the OG Marvel Studios character makes his debut in the MCU continuity. Mahershala Ali takes over from Wesley Snipes as the daywalking half-vampire vampire-slayer (he has a lot of backstory). According to rumour, Kit Harington will reprise his role as Dane Whitman/Black Knight. Bassam Tariq directs.

Debuting in Autumn 2023, Ironheart is a six-part TV series focusing on the character of Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), a genius inventor who, inspired by Iron Man, creates her own suit of armour. Williams is due to appear first in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Anthony Ramos, Manny Montana and Alden Ehrenreich have been cast in undisclosed roles.

A spin-off from WandaVision, Coven of Chaos is a mini-series focusing on the character of Agatha Harknesss (Kathryn Hahn), a powerful witch who was defeated in battle by the Scarlet Witch. Hahn's breakout performance and musical number attracted significant acclaim for WandaVision. The series is scheduled for winter 2023.

Captain America: New World Order sees Anthony Mackie step up as Sam Wilson, the former Falcon who is the new Captain America. Julius Onah will direct. The film is set for release on 3 May 2024.

Having briefly appeared in Spider-Man: No Way Home, She-Hulk and Echo, Matt Murdock will return prominently in Daredevil: Born Again. This is the most epic Disney+ series to date, with 18 episodes planned for Spring 2024. So far, no word on the plot or if any of the other castmembers from the Netflix Daredevil show will reprise their roles.

Hitting cinemas on 26 July 2024, Thunderbolts will be the last film in Phase 5. The film sees a group of former MCU villains being recruited to undertake a dangerous mission. Jake Schreier directs.

No casting has been announced but potential candidates include Baron Zemo (Daniel Bruhl) from Avengers: Civil War and Falcon & Winter Soldier; Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) from Ant-Man and the Wasp; Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) from Black Widow and Hawkeye; Emil Blonsky/Abomination (Tim Roth) from The Incredible Hulk and She-Hulk; Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) from Doctor Strange; John Walker/US Agent (Wyatt Russell) from Falcon & Winter Soldier and Contessa Valentina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus).

The Fantastic Four join the MCU on 8 November 2024, although at the moment they don't have a director, as Jon Watts had previously signed on but then jumped ship internally to handle the Star Wars: Skeleton Crew series. Rumours have been circulating around Ant-Man director Peyton Reed being considered for the gig. No casting has been announced so far, but John Krasinski played an alternate-reality version of Reed Richards in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (and his real-life wife Emily Blunt is a popular fancasting for Sue Storm). Nothing is known about the film except it will launch Phase 6 of the MCU.

The Avengers return with a new duology, emulating the Infinity War/Endgame two-punch of 2018-19. The Kang Dynasty presumably sees Kang setting up a multiverse showdown that will lead into Secret Wars. The various Secret Wars events in the comics have seen a large number of MCU heroes and villains abducted to another planet or dimension where they are forced to do battle for various purposes. What is interesting is that these films are either falling very early in Phase 6, or Phase 6 will be the shortest phase of the entire MCU to date, suggesting they may mark more the start of a major story than necessarily its end. No directors have been attached so far and it's unclear which Avengers will be present, although it could see a mix of the remaining Avengers from the first four films (Thor, Hawkeye, Hulk, War Machine, Captain America, Winter Soldier, Ant-Man, Captain Marvel, maybe Spider-Man) and a new generation of Avengers ready to take up the mantle (Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, Kate Bishop, Yelena Belova, Ironheart, Blade, Echo, the Fantastic Four).

What is also interesting is what is not mentioned: no mention at all of second seasons for Hawkeye, Moon Knight or Ms. Marvel, and the previously-mooted sequels for Eternals, Shang-Chi and Thor: Love & Thunder are also not mentioned. The status of Spider-Man is also in flux, despite No Way Home suggesting further adventures for the character. The X-Men, who were widely expected to debut in the MCU in an upcoming phase, are also still MIA, although there is speculation that they will cross over into the MCU during the events of Secret Wars. Also left unmentioned is Deadpool 3, although it's already in pre-production.

The release schedule moving forwards now looks like this:

Phase 4

• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law - Season 1 (17 August 2022, Disney+)
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (11 November 2022, cinemas)

Phase 5

• The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (December 2022, Disney+)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (17 February 2023, cinemas)
• Secret Invasion (Spring 2023, Disney+)
• Guardians of the Galaxy - Volume 3 (5 May 2023, cinemas)
• Echo - Season 1 (Summer 2023, Disney+)
• The Marvels (28 July 2023, cinemas)
• Loki - Season 2 (Summer 2023, Disney+)
• Blade (3 November 2023, cinemas)
• Ironheart - Season 1 (Autumn 2023, Disney+)
• Agatha - Coven of Chaos (Winter 2023, Disney+)
• Captain America - New World Order (3 May 2024, cinemas)
• Daredevil - Born Again - Season 1 (Spring 2024, Disney+)
• Thunderbolts (26 July 2024, cinemas)

Phase 6

• Fantastic Four (8 November 2024, cinemas)
• Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2 May 2025, cinemas)
• Avengers: Secret Wars (7 November 2025, cinemas)

Feige did leave a lot of blank space on the Phase Six roster, with additional projects slated for autumn 2024 (two of them), winter 2024 (two), spring 2025 (two) and summer 2025 (two). That's eight untitled projects which have launch windows but no titles yet.

More information may also be revealed at the D23 Disney convention next month.

Disney and Marvel announce a slew of new projects

Disney has announced a large number of new projects set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as unveiling trailers for projects that have wrapped filming. Unusually, most of the focus this time is on television rather than film.

In fact, the MCU movie division merely re-confirmed a project that had already long been known to be in development: Fantastic Four is now officially in the works with Spider-Man director Jon Watts attached to direct, and will move onto that project after wrapping the multiverse-spanning Spider-Man 3, which is due to hit cinemas in December 2021. That puts Fantastic Four (or Fantastic 4 if we can believe the logo) off to 2023 or 2024. They also confirmed the full title for Ant-Man 3, which is now Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and reiterated that Chadwick Boseman will not be replaced as T'Challa for Black Panther II, which is now expected to focus on other characters in Wakanda.

For television, they confirmed release dates for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki, as well as confirming Orphan Black's Tatiana Maslany in the title-role for She-Hulk (and the return of Tim Roth as Abomination from The Incredible Hulk), and formally confirmed Moon Knight's existence (although not Oscar Isaac's participation, as negotiations are reportedly still ongoing). They did confirm a number of new shows, however.

Secret Invasion, aka Nick Fury: The Series will see former SHIELD director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) teaming up with Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) (both returning from Captain Marvel) to combat a Skrull invasion of Earth.

Ironheart will follow the adventures of a young inventor, Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), who creates an advanced suit of armour and inadvertently finds herself acclaimed the successor to Iron Man, and the mixed feelings that result from that pressure.

Armor Wars will possibly develop story threads from Ironheart, with some similar tech falling into the wrong hands and James "War Machine" Rhodes (Don Cheadle) stepping up to help save the day.

The Guardians of the Galaxy will be getting a lot of screen time. In addition to the third film, currently due in 2023, James Gunn will write and direct The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, due for Christmas 2022, and a series of shorts called I Am Groot, presumably focusing on that character.

The current Marvel release slate for both cinema and Disney+ is as follows:

Film

• Black Widow (7 May 2021)
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (9 July 2021)
• Eternals (5 November 2021)
• Spider-Man 3 (title tbc, 17 December 2021)
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (25 March 2022)
• Thor: Love and Thunder (6 May 2022)
• Black Panther II (8 July 2022)
• Captain Marvel 2 (11 November 2022)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (tbc)
• Blade (tbc)
• Fantastic 4 (tbc)

Television

• WandaVision (6 episodes, 15 January 2021)
• The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (6 episodes, 19 March 2021)
• Loki (6 episodes, May 2021)
• What If...? (10 episodes, mid-2021)
• Ms. Marvel (late 2021)
• Hawkeye (late 2021)
• She-Hulk (2022)
• Moon Knight (6 episodes, 2022)
• Secret Invasion (tbc)
• Ironheart (tbc)
• Armor Wars (tbc)
• I Am Groot (tbc)
• The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (Christmas 2022)

The Future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Back in 2014, head of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige laid down his vision for the next five years of Marvel movies. As of the release of Avengers: Endgame, that vision is now complete. Some projects fell by the wayside - an Inhumans movie was dropped and was changed into a TV series (which flopped, badly) - and others have stepped up, with the addition of the Spider-Man character resulting in several new solo movies for him added to the roster.

Spider-Man and Black Panther are expected to be key characters in Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Feige is expected to unveil a master plan for the next generation of Marvel movies - "Phase 4" - at the San Diego Comic-Con in July. It sounds like the plan is for a series of new movies that will take us up to the end of 2023, and will lean heavily on the newer generations of Marvel heroes such as Black Panther and Captain Marvel. However, this Phase will also feature a twist, as it will also incorporate a number of TV mini-series for the new Disney streaming platform, Disney+. These short series (estimated at 6-10 episodes apiece) will expand on some characters and will also introduce new characters, possibly setting them up to appear in new movies further down the road. Unlike previous Marvel TV shows (such as the Netflix series, Agents of SHIELD and The Inhumans), whose canonical status with regards to the movies is debatable, these Disney+ series are being made by Marvel Studios under Feige's direct supervision, and will be definitively be canon with regards to the films.

The roster of upcoming TV shows and films is as follows.

Please note that this article will contain spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.


Movies

Spider-Man: Far from Home
Directed by Jon Watts
Filming Dates: July-October 2018
Release Date: 2 July 2019

Already in the can, this is a sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and will pick up with the character of Spider-Man/Peter Parker shortly after the events of Endgame. The film will see Spider-Man being recruited by Nick Fury to look into a series of strange events during a school trip to Europe. Marvel originally hoped to release this film much later, so marketing would not interfere with promotions for Endgame, but Sony's contract with Marvel requited them to start marketing the movie earlier.


Black Widow
Directed by Cate Shortland
Filming Dates: "soon"
Release Date: late 2020?

A solo Black Widow movie has been under discussion since Scarlett Johansson debuted in the role in Iron Man 2 (2010). Shortland signed on to direct in July 2018 and reportedly the film is due to start shooting "soon." The events of Endgame leave the focus and story of the film a mystery, but reportedly the film is a prequel which will explain some of Natasha's backstory. As far as is known, Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) is not expected to appear, which is unusual as their shared backstory is an obvious place for a film to pick up.


The Eternals
Directed by Chloé Zhao
Filming Dates: August-Late 2018
Release Date: late 2020/early 2021?

Chloé Zhao signed on to direct a movie based on Jack Kirby's immortal heroes in September 2018, and production is due to start in August. Angelina Jolie is playing Sersi whilst Kumail Nanjiani is also in talks to star.


Black Panther 2
Directed by Ryan Coogler
Filming Dates: unknown
Release Date: 2021?

Ryan Coogler has agreed to return to direct and write a sequel to his 2018 mega-hit. The entire (surviving) main cast is expected to return.


Doctor Strange 2
Directed by Scott Derrickson
Release Date: 2021?

Scott Derrickson has agreed to return to direct and co-write a sequel to the 2017 original. The original main cast is expected to return. Apparently the film will be "weirder" than the first one.


Spider-Man 3
Release Date: 2021?

Sony's contract with Marvel is believed to require a sequel to Spider-Man: Far From Home to be released two years after that movie, if Far From Home is financially successful. The cast's contracts are believed to include three-film options, but it's unclear if Jon Watts would return for a third movie.


Shang-Chi
Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton
Release Date: 2022?

Scriptwriter David Callaham and director Destin Daniel Cretton signed on in early 2019 to bring Marvel's crimefighting kung fu star (well, one of them, along with Iron Fist) to the big screen.


Captain Marvel 2
Release Date: 2022?

Not formally greenlit yet, although Captain Marvel's $1.1 billion take-home makes that a formality at this point. According to Kevin Feige, the sequel may actually be an "interquel", bridging Captain Marvel to Avengers: Endgame and exploring what Carol was up to in space during that time.


The Avengers 5
Release Date: 2022?

After Infinity War and Endgame blew up the box office between them, a further Avengers movie is of course a no-brainer. The film would likely see at least Falcon, Winter Soldier, War Machine, Scarlet Witch, Black Panther and Captain Marvel reunite to face off against some kind of threat, potentially to be joined by Thor, the "new" Hawkeye and She-Hulk (see the TV section). Alternatively the film could also act as a last hurrah for the old Hawkeye and Hulk (and Thor, depending on the timeline, see below) before their retirement.


Ant-Man 3
Directed by Peyton Reed
Release Date: unknown

Proposed but not yet formally greenlit. Director Peyton Reed has been discussing the project with Marvel, and actor Michael Douglas is reportedly keen to return as Hank Pym. It's also believed that most of the cast from the first two movies would return.


Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Directed by James Gunn
Release Date: unknown

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was greenlit shortly after the success of Vol. 2 in 2017. However, director James Gunn was fired from the project in July 2018 after controversial tweets he'd made many years earlier resurfaced. Gunn signed on to direct The Suicide Squad for DC instead. After discussions with the cast, who were extremely unhappy with Gunn's firing, Disney reinstated him in March 2019. This now means that Gunn can't start production on Vol. 3 until work on The Suicide Squad is completed before its release in August 2021. This puts Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 potentially off until late 2022 at the earliest, and possibly later.


Thor 4
Release Date: unknown

Based on Chris Hemsworth's statements, it was expected that he would be retiring from the role following Endgame. However, both Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and the Infinity War two-parter revitalised his interest in the character and he has since committed to returning. The timeline for Thor 4 is heavily dependent on the availability of Ragnarok director Taika Waititi, who has been in talks to shoot the live-action version of Akira but still hasn't fully committed, and also on the scheduling for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, as Thor is believed to play a role in that movie. Some have suggested that if Waititi passes on Akira, Thor 4 could shoot much sooner and work as an interim Guardians side-movie until the Gunn-directed Guardians 3 hits production, but this is unconfirmed.


The Thunderbolts
Release Date: unknown

Not greenlit, but apparently discussed, is a movie teaming up the Marvel supervillains who have survived this far. Apparently the roster could consist of Zemo (Captain America: Civil War), Vulture (Spider-Man: Homecoming), Abomination (The Incredible Hulk) and Ghost (Ant-Man and the Wasp), along potentially with new characters. This is a very speculative project until a director and writer can be found with passion for the project.

Disney+ Shows

Falcon & Winter Soldier
Release Date: 2020

Greenlit and already in pre-production, with shooting due to start soon. Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan reprise their roles from the movies. The actors and Marvel had apparently discussed a range of options for the series, including a "buddy cop" dynamic similar to 1980s movies like 48 Hours. However, reportedly the tone for the series is going to be a ground-level thriller similar to The Winter Soldier, with a focus on stealth and espionage.


WandaVision
Release Date: 2020-21

Greenlit and in the writing stage. Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany will reprise their roles as Scarlet Witch and Vision from the films. The series will apparently be an interquel, exploring how the characters' relationship evolved between Civil War to Infinity War. Some reports have suggested that there may be scenes set in the 1950s, hinting possibly at hallucinations or even outright time travel.


Loki
Release Date: 2020-21

Greenlit and in the writing stage. Tom Hiddleson will reprise his role from the films as Loki. The TV series will be anthology-like, with major events from Earth's history over the last thousand years being revealed to have been orchestrated by Loki for his own amusement.


Hawkeye
Release Date: unknown

Not formally greenlit, but negotiations are at an advanced stage for a limited series starring Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye. The series would see Barton meeting and training up Kate Bishop, a skilled archer who (in the comics) becomes a later incarnation of Hawkeye.


Hulk/She-Hulk
Release Date: unknown

Not formally greenlit, but negotiations are at an early stage for a limited series that would see Mark Ruffalo return as Bruce Banner/Hulk. The series would see Banner meeting his cousin Jennifer Walters, who in the comics is destined to become She-Hulk. The film would act as a passing-the-baton story, allowing She-Hulk to potentially appear in later Avengers movies.


Power Pack
Release Date: unknown

Not formally greenlit and apparently talks are only in the very earliest stages, but there has been some discussion about adapting Power Pack as an ongoing, multi-season TV show. Power Pack is a more children's oriented Marvel Comic series about four children who gain superpowers from a dying alien trying to protect their father, who has perfected a limitless source of energy. Other aliens arrive trying to seize the device, resulting in a running, desperate battle. This is a better fit for television than for film. Intriguingly, Power Pack crosses over a lot with Fantastic Four (Reed Richards' son Franklin becomes a recurring member later on), which means that Marvel might get to use its new rights to that franchise sooner than expected.


Ms. Marvel
Release Date: unknown

Marvel and Disney+ are exploring using the streaming service to set up the character of Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel. However, this may depend on the direction of Captain Marvel 2, where it has been suggested that Ms. Marvel could be introduced instead.

The X-Verse

At the current time, there are no plans to incorporate characters from Fox's "X-Verse" (plus the Fantastic Four franchise) into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following Disney's acquisition of Fox. As of now, the Fox X-Verse is expected to come to an end with the release of X-Men: Dark Phoenix in June and New Mutants in August. Films under discussion or in the planning stages, including Deadpool 3, X-Force, Gambit and a sequel to X-Men: Apocalypse have been cancelled.

According to Kevin Feige, the planning for Phase 4 was already at an advanced stage when the deal was confirmed, putting off the introduction of those characters until the advent of Phase 5 in 2023 or 2024 at the earliest. However, some fans have speculated that whilst dumping the entire X-Verse roster of characters into the MCU in Phase 4 might be untenable, it might be possible to use individual characters and villains, with Galactus cited as a worthy opponent for the possible next Avengers film or films.

Thank you for reading The Wertzone. To help me provide better content, please consider contributing to my Patreon page and other funding methods, which will also get you exclusive content weeks before it goes live on my blogs. SF&F Questions are debuting on my Patreon feed and you can read them there before being published on the Wertzone.

The Great Marvel Rewatch: Guardians of the Galaxy

In 1988, young Peter Quill is abducted by aliens and carried off into deep space to be raised as a mercenary. Twenty-six years later, Quill steals a valuable orb coveted by both the renegade Kree warlord Ronan and Quill's own former boss (and abductor) Yondu. The orb rapidly draws the attention of many factions and Quill is reluctantly forced to ally with Gamora (a former ally of Ronan's), Rocket (a genetically-engineered raccoon-like creature), Groot (an ambulatory tree) and Drax (an overly literal, vengeance-fuelled warrior) in order to recover the orb and save the galaxy.

On release, Guardians of the Galaxy was arguably Marvel's biggest gamble in the establishment of its own cinematic universe. Whilst previous movies focused on fairly well-known characters or groups who were at least passingly familiar to a general audience, the Guardians source material was relatively obscure. Guardians was a testbed of how far into its decades of source material Marvel could really reach before losing its audience. Its immense success meant that Marvel could be more confident about going forwards and bringing in more obscure characters from the comics and the audience would stay with them. In that sense, Guardians of the Galaxy is the most important film in the series, paving the way for Doctor Strange, Black Panther and Captain Marvel (not to mention, even further down the line, The Eternals).

Guardians is a fun but flawed movie. It's comfortably superior to any of the Iron Man or Thor flicks, but the (relatively) grounded realism of Captain America: The Winter Soldier worked much better. Guardians's pacing also suffers a little as it struggles to provide backstory and motivation for multiple heroes and villains as well as a cohesive storyline. In fact, the storyline suffers somewhat from fairly risible "the team learning the art of friendship" scenes fitted in amongst discussions of magical maguffins and action beats of varying competence. But the movie overcomes this with zippy pacing and a bright and breezy atmosphere which lifts the whole film and makes it much more rewatchable. The production value is also excellent, especially the 1970s spaceship designs which feel like a melding of Marvel Comics of that era with SF illustrators like Chris Foss and Peter Elson.

What also holds the picture together and makes it work is the offbeat script and direction from James Gunn, the excellent 1980s soundtrack and a formidable cast. Chris Pratt brings the requisite levels of arrogance and overconfidence to Quill, whilst Zoe Saldana is excellent as Gamora. The real revelations come from former wrestler Dave Bautista as Drax (who channels a surprising degree of pathos into his performance) and Karen Gillan as Nebula, who leaves her Doctor Who role of Amy Pond far behind in a vicious and at terms unnerving role. Lee Pace as Ronan is less successful, his camp villainy feeling redundant. A bigger disappointment is that the movie deploys actors and comedians of the calibre of Peter Serafinowicz, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, Djimon Hounsou and Benicio del Toro and does very little with them. It is good to see Michael Rooker building on his Walking Dead success with a more meaty role as Yondu. His smile of delight when he realises he has been betrayed, thus justifying vengeance later on, is one of the film's more enjoyable, quiet moments.

The film is witty, with some great one-liners and narrative zingers flying around, and the actors are certainly up to the challenge. However, the film does struggle with its CGI. After several movies - most notably The Winter Soldier - where Marvel seemed to be dialling back the use of sensory overload CGI (where stuff happens so fast and blurred that you don't know what's going on), it returns with a vengeance in Guardians of the Galaxy. Some dogfights and battle sequences are almost impossible to follow and intercut so rapidly it makes it hard to appreciate the strong production design. Rewatching does improve this issue, however.

Another area where the film succeeds is in how it is bringing together the different narrative strands established in earlier films. The backstory of the Tesseract (Captain America: The First Avenger, The Avengers) and the Aether (Thor: The Dark World) is explored and we find out more about Thanos, the big bad behind the events of The Avengers. The Collector also returns from Thor: The Dark World. There's a growing sense of a masterplan which will extend through several more movies to come. Gunn even trolls the fans with a post-credit sequence that is nowhere as revelatory and momentous as previous ones, instead going for laughs.

Guardians of the Galaxy (****½) is loud, brash and almost ridiculously goofy, but it's also fun, funny and gains some surprising dramatic weight from its inclusion of larger Marvel Universe elements such as the Infinity Stones (which here get their origins explained). Some good laughs, an excellent cast and some much-needed tying together of the wider Marvel universe storyline overcome some confusing CGI and so-so villains to deliver a solid, undemanding blockbuster.

Note: my original review of the movie from 2014 can be found here.

Director James Gunn fired from GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3

In an unexpected move, Disney has fired James Gunn, the director of the first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies, over seven-year-old tweets.

Apologising for the remarks on Twitter, Gunn claimed he made the "provocative" tweets when he was interested in edgy and dark humour and no longer ascribes to such jokes.

The move has complicated the Disney schedule, as Gunn was beginning pre-production on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 which was expected to be released in 2020. Disney will be looking for a director who can step in at short notice to take on the project. I strongly suspect they are putting some urgent calls in to Taika Waititi right now, whose Thor: Ragnarok aesthetic would make a good fit for the Guardians sub-franchise.

Although Gunn's tweets are clearly unacceptable and inappropriate for the director of a franchise which has a strong appeal to children, it is less clear why Disney have taken action only now, as the tweets have been widely reported on for years, during which time Gunn directed two movies for the company, as well as providing some assistance and advice on other Marvel Cinematic Universe projects.

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2

Some months after their triumph over the renegade Kree warlord Ronan, the Guardians of the Galaxy have been hired by the Sovereign to defend their homeworld from a ravaging interdimensional monster. Unfortunately, Rocket manages to offend the Sovereign, leading to a sequence of improbable events culminating in Peter Quill finally meeting his father. Meanwhile, the Ravager faction led by Yondu has been outcast by their fellows for Yondu's dishonourable actions and he seeks to regain his honour in their eyes...which means tracking down and defeating the Guardians.

Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's more laidback and fun movies. Free of the weighty continuity built up by the Earth-bound movies, it felt fresh and inventive. With a top soundtrack, some excellent humour and some great performances, it emerged as perhaps not the most dramatically satisfying Marvel movie, but certainly the most fun.

The second movie sees returning director James Gunn attempt a tricky balancing act of giving the audience more of the same - comedy, action, space battles, quips - and also doing something new that keeps the freshness of the first movie going. It can't quite stretch to do all of these things well and it stumbles a little more than its forebear, but it's still a brave attempt to do something more interesting than a by-the-numbers sequel.

The movie is certainly funnier. Baby Groot gets some great moments but it's Drax and new character Mantis, by themselves and as an unlikely double-act, who emerge with the best material. Yondu's Ravagers also get a bit more definition and the "tough"-sounding name of one of their number becomes a recurring gag throughout the movie. Chris Pratt employs his considerable comic talents better as well, such as his ongoing attempts to explain the dubious premises of mid-1980s action TV shows to his baffled compatriots.

More importantly, the film explores character better than the first movie. We find out why Peter doesn't just go home to Earth, more of what makes Gamora and Nebula tick, and more of what drives Yondu, who emerges as a more complex figure in this movie than the previous one. The film doesn't break new ground - the idea that the Guardians are a family and that's why they hang out even when they argue is hardly revelatory - but it does offer more food for thought about these people in the calm breaks between explosions.

The film does have a fair few explosions, and if the movie does have a weakness it is the protracted climax. The first movie had a long final battle, but that battle was divided into several strands with the goals, plans and motivations of everyone involved clear. The second movie's climax goes on too long, gets a little silly in places and risks being lost in concussive CGI overload. It's nowhere near as bad as, say, a Michael Bay Transformers film, but it does risk losing the audience's interest. Fortunately the climactic moment of the battle may also be the film's funniest moment, and the movie's actual ending is actually quite decent, if perhaps drawing a bit too deep on sentiment.

Remarkably, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 does roll back a little on the scale from the first film. There's no Thanos, no Infinity Stones (although both rate mentions) and far fewer tie-ins with the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe than the original movie. Instead, Vol. 2 is more interested in setting up the rest of the Marvel Cosmic Universe. The first movie teased it, but the second film opens up on the wider SF stylings of the setting, with more character cameos from obscure 1970s Marvel Comics then you can shake a stick at. One revelatory moment will have old-skool Marvel fans grinning from ear to ear, especially if it leads into the spin-off movie Marvel reportedly are very interested in making, whilst the apparent revelation of the villain for Vol. 3 will have fans nodding in approval.

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 (****) is a worthy successor to the original film. In trying to do more of the same and be different it perhaps bites off a little more than it can chew and the prolonged climax is messier and less interesting than the first movie's, but it wins those points back with more interesting character work, better laughs, yet more quotable dialogue, some great performances and another solid soundtrack (and the well-judged decision to do something different with setting up Vol. 3's). Oh, and it has maybe the most amusing credits Marvel has ever done (I mean the actual credits, not the mandatory during and post-credits sequences, which this movie goes overboard on).

The movie is on general release in the UK now and hits the USA on 5 May.

Guardians of the Galaxy

In 1988, young Peter Quill is abducted by aliens and carried off into deep space to be raised as a mercenary. Twenty-six years later Quill steals a valuable orb coveted by both the renegade Kree warlord Ronan and Quill's own former boss (and abductor) Yondu. The orb rapidly draws the attention of many factions and Quill is reluctantly forced to ally with Gamora (a former ally of Ronan's), Rocket (a genetically-engineered raccoon-like creature), Groot (an ambulatory tree) and Drax (an overly literal, vengeance-fuelled warrior) in order to recover the orb and save the galaxy.

Guardians of the Galaxy is the latest film set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and arguably Marvel's biggest gamble to date. Whilst previous movies focused on fairly well-known characters or groups who were at least passingly familiar to a general audience, the Guardians source material is relatively obscure. Guardians is a test of how far into its decades of source material Marvel can really reach before losing its audience. Its immensely successful opening week suggests that Marvel isn't losing its magic touch any time soon.

Guardians is a fun but flawed movie. It's comfortably superior to any of the Iron Man or Thor flicks, but the (relatively) grounded realism of Captain America: The Winter Soldier worked better and The Avengers was stronger as an ensemble piece, as it was able to use the previous movies for its scene-setting and character development. Guardians's pacing suffers a little as it struggles to provide backstory and motivation as well as a cohesive storyline. In fact, the storyline suffers quite a lot, with some fairly risible "the team learning the art of friendship" scenes fitted in amongst discussions of magical maguffins and action beats of varying competence.

What holds the picture together and makes it work is the offbeat script and direction from James Gunn, the excellent 1980s soundtrack and a formidable cast. Chris Pratt brings the requisite levels of arrogance and overconfidence to Quill, whilst Zoe Saldana is excellent as Gamora. The real revelations come from former wrestler Dave Bautista as Drax (who channels a surprising degree of pathos into his performance) and Karen Gillan as Nebula, who leaves her Doctor Who role of Amy Pond far behind in a vicious and at terms unnerving role. Lee Pace as Ronan is less successful, his camp villainy feeling redundant. A bigger problem is that the movie deploys actors and comedians of the calibre of Peter Serafinowicz, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, Djimon Hounsou and Benicio del Toro and does very little with them. It is good to see Michael Rooker building on his Walking Dead success with a more meaty role as Yondu. His smile of delight when he realises he has been betrayed, thus justifying vengeance later on, is one of the film's more enjoyable, quiet moments.

The film is witty, with some great one-liners and narrative zingers flying around, and the actors are certainly up to the challenge. However, the film does struggle with its CGI. After several movies - most notably The Avengers and The Winter Soldier - where Marvel seemed to be dialling back the use of sensory overload CGI (where stuff happens so fast and blurred that you don't know what's going on), it returns with a vengeance in Guardians of the Galaxy. Some dogfights and battle sequences are almost impossible to follow and intercut so rapidly it makes it hard to appreciate the strong production design.

Another area where the film succeeds is in how it is bringing together the different narrative strands established in earlier films. The backstory of the Tesseract (Captain America: The First Avenger, The Avengers) and the Aether (Thor: The Dark World) is explored and we find out more about Thanos, the big bad behind the events of The Avengers. The Collector also returns from Thor: The Dark World. There's a growing sense of a masterplan which will extend through several more movies to come and will be interesting to see develop. Gunn even trolls the fans with a post-credit sequence that is nowhere as revelatory and momentous as previous ones, instead going for laughs.

Guardians of the Galaxy (****) is loud, brash and almost entirely nonsensical fun. Some good laughs, an excellent cast and some much-needed tying together of the wider Marvel universe storyline overcome some confusing CGI and tiresome villains to deliver a solid, undemanding blockbuster. The film is on general release now.

Marvel releases first GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY trailer

Disney and Marvel have unveiled the first full trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy, their big summer Marvel Cinematic Universe film and the most 'out there' of their films to date.

Set in space, Guardians will chronicle the adventures of five mismatched 'heroes' who get into conflicts with evil forces etc. The movie will be more tangentially connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe than their other films (i.e. don't expect Iron Man to show up halfway through) but will partly set things up for Avengers: Age of Ultron, which will follow in 2015.

I am not acquainted with the Guardians as a superhero team, although I did thoroughly enjoy the Rocket Raccoon solo strip in the 1980s (when it ran as the back-up strip in the Marvel UK Transformers comic), which was enough to make me want to check this out. The trailer is also pretty cool. It's good to see Marvel embracing full SF craziness for once.