In a press release, Disney announced a slew of changed to their upcoming slate, including moving all of their upcoming Marvel Studios release dates and removing 2 Marvel Studios dates from the schedule.
DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS which was previously dated on 3/25/22 moves to 5/6/22
THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER which was previously dated on 5/6/22 moves to 7/8/22
BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER which was previously dated on 7/8/22 moves to 11/11/22
UNTITLED INDIANA JONES/Indiana Jones 5 which was previously dated on 7/29/22 moves to 6/30/23
UNTITLED DISNEY LIVE ACTION which was previously dated on 7/14/23 is removed from schedule
THE MARVELS which was previously dated on 11/11/22 moves to 2/17/23
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA which was previously dated on 2/17/23 moves to 7/28/23
UNTITLED MARVEL which was previously dated on 7/28/23 is removed from schedule
UNTITLED MARVEL which was previously dated on 10/6/23 is removed from schedule
UNTITLED 20TH CENTURY which was previously dated on 10/20/23 is removed from schedule
UNTITLED MARVEL which was previously dated on 11/10/23 moves to 11/3/23
No further information was given by Disney as to why the films were moved. While production of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was briefly delayed, productions on DoctorStrange in the Multiverse of Madness and Thor: Love and Thunder have wrapped and The Marvels and Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania have, as far as we know proceeded without problems.
The updates mean Marvel Studios will only have 3 films in theaters in 2022. And while they still look to put 4 in theaters in 2023, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania has now been moved to July, meaning it’s release will now be AFTER Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Four films remain on Marvel Studios 2024 slate with flags planted on February 16th, May 3rd, July 26th and November 8th.
In total, one film was removed from the upcoming Marvel Studios slate.
With the changes, the updated release slate looks like this:
November 5, 2021: Eternals December 15, 2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home, in collaboration with Sony May 6, 2022: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness July 8, 2022: Thor: Love and Thunder November 11, 2022: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever February 17, 2023: The Marvels May 5, 2023: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 July 28, 2023: Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania November 3, 2023: Untitled Marvel Studios film February 16, 2024: Untitled Marvel Studios film May 3, 2024: Untitled Marvel Studios film July 26, 2024: Untitled Marvel Studios film November 8, 2024: Untitled Marvel Studios film
Captain America 4 and Blade were expected to be the next two films to enter into production, and Fantastic Four and Deadpool 3 are believed to be high up on the list as well.
We’ll continue to update this story as it develops.
The COVID-19 pandemic not only saw the upheaval of our everyday lives but also big industries like Hollywood. There’s no better example of the change the industry is going through than Scarlett Johansson‘s recent lawsuit against Disney, which she filed in light of Black Widow premiering on Disney+.
While that lawsuit has since been resolved, it wasn’t without impact. A new deal between the Russos and Marvel Studios reported by the Wall Street Journal was allegedly put on hold due to the then-worrying circumstances of the lawsuit. In an interview with Variety, JoeRusso addressed that alleged deal, hinting that the sibling directors may still be in talks with Marvel studios:
It would be inappropriate for us to comment on a deal if we were in the middle of it.
Russo also addressed the lawsuit itself and shared his thoughts on the current state of the film industry.
I’m glad that the lawsuit’s resolved. I do think it was indicative of significant change that’s been happening. The resolution speaks volumes about the respect for artists moving forward in this changing landscape.
Welcome back to Murphy’s Team-Up! Think of this as the Nerds of the SquareTable, where the writers of Murphy’s Multiverse come together every Sunday to answer a burning question that comes out of the news of the week.
This week’s question: Now that Agatha, War Machine and Echo have gotten their own spin-offs, what MCU supporting character would you like to see get their chance to shine next?
Anthony Canton III
I would like to see Hunter B-15 get a spinoff. Wunmi Mosaku is a leading lady in the making and B-15’s story before the events of Loki. If we could see how the TVA took shape through her eyes and visit her memories? It would be the perfect through-line to Ravonna and a, maybe, even more Kang.
DA Osorio
That’s a good choice, Anthony! I am all for getting the chance to revisit the TVA. However, I’m going in a different direction: I’d love to revisit the Kree Empire and see more of Djimon Hounsou and his version of Korath The Pursuer. Korath has ties to the Shi’ar Empire, and was sent to assassinate Lilandra; he has also fought Quasar. Korath has also gone to war with Makkari, an Eternal set to debut next month in that feature film. With Secret Invasion on deck, plus The Marvels, it feels like there is a good opportunity for a variant of Korath to make his presence felt.
Charles Murphy
I’m all in on Jaimie Alexander‘s Sif getting a spinoff show entitled Journey Into Mystery. While we are about to get our 4th Thor movie and the 2nd season of Loki, there are so many tales of Asgard left to tell and so many well-developed characters that we’ve never met. One thing that makes these spinoff shows great is that the main characters get a supporting cast around them and a JIM series could follow Sif around the previously unexplored corners of the Nine Realms and bring a lot of these great characters to life.
Hunter Radisi
Howard the Duck would make for an excellent foray into more adult-centric animation. You can use the character to explore and introduce a lot of the more “out there” Marvel characters and locations without it feeling weird or out of place. We are long overdue for more Howard The Duck.
JJ
I’d love to see Stakar Ogord’s team from Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 get a prequel series. Maybe jumping from the past to the present, showing how the team first came together and bringing back Michael Rooker’s Yondu. I think there’s potential there and another way to get James Gunn back for another stint in the MCU.
Joao
While not being the most obvious choice, following The Collector through his own Disney+ show might prove to be an interesting concept. This could either be a prequel to when we first meet him in Thor: The Dark World or, in case he managed to escape Thanos’ wrath, a sequel to the events of Avengers: Infinity War. We could go deeper into his relationship with his brother Grandmaster though perhaps the most interesting way to go about it is to explore how he managed to acquire all the artifacts and entities he kept in his Museum, from Cosmo to Howard the Duck. In case we’re talking about a sequel we would follow his pursuit to gather them all once again. This would bring Benicio del Toro, one of the best actors of his generation, back into the MCU, and by having the action take place far away from Earth, it wouldn’t be so constrained by all the events that took or are taking place over there. With the outer space setting things could get as crazy as they come.
Mary Maerz
I would like a Korg and Miek buddy cop series or special. It could follow the two caught in the middle of some mysterious threat facing New Asgard while Valkyrie is away on vacation or something, and they could take the lead in trying to solve or handle it.
Nathan Miller
I would love a Ryan Coogler-produced Namor and Atlantis Disney+ series spinning out of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Not only would it be amazing to see another Coogler worldbuilding project flourish in the MCU, with plenty of opportunity for new characters and locations. It would also be a fantastic opportunity for some Indigenous representation both in front of and behind the camera with up-and-coming writers, directors, and crew.
Which characters would you like to see get their a spinoff?
Infinite Ultron. Infinite Black Panther Killmonger. The Watcher. Marvel Studios first canonical animated series, What If…?, brought these incredibly powerful characters into the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse and turned them loose against one another. When it was all said and done, Infinite Ultron-who is now Infinite Zola Vision-and Infinite Black Panther Killmonger find themselves imprisoned in a pocket dimension by Strange Supreme. Given what we this morose version of Stephen Strange survived not only during this episode but also in his own, an argument can be made that Strange Supreme is the most powerful being in the multiverse.
Episode 4 of What If…? was one of the show’s highest points. More than almost any other episode, it refused to adhere to the formula of following the familiarity of the Sacred Timeline and branched out. Resultant of that, fans were treated to a look at just how dark the mystic arts can be…and how dangerous. Strange’s motivations are not intrinsically villainous, but they result in the catastrophic collapse of his reality leaving him the sole survivor in a pocket dimension prison of his own making. Of course, the power it took to create that pocket dimension and contain whatever was left of his reality would have been immense, making him a near omnipotent god-like figure. Given he had already reached a god-like level of Cosmic awareness that allowed him to identify and communicate with The Watcher, this version of Strange was set up to be a pretty heavy hitter.
Strange Supreme returns in Episode 9 and displays those god-tier powers throughout. He creates another pocket dimension in which the Guardians of the Multiverse assemble, casts powerful protection spells on the team, survives a barrage of Infinity Stone-based attacks, summons zombies from another reality, unleashes some terrifying dark magic counter attacks and, finally, contains two beings fighting over the aforementioned Stones in another, smaller pocket dimension which he keeps inside his own dimension. Strange Supreme is essentially a 10-year old boy keeping fireflies in a jar at this point, demonstrating complete control over his own powers and over the ultimate powers in any given multiverse.
Marvel Studios has often been accused of nerfing characters that should, according to the comics, be their most powerful. In recent years, Thor and Hulk have been “powered up” a bit compared to their early appearances and both Captain Marvel and Wanda Maximoff have emerged as contenders for the most powerful being in the MCU after their displays in Avengers: Endgame and WandaVision. This dark version of Doctor Strange would seem worthy of putting up a fight with any of them, including the incredibly powerful Scarlet Witch. Who knows, maybe we’ll see the two of them face off in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Cheadle gave us another update yesterday at ACE Universe Comic Con. Not only did he mention a timing update having recently brought the head writer onboard but he also spoke about his excitement for Rhodey’s next stories:
I think the most exciting part is yet to come. I think we don’t really have a super strong idea who he is really, outside of that bubble of the Avengers, outside of necessarily his friendship with Tony, and now he’s gonna kind of be untethered from all of that. So it’s an opportunity to really kind of discover who he is in a way that we have not had before with concentrated time and focus on Rhodey and Rhodey’s journey and hopefully some stuff about his past and and you know teeing up some things about his potential future. I think those kinds of things were hinted at in an Endgame where where this character might go and the things that may be in the offing for him.
Cheadle also reiterated something he’s said a few times before: it is still early days in the development of the show so despite it being announced almost a year ago now, we shouldn’t really expect to see it anytime soon.
It’s very early in the process of Armor Wars, we just hired my boy Yassir which I’m very excited about. […] A great guy, a lot of great ideas but honestly we’re just really trying to crack the spine of what it’s going to be.
So it seems in talking about Armor Wars teeing up Rhodey’s potential future, it might suggest a future beyond that event itself. As a senior member of the Avengers without some close friends like Tony and Steve around, it remains to be seen whether he will become a mentor to other newer members or simply lead by example. Whatever the case, Armor Wars seems like it will show us the potential first step in a new path for Rhodey.
The last 2 episodes of the first season of What If…?, Marvel Studios first canonical animated series, saw a significant ramping up in terms of action and big, frenetic fight scenes. Episode 8 saw The Watcher go God-mode and take on Ultron in one of the best battles of the series which also saw an iconic comic book aesthetic jump mediums to the MCU: the Kirby Krackle. In an interview with ComicBook.com, What If…? director Bryan Andrews talked about bringing the artistic convention to the series and honoring the man for who it’s named, comic book legend Jack Kirby.
Kirby often used the Krackle, or Kirby Dots, as a representation of Cosmic energy (and in Episode 8 The Watcher was giving off some big energy!). Comic readers might mostly associate the style with Kirby’s work on The Fantastic Four (as seen below) but the unique representation permeated his work and has been used in animated series and films before such as Ben 10 and Into the Spider-Verse. Andrews, who has worked as a story board artist for Marvel Studios for more than a decade, was thrilled to bring the effect to the series.
I just wanted to do it forever. And then I’ve always been bummed that they haven’t done Kirby Krackle on the live action movies, so I was like, ‘We’re doing it here, guys,’ and everyone was like, “Yay!” I think, now that we’ve done it and it looks amazing, I’m hoping that whatever weird thing that the visual effects people have been avoiding it for [is over] — I don’t know why they would. Come on guys. Bring it, bring it! So we’ll see. Maybe it’s a new era of visual effects.
Kirby’s influence has been felt more and more in the past few years of the MCU. Taika Waititi’sThor: Ragnarok designs were very Kirby-esque and in just under one month one of Kirby’s most obscure creations, the Eternals, will be featured in their own film. It’s both wonderful and appropriate to see the Kirby Krackle introduced into the MCU via The Watcher, one of Kirby’s creations and a staple of The World’s Greatest Comics Magazine. Let’s hope the live-action crew take a cue from Andrews and find a way to bring the Krackle to the big screen in Marvel Studios Fantastic Four.
With Season 1 of What If… ? in the rearview mirror, it’s clear that the series certainly proved that it had more up its sleeve and more to offer its own multiverse than it seemed to early on. Marvel Studios’ first animated and anthology series was an unlikely candidate to be the first to truly delve into the newly opened multiverse, but What If… ? was specifically engineered to do just that. The episodes are a mixed bag, both because the series intended for them to be and because some fell short while others exceeded expectations. With that in mind, we rank all 9 episodes of What If… ? below:
9. What If… Captain Carter Were the First Avenger?
At the end of the day, What If… ?’s leading episode is the plainest and least interesting of all. The premise was simply the whole plot of Captain America: The First Avenger, and virtually the only change was Peggy and Steve switching places, more or less. While arguably it was designed well to introduce viewers to the concept of the series, the story itself was bland and a three-minute version probably would have had the same effect overall.
8. What If… Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?
If Killmonger wasn’t such a great character and if Michael B. Jordan wasn’t Michael B. Jordan, this episode would have felt like a complete flop. Even though the premises are substantially altered, the episode somehow strongly embraces the restrictive concept of sticking closely to the Sacred Timeline source. In this case, it is both Iron Man and Black Panther, but it feels like the Captain Carter episode in terms of watching a condensed version of stories we already know. Killmonger’s deception and manipulation felt one-note pretty quickly, and the episode ends in a place that neither feels like a resolution nor a cliffhanger—it just sort of feels like it was cut off in the middle.
7. What If… the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?
Nick Fury’s Big Week is where we first were introduced to the idea of What If… ? routinely killing off major characters in order to make things feel different and add some sort of stakes to the plots that are so easily cast-off as hypotheticals. The theme of this episode is that there is always hope, and there will always be heroes willing to rise to the occasion. Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury gets a much-appreciated spotlight, but otherwise, the story plays out so flat that the death of five Avengers doesn’t come across as upsetting. The elements of a solid murder mystery are present, but it just doesn’t execute in terms of delivering something deeper than a surface-level concept.
6. What If… Thor Were an Only Child?
The Party Thor episode is a great example of an episode that everyone can both completely agree and disagree on. There is no doubt that this episode was fun with its countless easter eggs, seemingly infinite cameos, and silly let’s-have-a-good-time energy. Whether or not that makes for a satisfying episode up for debate. While there’s nothing particularly wrong with the episode, there’s nothing particularly worthwhile either. At the end of the day, it feels more like empty fan service than anything else. To be fair, that’s what a lot of people wanted from the series.
5. What If… T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?
T’Challa’s episode is genuinely delightful on multiple levels. There is a certain warmth that comes from Chadwick Boseman’s leading voice performance, and his own energy and presence matches well with the episode’s point that T’Challa would have made the universe a much better place than it is. This competes with the zombies episode for the funniest episode, but it is undeniably the most comforting heartwarming episode the series put out. Its themes of family and belonging hit the right notes, and something about T’Challa reconnecting with Wakanda just makes this episode feel fulfilling.
4. What If… the Watcher Broke His Oath?
The finale did deliver a sense of resolution to the series and the Ultron arc that began last episode. While it was exciting to see pieces and characters of the multiverse come together in such a direct and desired way, the episode unfortunately felt shallow by completely ignoring the implications the series—and the multiverse as a whole—have on the main MCU timeline. The character team-up is gratifying, and the rag-tag group of multiversal heroes has a solid dynamic. There was a significant amount of humor that keeps the episode on a level apart from the previous episode, What If… Ultron Won?. Ultimately, while it is exciting, fast-paced, and delivered an epic showdown, the victory feels a bit cheap and the overall effect and punch of the episode did not quite meet its predecessor.
3.What If… Zombies?!
This episode was just great. We had a huge array of characters, and most of the ones that are not mindless zombies are characters often not given as much attention. Hudson Thanes’ Peter Parker was center stage and delivered on both humor and emotionality. So much of the episode, by nature, is violent and gruesome—it’s the closest thing the MCU has to horror at this point. Yet amongst the apocalyptic survival, the episode is also hilarious. As a result, it’s probably the most enjoyable to watch. It’s a great example of how the series can succeed by generally ignoring what the movies have done.
2. What If… Ultron Won?
The penultimate episode finally gave us something that made it feel like What If… ? has a point and can provide the type of storytelling that fits within the MCU rather than just having one-off mini-stories over and over again. The concept of the multiverse actually comes into play here for the first time, and the Watcher comes alive. Ultron is portrayed as the most powerful villain of the MCU, and it fits. The Ultron versus Watcher showdown is not only great because of the strength of the two characters, but it is visually and conceptually stunning as they punch their way through the multiverse. It also features some very human moments, but the real triumph of this episode is that we finally have the multiverse as an overarching concept to play with.
1. What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?
The Doctor Strange episode was the first time the series felt like it had something particularly meaningful to offer. While still heavily anchored by the general events of Doctor Strange, it moves past this to intimately explore a dramatic reimagining of a character. The character-driven piece was shrouded by extremely compelling dark themes that are absent from the MCU at large. It was the definition of a tragedy drowning in grief, desperation, and defeat that resonated in the empty void that Doctor Strange left himself in at the end. Combine all of this with a mystical twist that Doctor Strange had been time-split in half, this episode was truly phenomenal.
Early in the week, I got the go ahead to share just a little bit of information about the roles of Kingsley Ben-Adir and Killian Scott in Marvel Studios 2022 streaming series Secret Invasion. Nobody was going to be surprised that Ben-Adir, who was cast as the villain in the series, would be playing a Skrull; however what puts a little more meat on the bone of his role is that he’s playing one that has a shared history with Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos. Speaking of Skrulls, it looks like Scott will be playing one as well, partnering up with Ben-Adir’s character.
Fans Have Much More Marvel Studios Content Coming
Newly promoted Marvel Studios exec Victoria Alonso gave fans something to chew on when she revealed in an interview that the studio has 31 projects currently at some stage of development. Even the hardest of the hardcore have a hard time coming up with all 31 could be, but with 13 films scheduled between 2022 and 2024, a half dozen or so Disney Plus series and some animated shows on the list, we know there’s going to be diversity not only in the type of projects we’ll see, but also in the people creating and starring in them.
Star Wars Fans Won’t Have It So Bad, Either
It’s not quite 31, but it’ll do. Disney Plus has plans to release 10 series set in a galaxy far, far away over the next few years. We know that will start on December 29th with The Book of Boba Fett and we know a few other titles, but it seems Disney Plus still has a few surprises up their sleeve.
ScarJo and Disney Are Friends Again
After taking a $40M settlement from Disney, Scarlett Johansson is ready to make some more movies with the studio after suing them over the hybrid release of Black Widow. Disney and Johansson are expected to continue their collaboration with the upcoming Tower of Terror film.
Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has achieved a pandemic first.
After topping the box office for four weeks, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has crossed $200 million at the domestic box office in its fifth week. The film officially crossed the mark on Thursday night, becoming the first film to achieve the milestone during the pandemic.
Since being in theaters exclusively, Shang-Chi has secured countless box office records, with the most recent being surpassing Black Widow ($183.4 million) as the biggest movie of the year stateside. Black Widow, of course, was released simultaneously in theaters and through Disney+ Premier Access; it would finish its theatrical run at $183.4 million domestically and $379 million worldwide.
As of right now, Shang-Chi is nearing $370 million at the global box office and may finally have some competition this weekend with the release of Venom: Let There be Carnage.
Scarlett Johansson and Disney have settled the Black Widow lawsuit, with both parties stating they’re excited over future collaborations. Details of the settlement have not been made public.
“I am happy to have resolved our differences with Disney,” Johansson said in a statement. “I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve done together over the years and have greatly enjoyed my creative relationship with the team. I look forward to continuing our collaboration in years to come.”
“I’m very pleased that we have been able to come to a mutual agreement with Scarlett Johansson regarding Black Widow,” Disney Studios chairman Alan Bergman said. “We appreciate her contributions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and look forward to working together on a number of upcoming projects, including Disney’s Tower of Terror.”
Johansson filed suit against Disney back in July when the studio failed to work with her over her compensation for Black Widow. While she was paid $20 million for the film, Johansson was also due back ends based on the film’s box office numbers, which were impacted when Disney released the film in theaters and on Disney Plus Premiere Access the same day.
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