Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Marvel Studios

  • ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’: How Disney+ Is Changing Marvel’s Storytelling

    ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’: How Disney+ Is Changing Marvel’s Storytelling

    Only two weeks ago, WandaVision kickstarted a new direction for Marvel Studios on Disney+. They are now taking their time to explore those characters that never got a chance to shine on the silver screen. At the same time, it allows these heroes to face the biggest challenges that got sidelined by alien invasions or secret organizations taking over the world. Wanda was making breakfast for dinner while turning an entire city into her physical shape of denial. The tradition continues with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, where we get a closer look at the lives that Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes face in a world post-Captain America.

     

    The Falcon And The Winter Soldier Episode 1 Breakdown & Easter Eggs Explained

     

    We get a good look at Sam’s private and superhero life throughout the episode. Even if he saved the entire galaxy, he can’t afford to keep his family’s business alive. The small glimpses we got during Avengers: Age of Ultron are at the forefront of these stories. Disney+ allows them to spread out their tales. Even if the world’s future is at stake, we still get the time to explore times in these superheroes’ lives that seemed secondary. Even if the show is about the legacy left behind by Steve Rogers, it really is about people trying to find their identity in the world. Are we more than what the people believe us to be?

    Bucky is the perfect example. He spent almost 90 years frozen. Only to see the world as a mindless assassin killing innocent lives. Now, he was brought back from that life but is having a hard time coping. Not only does his story work as a parallel to real-world issues with soldier’s PTSD, but it also gives us a moment to explore his time facing that past. He is going to therapy sessions and even tries his luck with a date. His guilt sadly takes over, but we get a brief window into his life.

     

    Bucky, Sam in Couples Therapy in Falcon and Winter Soldier Trailer | The Mary Sue

     

    In a way, Disney+’s offerings mix-up what we usually expect from Marvel. We do miss the spectacle on the silver screen. Yet, it feels like these somber moments of real-life would only really work through these smaller stories. It makes sense that Ms. Marvel or She-Hulk are going to take an episodic direction, as their private and professional life is what defines them. We get to spend some time as they balance their heroic life with their everyday existence. The franchise can echo what the Spider-Man films have tried to balance in a limited runtime. It’ll be interesting to see how the future episodes continue down this path set-up by the premiere episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

  • Hannibal Buress Leaks His ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Appearance

    Hannibal Buress Leaks His ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Appearance

    It seems Spider-Man: No Way Home will find its way back to Midtown High. The third film in Jon Watts’ Spider-Man trilogy has been rumored to feature everything but the kitchen sink, and one could be forgiven for thinking this wouldn’t leave a lot of room for the story to explore more of Peter Parker’s roots. However, a now-deleted video posted to the Instagram account of Hannibal Buress confirms this won’t actually be the case. The short video gave fans a glimpse of Buress and modern-day superstar Zendaya in full Midtown High attire, shooting hoops in the school’s gymnasium. This is the first undeniable proof we’ve had of Midtown High’s involvement in the film and confirms the rumor we heard some time ago about Buress’s return as Coach Wilson. Luckily, @SpiderMan_MCU_ was quick to grab photos before it as deleted:

    Buress, best known for his work in stand-up and The Eric Andre Show, is one of many comedians who have taken on the role of Midtown High educators in the MCU. He portrayed Coach Wilson, the school’s resident gym teacher, in 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming. Unfortunately for Buress, the world-traveling nature of the sequel excluded him from appearing in Far From Home alongside fellow jokesters Martin Starr and J.B. Smoove. Luckily, it looks like director Watts has found room to bring back the fan-favorite character for another go-around. The addition is a good sign for fans of the franchise who found themselves worried the large scale of No Way Home would detract from the wonderful small-scale tone established back in Homecoming. No matter how many villains, or Spider-Men, show up in the movie, at least we know we’ll see Hannibal Buress and a bunch of ugly gym shorts as well.

    Source: Instagram via Twitter, The Direct

  • Andrew Garfield’s Stunt Double Leaked His Involvement ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Andrew Garfield’s Stunt Double Leaked His Involvement ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Spider-Man: No Way Home has been an odd project to follow. There are so many secrets surrounding the project that it is uncertain what is even true anymore. Charlie Cox will return in the role he made famous in Netflix’s Daredevil series. Even Willem Dafoe was seen on set. There was also that Paramount tweet that seemed to confirm the involvement of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield in the upcoming film. To this day, nothing has ever been confirmed beyond the film’s title. Well, it seems that some more hints have been placed on their involvement, as Twitter user @spideyupdated shared some Instagram posts by Andrew Garfield‘s stunt double William Spencer. In them, we can clearly see him with Tom Holland’s own stunt double, Greg Townley.

    As you can see, he has deleted them by now, but he has been very active in sharing his enthusiasm for being on the set of the Spider-Man threequel. At this point, we are only waiting for a confirmation that past incarnations of Spider-Man will make an appearance. There have been too many hints at their involvement to some capacity. Still, the film won’t release until December. So, we might have to wait a little longer, especially if we face any potential delays. Marvel Studios and Disney still haven’t advertised Black Widow, which is supposed to hit theaters at the beginning of May. We’ll certainly be keeping an eye out if there are any more hints at their involvement in the film.

    Source: Twitter

  • BTS Footage Shows Oscar Isaac Prepping for Marvel Studios ‘Moon Knight’

    BTS Footage Shows Oscar Isaac Prepping for Marvel Studios ‘Moon Knight’

    We’re one series and one episode into Marvel Studios streaming experiment and one thing that feels safe to say is that these series are going to box of chocolates route and that each one is going to be unique and, in some cases, surprising. While The Falcon and The Winter Soldier looks and feels very much like the MCU we know from the big screen, after watching WandaVision we know that Marvel Studios One-Above-All is willing to take some chances and wander into previously uncharted territory. None of Marvel Studios currently announced D+ series scream “uncharted territory” like Moon Knight and today, thanks to an IG post, we have what appears to be our first look at star Oscar Isaac prepping for his role as The Fist of Khonshu.

    At first glance it’s easy to say that this could be Isaac training for any role or even just rolling around in the gym to stay in shape; however, the fact that it was tagged #TheOneYouSeeComing SCREAMS Moon Knight to comic readers, such as those on our Discord server who pointed it out to us. As you can see in the panel below (taken from issue 5 of Warren Ellis‘ 2014 Moon Knight run), the hashtagged saying is a direct quote from one of Marc Spector’s alters, Mr. Knight.

    The quote stems from the longstanding idea that unlike most heroes (including Batman, to whom he is often compared) Spector dons a bright white costume to make sure he’s entirely visible to the criminals who try to hide in the darkness of the night. More important than the quote is the impressive nature of Isaac’s work on the mat. If this is any indication of the type of action we can expect to see when Moon Knight streams next year, we are all in for a very special treat.

  • What The First Episode of ‘The Falcon & The Winter Soldier’ Says About Being A Black Man

    What The First Episode of ‘The Falcon & The Winter Soldier’ Says About Being A Black Man

    My Friday morning routines since the new year have consisted of me waking up before my soon-to-be threenager, sitting up in bed, and watching the latest episode of WandaVision. Marvel delivered literal magic with that show, but attention has now rightfully shifted to what comes next as we barrel through Phase 4. We have the time-hopping adventure starring the 2012 version of the God of Mischief, a Secret Invasion subtly set up by the end of the aforementioned trip through Westview, a Black Widow movie still on the way, and an animated What If…? series that may give us even more information about the MCU’s multiverse all headed our way through the summer. 

    However, as WandaVision dealt with a very self-contained story within Wanda’s reality post-Blip The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is the first time we are really on the ground on this Earth that has now had a few months to adjust to 5 billion people returning and is seemingly back up and running enough to where a Captain America memorial has been unveiled and groups trying to restore the world to a Pre-Blip status quo have been able to mobilize pretty effectively. There are a lot of questions that came out of the first episode, especially when it pertains to an easter egg of Shawn Bradley-like size and whether a non-Accords supporting Sam has his own rogue army personnel working with him considering WandaVision told us the Accords were still in place, but there’s also our main characters dealing with the trauma that accompanies not just them being snapped away and then coming back: no, they’re each also dealing with the subsequent loss of their best friend and the consequences of what it meant to leave behind a past that didn’t suit you anymore. 

    With Bucky, that trauma has manifested itself in the form of a list he keeps to make amends. As a therapist, I can tell you this is not a bad tool to use: I’ve recommended it for kids who feel they have let down their parents, but it eventually morphs into a lesson about how no matter how much we try to make amends the person we really have to make amends with is ourselves. We’ll talk more about that as the series goes on. 

    With Sam, he was handed a symbol that was created by Howard Stark, the father of dearly-departed Tony Stark, and was carried by Steve Rogers. In a lot of ways, Sam Wilson is the amalgamation of Stark and Rogers in the MCU in that he represents their combined strengths (Tony’s ingenuity as evidenced when he is working on Redwing plus Steve’s desire to do what he feels is right even if it’s unpopular as evidenced by his willingness to give up the shield) and none of their weaknesses. Sam emerging from the Blip and not being able to save his family’s business is evident of Stark emerging from the cave and losing his father’s company to Stane in Iron Man, and the way he doesn’t understand how things work financially in this new world mirrors Rogers’s awakening in Times Square in The First Avenger. However, there is one distinguishing characteristic that is very evident in episode one.

    Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 1 review: "The most grounded Marvel series yet" | GamesRadar+

    Sam is a Black man in the MCU in the same way Anthony Mackie is a Black man in the Marvel universe in the aftermath of the death of Chadwick Boseman. Sam was denied a bank loan: as his sister painfully mentions, things have a way of tightening up when it comes to loans for Black folks. The banker tries to shush that away and highlights Sam’s heroics, but those heroics don’t allow for the loan to go through. The gentleman from the Smithsonian, upon receiving the shield from Sam, tells Sam he is doing the right thing: in The First Avenger, the Army cannot wait to push Steve’s face and the shield to sell bonds to pay for a world war despite Steve not being allowed on the battlefield. Think about that: Steve never fired a bullet until he found out Bucky was behind enemy lines and was still able to earn a living, but Sam just helped save the entire universe during an alien invasion yet somehow he isn’t qualified to be Captain America!? Rhodey seems to understand what’s happening, as a Black man also set to follow the legacy of a white man battling demons in bottles, and tries to counsel Sam out of giving up the shield but Sam’s decision seems made up. 

    The Falcon And The Winter Soldier Episode 1 Breakdown & Easter Eggs Explained

    After Chadwick Boseman’s death, Anthony Mackie now has the highest-profile role in the MCU for a Black man. Chadwick was the King of Wakanda and was positioned to assume the mantle of leader of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, at least one of them, and now that will inevitably fall to the MCU’s new Captain America. For a guy who has taken so many twists and turns in his career, Mackie’s time in the spotlight syncs up eerily with the timing of Marvel needing a new face of their most successful franchises: as it stands the Avengers and Captain America films, respectively, are Marvel’s most lucrative and critically-acclaimed respectively, and they’re both set to be led by Falcon. Sam’s inability to get a bank loan is something many Black folks are familiar with as much as we are familiar with us grinding and finally getting the opportunity to lead. We’ve also heard folks brought in to lead us talked about in terms like the Smithsonian dude described the man with the most punchable face: the new Captain America. 

    Real American values, he said. 

    Somebody real white, we heard. 

    Nick Spencer, take a bow. 

    Sam Wilson? This IS America.

  • Josh Stamberg Teases a Future for ‘WandaVision’s Tyler Hayward

    Josh Stamberg Teases a Future for ‘WandaVision’s Tyler Hayward

    Falcon and the Winter Soldier has just released its premiere episode and we are still finding out new things about its predecessor, WandaVision. The show kicked off Marvel Studios’ new direction into long-form storytelling and introduced the world to new and familiar faces from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The newest member of the ever-expanding franchise was Josh Stamberg‘s Tyler Hayward. He wasn’t the most liked character throughout the nine-episode run, especially when he started getting weirdly obsessed with killing Wanda. It seems that was part of the plan, as revealed by an actor in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

    What can we do to keep him from just being mustache twirly? And I liked that, at least for an episode and a half, there got to be some quote-unquote charm or some likability before it sort of descends into this guy who’s so hungry to run the universe.

    It’s kind of interesting how he phrases that sentence, but the actor goes on to reveal he would be “a little surprised” if he doesn’t end up returning in a later entry. His story did feel rather open-ended, as we never found out his full motivation. He just seemed to have an obsession with superheroes. In a way, his intentions were good, as Wanda did go too far by controlling an entire town against their will. He got arrested at the end of the season and it feels like they might still have some plans with the character. Hopefully, a future show or even season could offer some much-needed character development that offers an insight into why he was so obsessed at the time. It would be interesting if the “run the universe” line is even a hint at him possibly having a connection to the upcoming Secret Invasions show.

    Source: Entertainment Tonight via The Direct

  • How Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes Will Help Each Other Grow in “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier”

    How Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes Will Help Each Other Grow in “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier”

    We don’t get to see the titular characters of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier interact with each other at any point during the show’s premiere, but the episode definitely lays the groundwork for their respective arcs in the series, as well as how they will intersect.

    As hinted at in the show’s trailers, Sam Wilson’s arc appears to be that of learning to accept the shield as given to him by Steve Rogers and taking his place as Captain America. We already knew from Avengers: Endgame that Sam had difficulty seeing the shield as his own, but as it turns out that feeling runs much deeper than many fans anticipated. The first episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier throws a curveball at the audience pretty early on, as Sam voluntarily turns the shield over to the authorities six months after Steve passed it on to him.

    It’s likely that many factors – such as the pressure to live up to his old friend’s legacy and the added implications behind a Black man carrying the shield – were behind this decision. But beyond the scene at the Smithsonian with Rhodey, we don’t get to hear much about it in this episode. Instead, the remainder of Sam’s screentime after giving up the shield is focused on his personal life. He spends time with his sister Sarah and her two children – the nephews he missed out on seeing grow up during the five years he was Blipped – and his passion for keeping the legacy of his parents alive and not wanting to lose the family business is evident.

    Bucky Barnes, on the other hand, doesn’t have a family, and the closest thing he had to one is now out of the picture. This not only makes him the only (known) Super Soldier on Earth, but also the only person with the experience of growing up nearly a century prior to present day but not having the life experience of the few other living people who also did. Basically, he’s a man with no real place in the world.

    The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Episode 1 Recap: Captain America Is Forever | NDTV Gadgets 360

    Between all of this and the decades of torture he faced from HYDRA during his Winter Soldier days, Bucky is extremely resistant to trust or develop a meaningful relationship with anyone. The closest he gets in this episode is the man he meets for lunch once a week, but even that turns out to be a reminder of his past since, as he discovers towards the end of the premiere, he murdered the man’s son while he was still the Winter Soldier.

    Our two leads are living very separate lives during this first episode. It’s inevitable, though, that they’ll come together sooner rather than later (the series is only six episodes long, after all) and there’s a good chance the announcement of the new Captain America is going to be the event that sets this reunion into motion. There was one brief moment in this episode, though, that likely foreshadows the result of both characters’ arcs.

    When Bucky’s therapist demands to see his phone (something that would probably never happen in real life, by the way) she mentions that Sam has sent him multiple texts that he has not replied to. While the content of these messages is unknown, their existence tells us that Sam is trying to reach out to Bucky and maybe make sure that he’s okay, just like he does with his sister in this episode, and just like he does for Steve and Natasha in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

    The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Episode 1 Review (Spoiler-Free) | Den of Geek

    Despite the prevalent scenes in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’s marketing featuring its two leads claiming they’re not friends, only co-workers, I highly suspect this will change by the end of the series. Bucky has been set up for an arc where he learns that there are people he can trust, and Sam is obviously going to be one of those people. But Bucky learning to trust again isn’t only going to serve his own arc, but Sam’s as well. Steve Rogers was chosen for the experiment that resulted in him becoming the original Captain America because Dr. Erskine deemed him as “not a perfect soldier, but a good man.” This is also a great description for Sam Wilson; he’s not a supersoldier, but he truly cares about people and is willing to go to bat for what he believes is right. Once he realizes that – and possibly succeeds in convincing others of it as well – he will be ready to accept the shield, and all that comes with it.

    I guess the joke about “custody of Bucky” coming along with the Captain America shield just might actually ring true after all.

  • Sam Wilson: The Story So Far

    Sam Wilson: The Story So Far

    As WandaVision has concluded, we quickly transition to this week’s premiere of The Falcon And The Winter Soldier series on Disney+. There’s no time like the present to catch up with the characters that we’ve come to know and love (or even hate). The upcoming series has an extensive cast returning and continuing their stories in the series. Today, we’ll explore the history of the only MCU character who probably gets a neck spasm because he’s always looking to his left, Sam Wilson. It’s time to catch up to the Falcon’s story.

    Sam Wilson’s MCU journey begins right at the outset of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Sam meets Steve Rogers as they’re both going through a jog in Washington, D.C., which leads to the iconic “on your left” line. They become fast friends as Sam empathizes with Steve’s history as a soldier, as Sam himself was a veteran of the United States Air Force Pararescueman. He served tours in overseas military actions, and he was selected to test a prototype military wingsuit with his friend Riley, who tragically perished during combat. Later, as Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff are on the run from Hydra, Sam lends his help along with the suit. He then decides to join Cap on his mission to find his old friend.

     

    Marvel, Treat Sam Wilson as an Important Character and Hero | The Mary Sue

     

    In Avengers Age Of Ultron, Sam returns in a brief cameo as he attends an Avengers party in celebration of retrieving Loki’s scepter from Hydra. They briefly discuss the search of Barnes. It isn’t until the end that he officially joins the superhero team. He does make a brief appearance in Ant-Man, where he fights Scott Long. By the end of the film, we find out through Luis that Sam is looking for Scott.

    We next see him in action alongside the other Avengers, as they are taking down Crossbones. After tragedy strikes and the Sokovia Accords are set into motion, Wilson joins Rogers’s firm stance against them. Once Bucky is suspected of bombing and killing T’Chaka, they track him down as multiple confrontations ensue. Eventually, all three of them get arrested along with the Black Panther, T’Challa. Even after Zemo releases Sam doesn’t trust Bucky but continues showing loyalty to Steve. Sam suggests to Steve that he should recruit Scott Lang to help them out. Wilson takes part in the battle at the Berlin airport. After the fight, he ends up getting arrested. When Tony Stark arrives at the Raft to find out Rogers’s whereabouts, he reluctantly tells him their location.

     

    Marvel Studios Reshoots Are 'Key' Part of Success, Feige Claims

     

    After Steve breaks out his friends, we see them return in Avengers: Infinity War. Wilson is part of the group that rescues Wanda Maximoff and Vision from Thanos’ children. They return to the Avengers base for the first time in two years, where they finally get to reunite with James Rhodes. Next, he ends up in Wakanda, where he takes part in the battle against Thanos’ army. Even as he does his best, Thanos snaps his fingers, and he gets dusted alongside the rest of them. He doesn’t return until Avengers: Endgame. After dropping an iconic line, Falcon joins the rematch with the Mad Titan. He attends Tony’s funeral and is there when Rogers brings the Infinity Stones back to when they got them.

    That isn’t the end of his story so far, as he meets an older version of Steve, who lived out his life with Peggy Carter. With it, he passes on the torch of Captain America to his good friend. We’re left with Sam Wilson holding the shield as his story continues when The Falcon and The Winter Soldier premieres on March 19th on Disney+.

  • REVIEW: ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’ Is a Return to Form For Marvel Studios

    REVIEW: ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’ Is a Return to Form For Marvel Studios

    Heavy is the hand that bears the shield. 

    The Falcon and The Winter Soldier wastes no time in centralizing the idea of legacy and the burden it brings; that Steve Rogers and his shield are impossible to live up to. Within the show’s first minute, we already know the burden Sam Wilson feels by simply holding the physical symbol of Cap’s legacy. Even for Bucky Barnes, it’s an issue of legacy. Compared to Steve’s, Bucky’s legacy on the world is as harrowing as it comes. His sins as the Winter Soldier continually creep up on Bucky in his nightmares and it’s up to him on how he makes up for his legacy. 

    The world hasn’t moved on from the Blip. In fact, the Blip has complicated things in unexpected ways. Instead of fixing the world back to what it was before the Snap, the Blip has only upended the status-quo of the last 5 years of the MCU. Perspectives have changed; an organization called the Flag Smashers wants a pre-Blip status quo for the world. One without borders or governments. Down to the minutiae, laws have changed: Sam Wilson can’t get a loan for his sister because everything went under for 5 years. Fans who’ve been yearning to see the true effects of the snap will be happy to watch this show. 

    This episode has yet to introduce the full ensemble. Zemo and Sharon Carter are nowhere to be found in this episode so it’s mostly relegated to just the titular duo. However, we do get to meet a new sidekick in the form of Joaquin Torres, played by Danny Ramirez. Comic fans will recognize Torres as Sam Wilson’s successor to the Falcon mantle in the comics . Torres, an intelligence officer in the MCU, is Falcon’s man-in-the-chair. Ramirez plays him with a Hardy Boys-charm that a lot of fans will like.

    The episode’s strengths are in these character-heavy moments and it’s up to Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan to bring life into these moments that could be otherwise dull if mishandled poorly but man, do these two bring it. The beauty of these long-form stories is that they allow so much room for depth for each character. In this first episode alone, we see sides of Sam and Bucky that we’ve never seen before. Whether it’s Sam going to Louisiana to reconnect with family or Bucky having lunch with a friend, it’s all character gold. Just like how Wandavision humanized Vision by having him go on social calls with the neighborhood watch, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier brilliantly gives us lovable human moments with these titular characters. Who knew superheroes in their downtime could be so great to watch? 

    I’ve always felt that Stan always had the short end of the string when it came to sharing the screen with Chris Evans and Anthony Mackie at the same time and understandably so. Evans’ presence alone lights up a scene with his stoic gravitas while Mackie oozes charisma and charm. It’s almost inevitable to get upstaged by those two. Stan, for the most part, never got to do much in the shadow of the larger stories of the MCU and the intrinsic likability of his scene partners. 

    So as far as first episode performances go, I think Sebastian Stan gives a more noteworthy performance here. He brings a freshened sense of excitement to the role, despite inhabiting it for a decade now. Stan finally gets to have fun with the character and gives him range. There are inevitable moments of darkness for Bucky but also surprising moments of happiness and Stan deftly shifts between the two. 

    And of course, you have the action. Raving about Marvel Studios’ action feels trite so I’ll keep it to a minimum. Right from the get-go, they serve up an action sequence that’s on par with the helicarrier third act of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. There’s an awe-inspiring cinematic precision as to how they’ve managed to pull this off on television. 

    Henry Jackman’s score here really stood out for me and can only expect to be blown away in upcoming episodes. As a huge fan of what Jackman did for Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War, hearing him revisit some of his motifs from those two films but in a new context is chilling. If he brings back more themes from the last two Cap films, I’ll be beyond happy. 

    Without going much into spoilers, there are parts of this episode that feel clunky. There are premises and beats that don’t feel as polished as the rest of the episode’s high-quality aspects. Some moments have a bit of tonal whiplash wherein the subtext is meant to be serious and somber but the execution makes it seem unintentionally comedic. I have a lot of questions about Bucky’s road to redemption, which in concept is super intriguing, but in execution feels safe at the moment. Granted, there are 5 episodes left that could change these nitpicks of mine but as it currently stands, the episode flaws made it feel like a mixed bag as soon as I finished watching. 

    Overall, this show is gonna be one hell of a ride and the first episode is clearly just a taste of it. In retrospect, WandaVision being the first out of the gate feels very beneficial for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. After all the discussion WandaVision‘s mystery box generated, the outrage it garnered from its twists and turns, and heartwarming emotions that it elicited from fans, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier feels like the ideal follow-up. It’s a safe return to form in many ways but it’s also one that fans might need after all the Mephisto craziness. This is Marvel returning to what it does best: fist-pumping entertainment with a dose of depth. 

  • ‘Black Widow’: Disney CEO Bob Chapek Plays Coy on a Potential Disney+ Release

    ‘Black Widow’: Disney CEO Bob Chapek Plays Coy on a Potential Disney+ Release

    We are already in the second half of March. Black Widow is supposed to release the latest at the beginning of May internationally. There is still no sign of a new poster or trailer that would signify it is still aiming for that release date. It was only a few days ago that some BTS pictures made their way online. It was the first real sign of life from the film that was delayed by an entire year. Disney also stated during their Annual Meeting of Shareholders that they are still sticking to a theatrical release. Well, in a recent interview with Bloomberg Television, Disney’s CEO Bob Chapek seems to have backpedaled a bit on that comment.

    Our situation and our conditions change. Just a few weeks ago, theaters in New York and Los Angeles weren’t even open. Now, all of a sudden they’re open, so we’re waiting to see how prospective theatergoers respond to these reopenings. We’re going to remain flexible. We’ll make the call probably at the last minute in terms of how these films come to market, whether it’s Black Widow or any other title.

    Now, the interesting thing to note is that Chapek seems to be slowly opening up to a possible Disney+ release. He remains strong on his belief in the theatrical window, but also seems to hint at the dynamic market redefining their current approach.

    We think it’s important for building our franchises. At the same time, we don’t think it’s the only way to do it. … We’ll see what happens over the next couple of months. So much is changing, it’s such a dynamic environment. It’s really hard to predict what’s going to happen with consumer behavior in the next month as it comes to re-emergence back into the world of normal. We’ll be watching the call carefully and make the call when we have to.

    It looks like the chances of a Disney+ release are on the tables to some capacity. Disney cannot drag out the film’s release, as it already has been postponed by an entire year. They also have Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings releasing in July followed by Eternals in November. If they truly make a “last-minute” decision, they will have to start advertising it soon to hit that May release date.

    Source: