Many might remember that October day back in 2014 when Kevin Feige, head of Marvel Studios, announced nine new films that would round out Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The Marvel Event was a grand spectacle at the El Capitan Theatre that showed how dedicated Disney and Marvel was to the franchise and the story. Since then, many things have changed in the MCU, including movie titles, release dates, and more. However, as we round out the first week of May, which that initial announced lineup ended on, five years later, we are all left to wonder…what comes next? In the wake of Avengers: Endgame, ending a 22-film saga, one can’t help but wonder where our heroes go from here. Can we expect an announcement from Kevin Feige soon? Will it include the next five years? Let’s dive in. LOOKING TO THE PAST Phase One of the MCU saw heroes like Iron Man, the Hulk, Captain America and Thor team up in The Avengers after each having their own solo film. Many fans expected this formula to happen again with Phase Two of the MCU, culminating in Avengers: Age of Ultron. We learned three important things in Phase Two: First, Iron Man 3 completed a trilogy of stand-alone films. No character since then has gone beyond three movies and one might expect that the goal of the MCU is to give each character a three-movie arc. Second, Guardians of the Galaxy proved that the MCU didn’t need to rely on the core Avengers team to be successful. Lastly, Phase Two of the MCU didn’t end with Avengers: Age of Ultron like many thought it would. It ended with the introduction of Ant-Man, who would be vital in Phase Three and was a fitting epilogue to the second phase. What does this mean? Well, that there really are no rules to how specific phases are set up and Kevin Feige wants to tell a good story first and foremost. Most fans thought Phase Three would have six films, just like Phase One and Two. But that wasn’t the case either. The only thing that has seemed to stay constant is that no character has had two solo movies in the same phase. THE PHENOMENON OF PHASE THREE After the El Capitan event, every studio suddenly wanted to create its own universe. Warner Brothers announced its slate of movies years in advance (and it didn’t pan out like they planned.) Universal hoped to kick off its “Dark Universe” with The Mummy and let’s be honest, that didn’t work either. The reason? Marvel Studios had a solid game plan with good stories, and it had room to be flexible. So Feige announced nine movies that would culminate in a two-part “Infinity War” film in 2019. What made it to theaters was a little different. The first change was that there were 11 movies in the third phase of the MCU, not nine. While Captain America: Civil War, Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume Two and Doctor Strange came out without any problems, a deal between Sony and Marvel culminated in another film being added to the lineup. Spider-Man: Homecoming took the July spot from Thor: Ragnarok which moved to November 2017. This moved Black Panther to a new February 2018 spot just before Avengers: Infinity War. Ultimately, I think this helped the Black Panther movie to become a massive phenomenon and Infinity War added more Wakanda scenes because of it. The other change is that Infinity War became a single MCU movie rather than a two-part film. The follow-up was later titled Avengers: Endgame. Both Avengers films were moved to April instead of May. Ant-Man and the Wasp was another MCU film not initially announced. This took Captain Marvel’s July 2018 spot and bumped that back to March 2019, another big success early in the year for the MCU. Now we are caught up and after the big *spoilers* five-year jump in Endgame, there are a lot of questions left to answer. The last movie announced back in 2014 was an Inhumans movie. This was pulled from the schedule, for a mediocre TV series instead, and replaced with another Spider-Man film, Spider-Man: Far From Home. Like Ant-Man ended Phase Two, Spider-Man will end Phase Three. After this week’s new trailer, we can finally see why. The new Spider-Man film will focus heavily on the loss of Tony Stark and the effects of The Snap. This means it will be a fitting epilogue to Endgame. LOOKING AHEAD As of right now, there are no MCU films announced after Spider-Man: Far From Home. There are a lot of rumors and unconfirmed projects that we will talk about, but the 23-film “Infinity Saga” and first 11 years of the MCU ends in 2019. 2020 begins a new story both theatrically and on the new streaming service, Disney+. There are eight theatrical release dates currently scheduled for Marvel through 2022. I am going to predict that these eight films, along with another unannounced Spider-Man film from Sony, will make up Phase Four of the MCU. Before we get into what I think will be announced, here’s when I think they will be announced. Assuming that Marvel doesn’t do a random Marvel Event like El Capitan again, I would bet that Phase Four of the MCU will be announced at San Diego Comic Con 2019 in July. This is just two weeks after the new Spider-Man movie and one month before D23 in August. I don’t think these films will be announced at D23, because that will be reserved for Disney+ and animation announcements, but Comic Con would be the perfect place to celebrate the past and layout the future. (Now, there is the possibility that Kevin Feige will only announce the 2020 slate of films, but let’s dream big and say he announces all of Phase Four, which will span three years. This isn’t too much to ask for a studio that once announced a five-year plan. Maybe we will get a five-year plan, and if so, I will lay out my guesses for that as well.) Now, these dates are solid as of May 2019. The movies, however, are predictions. Black Widow May 2020 This is all but confirmed with a director and writers already on board. Scarlett Johansson is even reported to be a producer. Rachel Weisz and David Harbour have been confirmed to appear. I expect this film to be a prequel, and a perfect way to start off the new phase. With Black Widow dead in the MCU canon, it will be intriguing to see where she gets her start. I expect we will se Jeremy Renner return and finally see what happened in Budapest. If I was writing this movie, I would have a cameo from Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury at the end offering Black Widow a job with SHIELD. This could bridge the gap between Captain Marvel and Iron Man as well as be a little nod at the first end-credit scene from that film. DISNEY+ Loki Series 2020 This has already been announced but we don’t know exactly how Loki will appear in the series. I am guessing this will be a young Loki as there have been rumors to that notion, but who knows what could happen. The one thing I do know, this has to come early in the year, maybe Spring 2020. The Eternals November 2020 Once again, we are expected to get a new team line-up much like The Guardians of the Galaxy team. However, rumor has it we will se Angelina Jolie in this film and that alone makes me think things are farther along than we originally expected. DISNEY+ WandaVision Now I know that everyone has been making fun of the name, but WandaVision has actually grown on me. I am expecting two things to come out of this six-episode story. First, I think the series will mostly be set in Wanda’s mind, and she will be creating a fictional version of Vision with a 1950’s aesthetic. Second, I think the ending of this series will introduce us to Wiccan and Speed, Wanda’s twin sons. This is inevitable setting up a Young Avengers franchise. Black Panther 2 February 2021 After the success of the first Black Panther movie, it was inevitable that Ryan Coogler would be brought back for a sequel. This February release date only makes sense. Now if I were to be bold, I would predict that we are going to see Black Panther team up with Old Man Cap to fight off Namor the submariner. DISNEY+ Falcon/Winter Soldier Spring 2021 Following the events of Black Panther 2 and Endgame, we get to see a team up from Falcon and The Winter Soldier as Falcon is adjusting to becoming the new Captain America. Shang Chi May 2021 The fourth MCU film of Phase Four will introduce the world (and China) to Shang-Chi. I have no clue what to expect from this. A martial arts film with a big budget, I guess? DISNEY+ Hawkeye and Kate Bishop Summer 2021 The fourth Disney+ series introduces us to Kate Bishop, who takes up the mantle of Hawkeye. (Are you keeping track? Young Loki, Wiccan and Speed, Kate Bishop? Seems like a team is forming.) Doctor Strange 2 November 2021 Five years seems like a long time to wait for a Doctor Strange Sequel, so maybe this will be switched with Black Panther 2, but either way, I am calling it now. Hulk teams up with Strange for a demonic adventure or an adventure in the Savage Land. Captain Marvel 2 February 2022 I think this will be another prequel, this time set in the 2000’s. Not that it matters because it will take place in space and Carol Danvers will be facing the Super Skrull. Yeah, you thought they were all good? Think again. Danvers needs to protect the son of the Skrull Princess, Hulkling. *Whispers: Young Avengers* Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3 May 2022 This is also pretty much confirmed. Thor is now with the Guardians and they need the help from the Ravagers, including Sylvester Stalone and Miley Cyrus, to find Gamora. Who is Gamora? Why is Gamora? Where is Gamora? Ant-Man 3 July 2022 Will this be Ant-Man and The Wasp 2? I don’t know, but I do know we will see Stature, Cassie Lang, in this film. YOuNG AVenGeRS! And that concludes the 8 film spots, but wait, what’s this? Another Spidey Film from Sony? Okay! Spider-Man: Home for the Holidays November 2022 Thing about it, Spidey is left in New York over the holidays while Aunt May goes on a cruise with Happy Hogan? And then, oh no, The Sinister Six plans to ruin his time home from College? Not today! (Also, there is an end-credit scene where we see Spider-Man meet his new team. (Young Loki, Hulkling, Wiccan, Speed, Stature, Kate Bishop and Spidey. They are under the guidance of the New Avengers, Vision, Ant-Man, Shang-Chi, Captain Marvel and Black Panther.) DISNEY+ The Young Avengers Spring 2023 And this is what it has all been leading up to. It’s not a big event, but it’s a series with these characters. Iron Lad, Ty Simkins from Iron Man 3 is the anti-hero of the series. He has started using Stark Tech for harmful purposes. However, by the end of the film he is brought onto the team. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? PHASE FIVE AND BEYOND So, if all of those theories pan out, here is what I would like to see in a possible Phase Five and Six, which I know won’t be announced. Black Panther 3 – February 2023 Thor and Valkyrie – May 2023 Doctor Strange 3 – November 2023 Fantastic Four – May 2024 Captain Marvel 3 -July 2024 Eternals 2 – November 2024 Nova- March 2025 Dark Avengers -May 2025 Kang Iron Lad, Norman Osborn and the return of Tony Stark X-Men November 2025 Shang Chi 2 – March 2026 Avengers vs Xmen Part One May -2026 Fantastic Four 2 – July 2026 Avengers vs Xmen Part Two May 2027 I know these are crazy, but who knows. The multi-verse is the limit. [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia
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Erick L. Graham Wood
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