Predicting the MCU Phase 5

So yesterday was a big day for Marvel fans.

Black Widow. Eternals. Shang-Chi with the REAL Mandarin. A Doctor Strange horror sequel. A fast-tracked fourth Thor film featuring the return of Natalie Portman as none other than Thor herself. All that plus a slew of Disney+ shows and you may be feeling a bit overwhelmed.

But I’m sure you’ve already noticed that Kevin Feige and gang didn’t reveal the slate beyond 2021. Not that we aren’t totally grateful and excited for everything that was revealed but I’m sure you and I both are already wondering what comes next.

Feige ended the event cryptically mentioning that he didn’t have time to talk about several now-confirmed titles before giving us all heart attacks and pulling Mahershala Ali onto the stage to announce a reboot of Blade. It was probably the most shocking moment of an already crazy event.

So lets take a look at what might come after the epically named Thor: Love and Thunder and connect the dots between the films Feige name-dropped and the dates that have already been put on the calendar.

Blade (February 18, 2022)

Several of the most recent MCU introductions have happened in February (Black Panther, Shang-Chi, Captain Marvel in March) so it would make sense to start off the year with Blade. I had originally had Black Panther II here to line up with its previous release date but I could not see Blade as the big summer film for Marvel. Plus with the massively warm reception for Mahershala Ali (and deservingly so) it would make sense that they would want to push this film to as soon as possible.

I’ll be doing a Blade dream casting soon.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (May 6, 2022)

The third installment of the Guardians was supposed to usher in a new era of the cosmic MCU in 2020 but after James Gunn’s firing it appeared that the Eternals would take on that role. This was confirmed yesterday but James Gunn’s return in March of this year saw the project pushed forward. It was even thought this would happen before Thor 4 although that was also pushed forward. I can’t imagine now that it will come any later than 2022 with Gunn having already finished The Suicide Squad at that point and having plenty of time to return to the MCU. Expect to see Adam Warlock, the High Evolutionary and Drax’s daughter Moondragon in this one. I also made sure to include Thor in the photo because I desperately hope this team-up promised in Endgame still happens even though Thor now has a solo outing beforehand.

Black Panther sequel (July 29 2022)

The most surprising omission of the night was arguably the lack of announcing a sequel to Black Panther. The 2018 hit became the ninth highest grossing film of all-time and was lauded for its diverse cast and representation of African culture. I can’t imagine them holding off on returning to Wakanda for too long and having the sequel in 2022 would set it four years after the original release. Reports have indicated that villains Queen Divine Justice, Achebe or even a returning Killmonger may appear although Okoye alluding to Atlantis in Endgame makes me hope that Namor will finally make his entrance.

Captain Marvel sequel (March 2023)

Now we’re heading into the unconfirmed dates. Along with several others listed above, Feige confirmed a sequel to Captain Marvel last night and releasing it in March 2023 would set it four years after the first installment, just like my prediction for Black Panther. Carol Danvers too proved to be a popular addition to the MCU and a second film has been a given since before it was announced. The post-credit scene in Spider-Man: Far from Home may have introduced S.W.O.R.D. as an intergalactic replacement to S.H.I.E.L.D. which could be explored further here. There’s also a lot more opportunity to learn about the surprisingly friendly Skrulls as well as a whole universe of foes to be introduced.

Fantastic Four (May 2023)

This is one that fans have wanted for a LONG time and, with it now confirmed, a big May 2023 release may be perfect for the First Family. Along with the X-Men, the Fantastic Four were the biggest property Marvel acquired from Fox and they likely would have been introduced much sooner otherwise. There are loads of opportunities for an entire series of movies including introducing everyone from Doctor Doom (who hopefully will get his own film courtesy of Noah Hawley) to Galactus and the Silver Surfer. It has been rumored that, like many stories in the MCU, it will be based on Marvel’s Ultimate Universe. Although with so many franchises on the way featuring younger heroes, I feel like Marvel may opt to make the team an already established and more experienced set of characters.

Check out our Fantastic Four dream cast here.

Nova? Ironheart? Young Avengers? Thunderbolts? (November 2023)

Going this far out, I can’t even really predict what comes next. We’re past the confirmed projects (excluding a reference to “mutants”) and there are plenty of rumored options that could fill this slot. Particularly because November releases are typical reserved for stories that Marvel is not as sure about yet. With that in mind, there are four projects that have been discussed enough and Marvel has shown a decent amount of interest in.

A Nova film has been rumored for a long-time and Kevin Feige previously said that Richard Rider has “immediate potential” in the MCU. Let’s hope this sees the last member of the Nova Corp dealing with a decimated Xandar and possibly face the cosmic villain Annihilus.

More recently, many have called for a movie based on the Iron Man successor, Riri Williams or Ironheart. Even Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., has called for such a film. This is a more recent property but has quickly met critical acclaim.

There have been many rumors that a Young Avengers movie is coming at some point. A report earlier this year called it out amongst several other properties Marvel is looking to develop. However, at this point the roster is very slim and a story like this would likely have to be built over the course of the next several movies. We know Kate Bishop is coming and Stature (Scott Lang’s daughter) has already been introduced. Wiccan could be brought to life in WandaVision and Spider-Man and Ironheart could also join this team. It’s certainly likely we will see this film at some point but it may be further out than 2023.

Finally, there have been rumors of a Thunderbolts film coming at some point. This could also be Dark Avengers when Norman Osborn is introduced (more on that in a second) although Zemo’s team is a more popular property and would allow for a bit of distance from the Avengers brand. It just doesn’t fit into the MCU that the name Dark Avengers would even be used. Marvel has been careful to keep a selective group of villains alive including Ghost from Ant-Man and the Wasp, Baron Zemo from Captain America: Civil War, Vulture from Spider-Man and even the Abomination and Thunderbolt Ross from the Incredible Hulk. This would be a good opportunity to bring at least a few of them back and maybe even incorporate some new characters. This would be a refreshing change of the pace for Marvel and its probably my personal favorite choice for this slot.

BONUS: Spider-Man sequels (July 2021 and 2023)

Sony controls the release date for the now most-wanted webslinger which is why I am keeping this separate from the rest of the releases. While not announced at SDCC, it’s also likely Spider-Man 3 will release in the Summer of 2021 as the studio has made it clear they want a new installment every two years. It’s also been purported that the series will extend beyond three films which would mean Spider-Man 4 would release in 2023. My hope is that the 2021 film will introduce Kraven the Hunter in an adaptation of his Last Hunt storyline (because you can’t make a Kraven movie without Spider-Man, right Sony?) and there are now rumors that he may come from Wakanda which would be a very clever twist on his story. It also makes sense that this film would introduce Norman Osborn with him becoming the primary antagonist in the 2023 film. There was a report that Norman Osborn would become a major antagonist across the MCU and many storylines that have been discussed involve him (including the Dark Avengers discussed above). The seeds may have already been planted for this as well so it’s only a matter of time before we meet the Green Goblin.

We still likely have a while before this is either confirmed or denied and 10 new films and TV shows to enjoy until that date. Marvel has a second panel at D23 but its likely they’ll discuss the recently announced properties in more detail which makes sense. We already had a huge overload yesterday and this article may just be making your brain fry. Either way it’s a very exciting time to be a comic book fan.