Marvel Studios reveals Phase Four movies and TV at San Diego Comic-Con
Marvel Studios has blown fans’ minds by revealing all the new movies and TV shows of its next phase. Among them, the reboot of a favourite.
Marvel Studios has taken to the main stage at San Diego Comic-Con, revealing a whole slate of upcoming projects and parading out a bevy of famous faces.
Here’s what they told the world.
THE ETERNALS
Richard Madden, Angelina Jolie and Kumail Nanjiani are officially joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige confirmed the three stars will headline The Eternals, one of five movies (plus a tease of another) and five TV shows that will make up the MCU’s Phase Four during a panel at San Diego Comic-Con this morning.
All three names had been rumoured but this is the first official word, along with confirmation Chloe Zhao as director. Salma Hayek and Atlanta star Brian Tyree Henry will also be involved.
The Eternals is based on comics legend Jack Kirby’s books, based on a group of immortal beings who have lived on Earth for a long, long time, shaping our history and evolution.
Bodyguard and Game of Thrones star Madden will play the lead, Ikaris. The movie will also introduce the MCU’s first deaf hero.
Zhao said The Eternals will explore “what it means to be human”.
The Eternals is set for release in November 2020.
BLADE
This is one project Marvel has managed to keep away from the rumour mills as it announced it will be rebooting Blade, a character previously played on screen by Wesley Snipes.
This iteration will now be part of the MCU and it will be played by two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali.
No other details were revealed.
SHANG-CHI
Marvel has confirmed the forthcoming Shang-Chi movie, titled Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Newcomer Simu Liu will play the hero, joining Awkwafina and Tony Leung who were also announced as part of the cast. Liu was originally an accountant before he started acting and got his start as an extra on Pacific Rim, before small roles in Taken, Nikita and Kim’s Convenience. Liu will be in the new season of Fresh Off the Boat.
Meet the man himself, Simu Liu will play #ShangChi! pic.twitter.com/XWgvMarXPC
— Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) July 21, 2019
Shang-Chi is a half-Chinese, half-American superhero well-versed in martial arts, including wushu. In the film, Shang-Chi will face off against the Ten Rings crime organisation, who had been referenced in Iron Man.
The script will be written by Chinese-American screenwriter Dave Callahan while Asian-American Destin Daniel Cretton will direct.
Shang-Chi is rumoured to be the Marvel project that will be filmed in Sydney.
It’s due for release in February 2021, timed to coincide with Chinese New Year.
THOR 4
We knew a fourth Thor movie was coming after news leaked out days earlier that Ragnarok director Taika Waititi had signed on for the next instalment.
The next Thor movie, titled Thor: Love and Thunder will reteam Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson, but the real surprise is the return of Natalie Portman to the franchise.
Portman’s Jane Foster had largely been absent from the MCU since Thor: The Dark World, with only fleeting references that Thor and Jane had broken up. But Portman appeared in Endgame using rejigged archival footage while the Oscar winner also walked the red carpet at the premiere.
We may see Jane take up the mantle of God of Thunder as the new movie seems to be based on The Mighty Thor comics which introduced a female Thor, played by Jane.
Thor: Love and Thunder will be released in November 2021.
DOCTOR STRANGE 2
Quentin Beck may have lied about the existence of a multiverse in Spider-Man: Far From Home, but that doesn’t mean it’s not real, Feige said.
On that note, the next Doctor Strange movie will be called Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Scott Derrickson will return as director.
Benedict Cumberbatch told Comic-Con fans: “I’m really excited to be at the dawn of his next project and I think it’s vital to maintain the humour from the first film, with this twist of horror that I think will really have people gripped.”
There will be another familiar face in the Doctor Strange sequel with Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch set to join.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will be out in May 2021.
BLACK WIDOW
We all knew this was happening, there are even pap photos from the set, which suggest it could be set between Civil War and Infinity War, or between Infinity War and Endgame.
The Scarlett Johansson Black Widow movie has officially been announced as part of Marvel’s Phase Four. Johansson will be joined by Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz and Ray Winston.
Pugh’s character has been revealed as Yelena, described as a “sister figure” to Natasha while Harbour plays someone called Alexei, the agent who trained Yelena. Weisz will be the villain.
Johansson said: “I don’t think I could have played this iteration of Natasha 10 years ago and now I get to play her as a fully realised woman, with all of her many facets. I’m excited for fans to see the flawed side of her and I’m really looking to wipe out some of that red in my ledger.”
Shortland said of Natasha: “She has so many secrets”.
Directed by Australian Cate Shortland, the movie started production two months ago and will be first MCU Phase Four movie to be released.
Black Widow will be released in May 2020.
DISNEY+ TV SHOWS
Among the other announcements, Feige confirmed more details about the numerous forthcoming Disney+ TV series, including the Loki TV show.
Feige teased it with “Didn’t I see Loki die in Infinity War? You did. But what else did you see in Endgame?”.
Feige was referring to the moment in Endgame in which during one of the trips to the past, specifically in 2012 during the end of the Battle of New York, that Loki absconded with the Tesseract, and the Loki TV show will show what happened to Loki after that.
Tom Hiddleston took to the stage at Comic-Con to uproarious approval from the crowd, and told them: “He’s still that guy. Just about the last thing that happened to him was he got Hulk-smashed. There’s a lot of psychological evolution that is yet to happen, I cannot wait to get started.”
WandaVision, the series centred on Scarlet Witch and Vision, will take place after Endgame, though Marvel is keeping mum on how a dead Vision will feature. It will also add Monica Rambeau as a character, who was last seen as a child in the 1990s-set Captain Marvel.
Monica will be played by Teyonah Parris, best known for her roles in Mad Men and Dear White People.
Both Loki and WandaVision are scheduled to premiere in early 2021.
Marvel also revealed details of the Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan Disney+ TV series, following Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes after Endgame.
The panel teased a mysterious video featuring Daniel Bruhl’s character, Zemo, from Captain America: Civil War, with the message, “I simply wanted to say hello to some old friends, gentlemen, I’ll be seeing you very soon”.
So it’s safe to say Zemo will be involved in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier series in some way.
The Falcon and Winter Soldier will premiere in late 2021.
The Hawkeye TV series has also been confirmed and Jeremy Renner was on hand at Comic-Con for the announcement. The series will feature Clint Barton and a character named Kate Bishop.
Feige confirmed the series will also look at the time Barton spent as “Ronin” in the five years between Infinity War and Endgame.
Hawkeye is expected to premiere on Disney+ plus in late 2021.
Marvel has also confirmed a What If …? TV show, its first animated project. The premise is an anthology series of sorts, telling the stories of alternate scenarios from the MCU.
It will be narrated by Jeffrey Wright, a la The Twilight Zone-style, and will feature voice talent from its main MCU roster, including Michael B. Jordan, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Natalie Portman, Paul Rudd, Jeff Goldblum, Toby Jones, Michael Douglas, Haley Atwell, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson and Mark Ruffalo.
What If …? will premiere on Disney+ in mid-2021.
BLACK PANTHER, X-MEN, CAPTAIN MARVEL
After a jam-packed session full of announcements, Feige teased fans with a few more reveals, though not in much detail.
He said: “We didn’t even mention that we’re making Black Panther 2, We didn’t even talk about that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is coming. We didn’t have time to talk about Captain Marvel 2”.
That essentially confirms all those sequels are happening, not that it was ever really in doubt given the billions of dollars those movies have made.
Feige also referenced the Disney and Fox merger by pointing to the Marvel intellectual property that is now under Marvel Studios’ creative control.
“I didn’t even have time to talk about the Fantastic Four, and there’s no time left to talk about mutants and how mutants come into the MCU.”
It’s all happening.
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