After an over-saturated Phase Four and an underwhelming start to Phase Five, Disney has decided to trim down Marvel’s future output.
Disney is scaling back output in Marvel, shifting its focus to sequels and franchises. After oversaturating Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and an underwhelming start to Phase 5. CEO Bob Iger is taking action. In July 2023, Iger admitted that Marvel “diluted focus and attention” by making so many Disney+ shows.
The CEO, who returned to lead Disney less than a year after he retired, stated that the company will focus on established franchises rather than diving into new content, “I’d say we’re leaning a little bit more into sequels and franchises. I think given the environment and given what it takes to get people out of their homes to see a film … leaning on franchises that are familiar is actually a smart thing.”
Additionally, he also announced a new restructuring plan: reducing Marvel’s output, “In our zeal to greatly increase volume partially tied to this wanting to chase more global subs for our streaming platform, some of our studios lost a little focus. So the first step that we’ve taken is that we’ve reduced volume, we reduced output, particularly in Marvel.”
What will this mean for the future of Marvel? Here are some speculations:
1) Established Character Project Prioritisation
After the flood of content for Phase Four, some of which was poorly received by fans, Marvel will have to change tactics. Company president Kevin Feige referred to Phase Four as an “experimentation” period, exploring new genres, characters, and storylines. It introduced series such as “Wandavision”, “Loki”, and “Werewolf by Night” alongside new superheroes Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, Shang-Chi, and She-Hulk. At the box office, titles such as “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” and “The Marvels” became the biggest flops in the Marvel Cinematic Universe history.
2) Focus on X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Others
Beloved and proven franchises; such as Avengers, Spiderman, and X-Men; will take precedence over risky projects. “Marvel is starting to focus on its strongest franchises going forward, but I’ll leave it at that,” Iger said. “I think given the environment and what it takes to get people out of their homes to see a film, doing that, leaning on franchises that are familiar is actually a smart thing.”
Fans have been pushing for the X-Men to officially join the Marvel Cinematic Universe after the Disney-Fox acquisition in 2019. Feige teased that they would be on their way “soon” but they aren’t expected to appear until Phase 7, after the Fantastic Four are introduced in 2025. The MCU may push this forward after the restructuring plans are carried out.
“The X-Men are as solid and rich and great a concept in characters that exist,” Feige said in 2023. “There’s the return of the animated series next year, which we’re very excited about. I saw some new final episodes today, which really bring you back to that core of who the X-Men are and that soap opera that those characters represent… And then in live-action, people will see… perhaps soon.”
3) Upcoming Projects May Be Delayed or Scrapped Entirely
“Captain America: Brave New World” and “Fantastic Four” were confirmed on Disney’s 2025 theatrical list slate, while Blade and Thunderbolts were not. Both movies have suffered from production delays and crew/cast walkouts. Iger has stayed quiet on “The Avengers: The Kang Dynasty” after its many setbacks, including the firing of Kang actor Johnathan Major and the loss of director Destin Daniel Cretton in November.
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