San Diego Comic-Con 2022 saw all sorts of reveals and surprises during Marvel’s mega panel in Hall H. CEO Kevin Feige walked fans through the next few years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as it journeys into the Multiverse Saga, which began with Phase 4 and will end in Phase 6. Phase 4 will end with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, with Phase 5 kicking off in 2023. Phase 5 will be comprised of the following films: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Marvels, and Blade, all in 2023. 2024 will see Captain America: New World Order and Thunderbolts. These films will be accompanied by several Disney+ series.
Phase 6, which was newly announced at SDCC, will be comprised of Fantastic Four, which premieres on November 8, 2024, and two Avengers films. Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is set for May 2, 2025, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in November 7, 2025. Little is known about the Avengers films, but they will likely be adapted from their respective comic book series.
Secret Wars (1984) written by Jim Shooter, with art by Mike Zeck and Bob Layton, was a mega Marvel crossover event, where an all-powerful entity known as The Beyonder transports the Avengers and their enemies to a distant planet called Battleworld. The Avengers are then forced to battle it out, gladiatorial-style, for the Beyonder. The series featured Avengers (Captain America, Captain Marvel, Hawkeye, Iron Man, She-Hulk, Thor, the Wasp, and the Hulk), three members of the Fantastic Four (Human Torch, Mister Fantastic and the Thing), along with Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, and X-Men Colossus, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Professor X, Rogue, Storm, Wolverine, and Lockheed the Dragon. As if that massive cast wasn’t enough, the series also features villains like the Absorbing Man, Doctor Doom, Doctor Octopus, the Enchantress, Kang the Conqueror, Klaw, the Lizard, the Molecule Man, Titania, Ultron, Volcana, and the Wrecking Crew.
It’s unclear which Avengers will show up for Secret Wars, but it’s a safe bet to assume we’re getting all the current/still living heroes who survive Phases 4 and 5. And the retired characters will likely be replaced by the next generation, such as Ironheart for Iron Man, Kate Bishop for Hawkeye, etc.
But wait, there’s more! After a poorly reviewed sequel series, Secret Wars bounced around a few different books before its official reboot in 2015, written by Jonathan Hickman and drawn by Esad Ribić. The series follows the complete collapse of the Multiverse after a series of incursions destroys every universe. The only planet remaining is Battleworld, a patchwork of random universes and worlds. We don’t know which series the MCU will be adapting for the film, but they may be cherry-picking elements they like from both versions of the saga.
One thing we do know is that the size and scope of Secret Wars will dwarf the Infinity Saga, and will likely be the biggest superhero crossover film event ever. We’ll have to wait until 2025 to see for ourselves!
(featured image: Marvel)
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Published: Jul 26, 2022 05:55 pm