13 films. $10 billion dollars grossed worldwide. B and C list comic book characters put in the mainstream spotlight and turned into household names. The interconnected stories told by the Marvel Cinematic Universe are unique by hollywood standards. Who would have foreseen that grouping multiple movie franchises into a single shared continuity would have been so financially successful? The idea of a shared universe in film is not a new one, going back to the classic Universal Monster movies and their crossovers, but Marvel has certainly dusted off the idea and installed a format that studios are racing to imitate in hopes of achieving equal success. The question has to be asked though; Will the MCU’s future remain as bright as its past, and where does it go after 2018 & 2019’s Infinity War?
There has been much debate about whether or not the most profitable franchise of all time will be able to keep its box office momentum after the departure of its most popular star – Robert Downey Jr. Having starred/appeared in seven MCU movies and contracted for at least two more, Downey Jr is the godfather of the Marvel universe. The Iron Man franchise by itself has recieved mixed reviews by fans and critics as a whole, but the onscreen portrayal of Tony Stark has made the character of Iron Man a mainstream icon on par with the likes of Batman and Spider-Man. As long as the character gets a proper send off, perhaps being written into a happy ending or sacrificing himself to save the day, the MCU will survive after Downey Jr steps away from the role.
While Downey Jr is unquestionably the face of the franchise, he is not the only legitimate star that could exit the universe. Marvel Studios is well known for locking in their main actors to multi-picture deals. Chris Evans was reported to have signed a 6 picture deal, Samuel L. Jackson a 9, Chadwick Boseman a 4, and so on. But with the more recent movies becoming more and more ensemble pieces, that means easier shooting schedules for the principle actors and a more likely chance of being resigned to appear in more films. Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, has hinted at possible recasting of main roles ala James Bond after certain contracts expire to keep the characters around for as long as necessary. Many believe the backlash over recasting could harm box office grosses, so they’ll cross that bridge when they come to it.
Now with all that out of the way its time to really dive into the nerdy stuff.
Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is set to close with 2019’s Avengers film which will be a direct follow up to 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War. The big bad has been confirmed to be Thanos, the Mad Titan, and the storyline will most definitely center around the Infinity Gauntlet and the god-like powers that come with wielding it. Thanos is more or less the most powerful and threatening villain that Marvel Studios has the rights to. The film rights of other mainstay villains like Galactus, Magneto, and Dr. Doom are all owned by 20th Century Fox and will take nothing short of a miracle to ever appear onscreen with the Avengers. So where else can Marvel go after Thanos? The answer to that question might be in the realm of the supernatural.
Doctor Strange hits theaters this November and will be opening the floodgates to the supernatural side of the Marvel Universe. Ghost Rider is likely to plant seeds of this on the current season of Agents of SHIELD and Netflix’s Iron Fist is bound to explore these themes further when it premieres next year as well. Doctor Strange is expected to introduce the supernatural world of the MCU much like Guardians of the Galaxy introduced us to the cosmic side of it. And with that comes supernatural villains such as Mephisto and Dormammu, each of whom would be worthy adversaries to the Avengers. The x factor in using those particular villains though would most certainly be Disney, the parent company of Marvel Entertainment, who are of course known for their family friendly image and might not be too keen on advertising their kid-friendly superheroes fighting devils and fire demons in a giant summer blockbuster.
So what other story options are available for future Avengers films? It might be wise to go straight to the comics and pull inspiration from recent crossover events of the past decade. World War Hulk being the most obvious choice. Who else but Hulk could impose a greater physical threat to the Avengers after battling Thanos? The stakes of that film would be sky high since Hulk is already a well established character and Mark Ruffalo’s performance is widely regarded as the best iteration of Bruce Banner to date. The possibility of World War Hulk will only be pure speculation until Thor: Ragnarok comes out next year, where its confirmed that elements of Planet Hulk are being used in the story.
Other notable comic book story lines such as Secret Invasion and Secret Wars might be viable options. Who knows? Marvel might throw a couple curve balls in original ideas like Avengers vs Guardians of the Galaxy or Avengers vs the Masters of Evil. I personally believe that the best route to go is to really harvest the rogues gallery of their newly acquired film right; Spider-Man.
Spider-Man arguably has the greatest adversaries of any superhero ever created. Only Batman truly competes. Just imagine the possibility of The Sinister Six wreaking havoc on New York City only to be confronted by the Avengers. Or Norman Osborne being turned into an almost anti-Tony Stark and becoming the puppet master of Phase Four. Picture the Venom symbiote being introduced in Guardians of the Galaxy 3 or the Captain Marvel movie and making its way to Earth in a post credits scene. Spider-Man and his villains finally joining the MCU could and should be the focal point of Phase Four until another Thanos-level threat like Galactus or even Kang the Conqueror can be brought into the fold.
With 9 upcoming films planned, its safe to say that the Marvel Cinematic Universe isn’t going away anytime soon and its only going to further its lead as the most financially successful movie franchise of all time. But with the theory of superhero movie fatigue constantly knocking at the door, and the always possible decline in quality, its hard to estimate just how long the MCU will be around to entertain fans like me who never dreamed they’d have this shared universe onscreen. So until its announced, I will be constantly speculating about Phase Four and whats to come. Let me know what you think. Where should they go from here?
Joe Hettinger 