The box-office owners are lately in some trouble it seems. Looks like Marvel has no more room for hits and trials. With almost 60 percent of people aged 18 to 44, Marvel easily has one of the biggest fandoms in the world. With 4 movies in the top 10 list of highest-grossing movies of all time, Marvel has always been a delight to superhero lovers.
However, the MCU’s last two phases have been somewhat mediocre according to the fans. Eternals, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Black Widow fell short of our expectations in phase 4. To fans’ utter disappointment, even Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania didn’t kickstart a glamorous Phase 5. However, Marvel is taking some risks to get its reputation back on track with upcoming films.
Last Chance for Marvel to Prove Its Worth to Its Fans and Streaming Partner
Lately, Marvel faced a lot of criticism regarding its last two phases. Most of the movies and shows were met with criticism. Not only fans, but even the MCU’s official streaming partner, Disney, is pretty worried about it. Looking at falling Rotten Tomatoes ratings and low IMDB ratings, Bob Iger, Disney’s CEO, has advised MCU to focus on quality over quantity.
MCU’s Fantastic Four and DC’s Superman: Legacy are expected to release very close to each other and it has become a major concern for MCU. Marvel can’t afford a face-to-face battle with DC’s Superman: Legacy after such a bad phase. Not to mention that they have recently lost American filmmaker James Gunn to DC Studios.
MCU’s initial plan was to release Fantastic Four, Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts, and Blade in 2025 (via The Insneider). However, with so much at stake, Disney seems in no shape to release four MCU movies in a single year. The chances are high that Blade may get a delayed date of release, probably in 2026.
Marvel’s Hope Lies in its Upcoming Uovies
After being criticized for its recent releases, MCU is reassuring its fans to put their hope in the upcoming movies. People are still hopeful that with the upcoming movies in 2024 and 2025, Marvel can retain its status in the highest-grossing list.
The list of upcoming MCU movies includes some promising films like Deadpool & Wolverine (July 26, 2024), Venom 3 (November 8, 2024), Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, and many others. These anticipated movies have created a lot of hype and audiences want Marvel not to fall short of their expectations this time.
Talking about 2025, MCU’s crew and Disney have their fingers crossed for the success of Thunderbolts (May 2, 2025) and Fantastic Four (July 25, 2025). If everything goes as per plan, and audiences along with movie critics appreciate these upcoming films, MCU can again have an easy meal with Disney’s CEO.
