Kevin Feige Discusses Marvel’s Plans Until 2032, James Gunn’s Superman, and Blade Delays
According to CinemaDrame news agency, Ahead of the release of Fantastic Four: First Steps, Kevin Feige held a press conference discussing Marvel Studios’ future plans and ongoing projects.
Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Future
Feige told Deadline that Avengers: Secret Wars will “reset” the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s storyline, describing it as “a 7-year plan. I think it goes until 2032.”
While Marvel introduced Avengers: Doomsday and Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom at San Diego Comic-Con last year, the studio isn’t attending this year. They are currently developing Spider-Man: Brand New Day, confirming that Jon Bernthal will reprise his role as Punisher opposite Tom Holland in the film.
The characters from Fantastic Four: First Steps, on the other hand, entered the MCU at the end of Thunderbolts and will return in Doomsday. Fantastic Four: First Steps is projected to earn around $110 million domestically by next Sunday.
Feige explained the reason for rebooting Fantastic Four: “Because it’s Marvel’s first family. They exist in the history of Marvel characters; they deserve top-tier actors. They were top-tier in the comic books.”
Addressing Quality vs. Quantity
In an interview with Variety, Feige admitted that Marvel prioritized quantity over quality after Avengers: Endgame: “We had over 100 hours of story in half the time capacity. It was too much… I think it made people say: ‘It used to be exciting, but now I need to know everything about all these characters?'”
Feige added that Marvel has not yet acquired the rights to introduce Miles Morales into the MCU: “We’ve been told to stay away.”
Blade Delays and Creative Challenges
Elsewhere in his interview with Deadline, the producer stated that four different versions of the Blade reboot, starring Mahershala Ali, have been in development for six years, and they’ve finally decided to tell a contemporary story. Regarding the changes in directors and long delays, he said: “We didn’t want to [just] put [Mahershala Ali] in a leather suit and make him kill vampires.”
Feige commented on Blade, which has been removed from Disney’s release calendar but still has a chance of being made: “You might start with a good script and get to a better script as the project progresses, but with Blade, we weren’t sure. We didn’t want to do that to Mahershala and ourselves.”
In response to another question, Feige confirmed there are no plans for Marvel to collaborate with Ryan Coogler, director of the successful vampire film Sinners, on Blade. Coogler is currently committed to Black Panther 3.
Praising James Gunn’s Superman
In another part of the conference, Feige praised James Gunn’s Superman film, which has ushered in a new era for DC Studios: “I liked that we get right into this world. You don’t know who Mr. Terrific is? It’s tough, [but] you’ll figure it out. It’s a complete, detailed world… David [Corenswet], the new Superman – it was great.” Feige then confirmed that new actors will be cast for roles like Captain America and X-Men characters in the coming years: “They’re searching for the new James Bond. David Corenswet became the new Superman. It will always be like that.”
