Get your entire salt shaker out for this one. Marvel insider Daniel Richtman is reporting that Disney and Marvel Studios are no longer working on multiple planned MCU films, including Eternals 2, Ant-Man 4, and Captain Marvel 3.
This is all a massive rumor for now, but it would be in line with reports that Disney is looking to trim back on its MCU output both in film and television as it experienced its worst year yet in 2022, with both The Marvels and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania having disappointing box office returns. Disney is said to be taking a more reasoned approach to film releases, wanting to take fewer risks. That’s a slightly ironic idea, given that Marvel’s biggest hit of last year was Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the third film in a series that was one of Marvel’s biggest and riskiest releases ever.
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The rumor also adds fuel to the Eternals 2 fire. Chloe Zhao’s risky but fault-filled film was Marvel Studios’ lowest box office ever until The Marvels came along, and despite having a traditional post-credit sequence that set up a sequel, no confirmation of the next film has hit the Internet. The cancellation of the sequel is evidently a bit of a sore spot, as Kevin Feige reportedly wants it made, while Disney CEO Bob Iger is sure it will be a flop. If all this does pan out, it means a lot fewer MCU films coming and probably some major shifts in Marvel’s already-announced lineup of films that will lead to the next Avengers movies.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. The report does say that Shang-Chi 2Â is still on track and will feature some version of Iron Fist in it. Of course, given that detail, maybe it is all doom and gloom because no one wants to even remotely think about the possibility of a return of Netflix’s version of the character.
