Marvel Studios continues its quest to take over the geek and superhero movie world. Perhaps in response to Warner Bros. announcing nine DC Comics projects through 2020 — including its Justice League franchise and a Wonder Woman film — a couple of weeks ago, Marvel held an event on Tuesday in California, inviting fans and movie press for their big reveal.
Unveiling its “Phase Three” slate of projects, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige announced nine movies that will hit theaters through 2019. Among them are the third Captain America and Thor films, as well as two Avengers sequels to be released in 2018 and 2019. Captain America: Civil War will be released on May 6, 2016, and Thor: Ragnarok goes to the big screen on July 28, 2017. Additionally, Marvel announced a sequel to Guardians of the Galaxy, set for a May 5, 2017 debut.
What made the announcement even more exciting, however, was the introduction of several new Marvel characters that will receive their own films in “Phase Three.” These include Doctor Strange (long rumored to be in development), Black Panther and Captain Marvel.
Here’s AMAZING concept art for #BlackPanther! #MarvelEvent pic.twitter.com/xUC8hLmrSn
— Ryan Penagos (@AgentM) October 28, 2014
Those last two projects are especially intriguing because their central characters aren’t white males, as has been the case with nearly every superhero film released over the past 15 years.
Black Panther is the prince of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, one of the most technologically advanced regions in the world. He will be played by Chadwick Boseman (42, Get On Up), who appeared on stage with Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. at the Marvel event. Captain Marvel is Carol Danvers, an Air Force pilot who’s given powers of flight and superhuman strength after encountering alien technology. That part has yet to be cast.
Chadwick Boseman aka Black Panther on stage with Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans. Asked to pick a side. pic.twitter.com/aCEt8NrESp — Borys Kit (@Borys_Kit) October 28, 2014
If you’re keeping score, that’s one superhero movie led by a black character and another featuring a female lead. Black Panther is set for a Nov. 3, 2017, while Captain Marvel will hit theaters on July 6, 2018. (It should be noted that Warner Bros. plans to release a Wonder Woman movie in June 2017, and a film featuring African-American character Cyborg in June 2020.)
Somewhat curious is that Benedict Cumberbatch was not introduced as Doctor Strange, though reports have him in final negotiations to play that character. Obviously, those plans haven’t been finalized contractually or Cumberbatch likely would have been a part of this event as Boseman was.
The last film Marvel announced is Inhumans, which follows a race of genetically altered humans that have been exposed to an alien mist that changed their DNA. This franchise is presumed to be Marvel’s answer to mutants, which are off-limits to the studio since Fox owns the rights to the X-Men franchise. Inhumans has a Nov. 2, 2018 release date.
Oh, by the way — Marvel has Avengers: Age of Ultron coming out on May 1, 2015, followed by Ant-Man on July 17.
So here’s how the entire “Phase Three” slate is laid out:
Captain America: Civil War – May 6, 2016
Doctor Strange – Nov. 4, 2016
Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – May 5, 2017
Black Panther – Nov. 3, 2017
Thor: Ragnarok – July 28, 2017
Avengers: Infinity War, Part 1 – May 2018
Captain Marvel – July 6, 2018
Inhumans – Nov. 2, 2018
Avengers: Infinity War, Part 2 – May 2019
Whew! You got all that? Marvel is releasing 11 films over the next five years. Eleven! (Personally, I wish there was a Hulk movie in there somewhere, but that’s probably being greedy.)
