Speaking to
Collider, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige implied that Phase 3 could very well be the end of how the studio currently groups their cinematic releases.
“
We’ve been lucky that [contract expirations] haven’t factored in too much. We’ve had people under contract for certain films, then we’ve had new ideas and new directions like Civil War like we wanted to do, and we’ve been lucky enough to make new contracts. Or Spider-Man: Homecoming, the cast has been awesome in their enthusiasm for the direction and the storylines that we’ve been telling. So it really does, right now, all start with where we wanna take the stories. Certainly as we get to Infinity War there is a sense of a climax if not a conclusion to, by the time we’re at untitled Avengers 4, the 22 movies that will have encompassed the first three phases of the MCU. And what happens after that will be very different. I don’t know if it’s Phase 4, it might be a new thing.”
What exactly is Feige hinting at with his talk of expiring contracts and conclusions? Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson are all close to the end of their contractually-required film appearances as their respective characters. If any of them decide they want to move on from the MCU, Marvel will have to take a hard look at whether it makes the most sense to recast, write their character off or opt for a total reboot. If Marvel's Ultimate line was a sweeping reboot of the 616-Universe, could we see a similar concept play out in the MCU?
How do you think Marvel should handle expiring contracts considering many of the actor's faces have become so synonymous with their characters that their comic book counterparts are often drawn in their likeness?