Earlier today, Variety shared an in-depth report on some of the problems that have been plaguing Marvel Studios as Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to take shape, and it sounds like Kevin Feige is considering bringing back the likes of Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man) and Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) in an attempt to reignite fan-interest in the franchise.
This probably won't come as much of a surprise if you've been keeping up to date with the various rumors surrounding upcoming projects such as Deadpool 3 and the next Avengers movies, as we already expected to see Variants of characters who have either died or are no longer active at some point.
There's a chance the studio is planning to spotlight Downey Jr., Johansson and Chris Evans (if they're interested in returning, that is) in Avengers: Secret Wars, but a new rumor is claiming that two characters from completely different corners of the Multiverse will actually be the main focus.
Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and Hugh Jackman's Logan/Wolverine.
Jackman will reprise his iconic X-Men role in Deadpool 3, and we've heard that Marvel has much bigger plans for his take on Wolvie going forward. Maguire, meanwhile, made his triumphant return as the Webhead in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and fans have been hoping to see him back in action in the MCU since.
It's hardly surprising that these characters would be prominently featured in a Multiverse-spanning event film like Secret Wars, but did anyone expect them to be at the forefront of what will surely be a massive ensemble?
The studio has yet to announce a director for what could well be shaping up to be the biggest MCU movie of all time, but a previous report indicated that they may have been looking at tried and tested filmmakers behind some of the most popular and successful movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to ensure the hugely ambitious project is in safe hands, including Jon Favreau (Iron Man) and Ryan Coogler (Black Panther).
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton - who is set to helm Avengers: The Kang Dynasty - is also said to have pitched them on him staying on to handle the follow-up, and we've heard that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness helmer Sam Raimi is a "top Choice."
The Doctor Strange sequel's writer Michael Waldron was hired to pen the script late last year, but we have no idea how much - if any - progress has been made since then, and a recent rumor indicated that he'd actually parted ways with the project.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's Jeff Loveness is also said to have stepped away (or asked to step away) from The Kang Dynasty, so, if accurate, it sounds like the studio may be going back to the drawing board on both massively-scaled Avengers movies.