Much has been said about the huge number of characters we'll see in the next Avengers movies, but will there be room for everyone? Marvel Studios had a huge roster of characters even before Phase 4, only for that jam-packed era of storytelling to introduce tonnes of new heroes and villains.
The Eternals, Namor, Shang-Chi, Kate Bishop, Ironheart, She-Hulk, Adam Warlock...the list goes on and on. Avengers 5 and Avengers: Secret Wars are also Multiversal movies, meaning Marvel Studios will need to find room for Variants as well!
In an interview with io9, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige was asked about those Phase 4 debuts and whether we can expect to see the characters in the upcoming Avengers movies or if there's a chance they won't return (a very real concern we know many of you have about Moon Knight, for example).
"I rarely speak in absolutes like that, right?" Feige started. "The notion of never ever seeing somebody again, we’ve got Tim Blake Nelson in a movie coming up next year, right? So I never talk in absolutes like that."
"But the truth is, you know, we’re going to tell a story in these Avengers movies, and there won’t be room for 100,000 characters in it," he confirmed. "So choices will have to be made, that’s for sure. But that doesn’t mean you won’t ever see anybody ever again."
We suppose it was inevitable that some heroes would be sidelined and we find it hard to believe the next Avengers movies will find room to resolve that big Eternals cliffhanger or give Thor's "daughter" Love a chance to shine.
We've previously heard rumblings about Spider-Man being Avengers 5's lead, though that may have been a couple of drafts ago at this stage.
What we do know is that Marvel Studios will likely announce the directors of both movies (along with new release dates) at the San Diego Comic-Con next weekend. The Russo Brothers have emerged as frontrunners, though Feige has refused to comment on their potential involvement.
"No, I can’t comment on it except to say it was somebody else a couple of weeks ago and I look forward to seeing who it is going to be next week," he said in a recent interview. "We’ll see."
With Deadpool & Wolverine on the horizon, we're bound to hear more from Feige in the coming days. However, you just know he's saving the biggest teases and reveals for Hall H...