When Marvel Studios released The Avengers in 2012, it was considered a huge gamble. No one had ever brought characters from multiple franchises together like that before, but the movie was a massive hit and ushered in a new era of superhero storytelling in theaters.
Joss Whedon helmed the blockbuster and followed it up with Avengers: Age of Ultron in 2015. The response to that wasn't quite as positive, but it was another hit, even if it led to the filmmaker deciding he'd had enough of the MCU.
Following the success they found with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War, the Russo Brothers were Whedon's natural successors. In 2018, they directed Avengers: Infinity War and, in 2019, followed it up with the biggest (perhaps best) comic book movie ever with Avengers: Endgame.
With the Russos busy overseeing a new slate of projects for their production label, AGBO, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings helmer Destin Daniel Cretton was tapped to step behind the camera for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
We don't know who Marvel Studios wanted for Avengers: Secret Wars, but when Kevin Feige pivoted from Kang the Conqueror to Doctor Doom, the Russos were brought back into the fold for that and the newly titled Avengers: Doomsday.
While the X-Men are expected to be the main focus of the next Saga, scooper @MyTimeToShineH is reporting that, "If Spider-Man: Brand New Day delivers, Kevin Feige plans for Destin Daniel Cretton to direct the next Avengers movie after Secret Wars."
Cretton is owed an Avengers movie after missing out on The Kang Dynasty, and it's hard to imagine anyone complaining about him being tasked with Avengers 7. Still, this seems to suggest that the filmmaker would prioritise that over both Spider-Man 5 and Shang-Chi 2.
We have to believe the next Avengers movie would be vastly different from anything that's come before, especially in a rebooted MCU. That should present Cretton with an interesting challenge, and like Spider-Man: Brand New Day, gives him the opportunity to take those characters in a totally new direction.
Earlier this year, Feige said that Marvel Studios has a "seven-year plan" for the MCU that "goes to 2032." He'd go on to say that there's a plan to "reset singular timelines" and reboot the franchise after Avengers: Secret Wars and suggested that he intends to be there for all of it.
While his contract is up in 2027, Feige said, "Do I want to be making big movies for big audiences in ten or 15 years from now? Yes, that’s all I want to do. Marvel is great way to do that."
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18, 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive on December 17, 2027.