Captain Marvel grossed over $1.1 billion at the worldwide box office in 2019, overcoming review-bombing to take a character considered a B-Lister on the page to new heights on screen.
However, last November's The Marvels - which added Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau to the mix - failed to come close to its predecessor and earned a mere $206 million by the time its run in theaters ended (and that's the sequel's worldwide haul, not merely domestic).
The odds of Captain Marvel 3 happening now seem slim, though that doesn't mean Carol Danvers will be permanently sidelined. For starters, she's expected to be a major player in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
The Cosmic Circus has shared an intriguing hint about Captain Marvel's role in those movies, teasing: "[We] know she can absorb a lot of energy, but have you ever stopped to ask how much energy is too much energy? Like, what would happen if Carol came into contact with... say for example, the Time Strands that Loki is holding together?"
It's an intriguing question, but on a more definitive note, the site adds, "I heard through the grapevine that Marvel was interested in introducing Noh-Varr into the MCU, given that his origins are Multiversal, and he has a role to play with the Young Avengers, but I’m not 100% if that is still in play."
For those of you who aren't aware, Noh-Varr, also known as Marvel Boy, is a Kree warrior from an alternate dimension. Created by writer Grant Morrison and artist J.G. Jones, he first appeared in 2000's Marvel Boy #1.
After his ship crashes on Earth, Noh-Varr finds himself stranded and initially hostile to humanity, seeking revenge for his fallen crew. He'd later become an anti-hero, serving alongside teams like the Young Avengers and even the Dark Avengers.
Either one of the upcoming Avengers movies would be a fitting place to add Noh-Varr to the MCU, though there are still plenty of other cosmic characters - Nova, for example - who fans are eager to see on screen.
Carol Danvers actor Brie Larson was asked earlier this year about possibly reuniting with her The Marvels co-stars Iman Vellani (Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel) and Teyonah Parris (Monica Rambeau).
"I just loved being with those ladies so much," the Oscar-winner said. "And I think that the sentiment of it is so right to me and is much more where I’m at in my life, which is, there’s no one superhero that can save us. It takes all kinds of people that have their own special skill sets and the ability to understand that the brink of disaster cannot be stopped by one."
"It’s all of us coming together. So that feels really right to me. And you know, as for the future, there’s things that I know, but I can’t tell you."
As for whether she'll appear in the upcoming Avengers movies, Doomsday and Secret Wars, Larson responded, "I can’t say anything and I can’t even say that I don’t know anything, because that might mean that there’s something to say or not say. So I’ll just say that I can’t say."
Keep checking back here for updates on Captain Marvel's MCU future as we have them.