It's no secret that Marvel Studios has plans far into the future we're not privy to, and despite delays to Phase 4 caused by COVID-19, Kevin Feige and company are still thinking well ahead. That's evident from comments the President of the studio made during a recent interview with Collider.
"To varying degrees of specificity, it’s always about 5 to 6 years out versus what we’ve announced," Feige said when asked how much content Marvel Studios has planned out. "So whatever that takes us to."
Big and small screen projects have been announced right through 2023, so doing the maths here means the Marvel Cinematic Universe is likely mapped out up to 2028 or 2029. We have a rough idea of what some of those early projects might be in 2024 and beyond - Blade, Fantastic Four, and Avengers 5, for example - but Feige no doubt has plenty of surprises up his sleeve.
There are bound to be plans in place for an X-Men reboot, and when he was asked if anything has been mapped out yet, Feige added: "It has been heavily discussed, as you might imagine. And we have a good feeling of where it’s going and when it’s going, but that all remains to be seen."
He's not giving anything away just yet, then, but you just know "X-Men" is written on a whiteboard somewhere in Marvel Studios, with a plan to slowly introduce the concept of mutants over a number of years.
So, yeah, we still have a little while to wait until Wolverine unsheathes his claws in the MCU.
How can the Fantastic Four and X-Men join the MCU? Click
the "Next" button below for some compelling theories!
10. Krakoa Hideout
After all those Fox films featuring the X-Men, the idea of watching Professor X use Cerebro or the team emerging from beneath their basketball court in the Blackbird just feels redundant.
As bad as the franchise often was in Fox's hands, the studio hit many of the expected beats fans wanted, so Marvel Studios will have no choice but to shake things up in an eventual reboot.
In recent comics, mutants have established a nation on the sentient island of Krakoa, using portals to travel across the globe. Charles Xavier, meanwhile, has found a way for the Children of the Atom to cheat death. Like Wonder Woman hiding out on Themyscira with her fellow Amazons, this would explain why mutants have been M.I.A. up until this point.
Some, like Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, would've slipped through the cracks, but Charles Xavier having an army at his disposal would explain why mutants are feared and hated upon their emergence.
9. The Swingin' Sixties
As much as we all no doubt want to see the Fantastic Four interacting with heroes like Spider-Man and Captain America, what if their story takes place decades before the Avengers assembled?
It wouldn't be the first time studio bosses have considered setting a big screen adventure featuring this team in the decade they were created, and it would certainly help the franchise stand apart from what's happening in the present day. This reboot could put a fun spin on the 1960s, with the heroes wearing their classic costumes and battling the likes of Mole Man and Annihilus.
If Kevin Feige is really looking to make some bold creative decisions, they could defeat Galactus in the past, only for the villain to return to Earth decades later where he battles a new Fantastic Four led by Franklin and Valeria Richards.
It'd be cool, but might upset some purists.
8. Meet Patch
Set photos from Disney+'s The Falcon and The Winter Soldier have revealed that Sam and Bucky will head to Madripoor, a fictional island nation that's a well-known mutant haven and the home of Madame Viper.
Classic Wolverine villain Ogun has been teased the aforementioned images, but why not have the show make a direct reference to Patch as well? For that matter, why can't whoever Marvel Studios plans to cast as Wolverine debut here in an unexpected, and memorable way?
Patch is the name Wolverine was known by when he donned an eyepatch and started working as a bartender after the X-Men were believed dead. He called Madripoor his home for quite some time, and could easily be hiding out there in the MCU after escaping from the Weapon X programme decades earlier.
Now, tell us you wouldn't want to see that on TV next March.
7. The Snap
Any one of the Snaps could be used to explain the emergence of mutants, but it feels too obvious and a little forced. Sure, the Infinity Stones could activate the X-Gene, but that leads to a whole host of possible plot holes (key characters like Professor X and Magneto would need to be much younger).
For the Fantastic Four, however, this would work fantastically...yes, we're sticking with that pun!
In the comics, Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben steal a spaceship for a test flight, but end up being bombarded by "cosmic rays" which give the team their powers. In the MCU, that storm could be the result of the power of the Infinity Stones being unleashed.
That immediately gives the Fantastic Four a link to the wider MCU too.
6. An Eternals Explanation
Eternals is a film that looks set to explore the MCU's history over thousands of years.
In the comics, the X-Gene was created by the Celestials, and it's them the Eternals will battle (along with the Deviants) next November. Perhaps mutants were a failed experiment before this title team of heroes were born, though it's equally as likely that the characters who eventually make up the X-Men are their descendants.
That doesn't explain where they've been all this time, but with the Eternals set to finally step out of the shadows, perhaps their emergence - and the return of the Celestials - will lead to the X-Gene being "switched back on."
Whatever the case might be, Eternals feels like the right place to explain the MCU's mutants.
5. Spider-Man 3
In Amazing Spider-Man #1, the teenage Peter Parker battled the Chameleon and later attempted to join the Fantastic Four. They turned him down, but the wall-crawler later became best friends with the Human Torch and joined the team in his absence.
With next December's Spider-Man 3 promising to take us into the Spider-Verse, the team could be introduced via Multiverse shenanigans or as an already established group of heroes. If it's the latter, then Jon Watts, the director of Spider-Man 3 and the Fantastic Four reboot, can recreate an iconic scene from the comics.
He hinted at their existence in Spider-Man: Far From Home, while it seems inevitable that Reed and company are the new owners of what was once Avengers Tower.
Expect something in Spider-Man 3, for sure.
4. Trapped Inside The Quantum Realm
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania is quite clearly going to revisit the Quantum Realm, but what if it's known by another name...oh, we don't know, how about the Negative Zone?
A frequent haunt of the Fantastic Four's, and the home of the evil Annihilus, it's possible the team really did first assemble in the 1960, only to become trapped there and emerge decades later (without having aged a day). With Kang the Conqueror part of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, it could be Peyton Reed who gets to introduce this team of heroes.
He's a well-known fan of Marvel's First Family, and Kang has some big ties to them.
He nailed bringing Luke Skywalker back in The Mandalorian, so we would definitely have faith in Reed being the one to hit the reset button on this foursome.
3. Weapon X In Black Widow
This isn't necessarily a full-blown introduction for mutants in the MCU, but next May's Black Widow could still go some way in laying the groundwork for their eventual introduction.
Marvel Studios hasn't shied away from teasing that Black Widow will explore the concept of Russia's Red Room, and it's during those scenes a reference could be made to Weapon X, the clandestine organisation best known for experimenting on mutants (and specifically Wolverine).
This would confirm that mutants have been operating in the shadows - and been victimised by governments - for decades, and a Wolverine tease would have everyone talking.
If a post-credits scene introduces the Thunderbolts, maybe it will be there that General Ross could mention Weapon X for the first time?
2. Galactus In Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3
In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Star-Lord his crew crossing paths with Silver Surfer could be a cool way to confirm that Galactus has awakened and is heading for Earth.
That would likely be because he sensed the power of the Infinity Stones, and while it will be the Fantastic Four who are pivotal in stopping the villain, a tease like this would serve as a perfect way to bring two iconic characters into this shared world and lay the groundwork for Reed and his team to have to step up and take on the MCU's biggest threat yet.
This tease could also take place in a film like Thor: Love and Thunder.
Setting Galactus up as the MCU's next Thanos is a logical next step, and a refreshing change of pace from Doctor Doom.
1. Deadpool Vs. The MCU
Of course we haven't forgotten about Deadpool!
If you're into comics, you're probably familiar with the Deadpool Kills The Marvel Universe stories which take place in an different reality and follow Wade Wilson as he's tasked with taking out the world's greatest heroes.
A film like this could be set in a standalone, R-Rated MCU which does away with any need for lengthy explanations and just has fun inserting the anti-hero into a world where he can interact with familiar faces we never expected he would get the chance to meet (it's a perfect premise for the now confirmed Deadpool 3)
This would mean present day stories would be lacking Deadpool, but a rebooted version with a new actor could show up eventually, and a story like this means Reynolds' tenure can continue without it affecting plans for a full X-Men reboot.