Well, well, well… another
huge comic-book movie announcement, another opportunistic Minty article about it! I’m sure by now you’re all aware of the fantastic news Marvel have just released: Civil War! Captain Marvel! Black Panther!
Howard The Duck! It appears that Feige and his team have pulled it out of the bag with another exciting slate of movies.
But what does this mean for the comic-book movie market in general? There are many who believe such a high number of superhero films per year will oversaturate the genre. Personally, I’d love to see this bubble continue to grow – at least until 2019, and hopefully much further beyond that. But in the meantime, it’s not a question
we, the consumer, need to be worrying out - as long as the quality’s still there.
So sit back, put your feet up, and enjoy the next six years!
Note: While a lot of this information has been confirmed, it’s important to keep in mind that scheduling conflicts, script re-writes, and various end-of-the-world scenarios could cause changes to release dates/directors in the future.
(*Director is not officially confirmed)
2015
Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Marvel Studios – May 1
st, 2015
Director: Joss Whedon
The Buzz: Joining everyone’s favourite Avengers this time around are brother-sister duo
Scarlet Witch and
Quicksilver, who, from the trailers, appear to boast some pretty impressive abilities. Elsewhere, Andy Serkis’ mystery role appears to be
Ulysses Klaw - potentially setting up a visit to
Wakanda. However, the most exciting addition has to be James Spader’s
Ultron – the villain of the piece, who looks truly terrifying.
Ant-Man, Marvel Studios - July 17
th, 2015
Director: Peyton Reed
The Buzz: Almost the ‘forgotten child’ of the MCU, Ant-Man is finally making his big screen debut after some long-term behind the scenes drama. Paul Rudd will play
Scott Lang, and joining him is a fantastic supporting cast, headlined by Michael Douglas’
Hank Pym, and Evangeline Lilly as Pym’s daughter,
Hope Van Dyne – a character who may well go on to become
The Wasp. This movie will mark the end of
Phase 2.
The Fantastic Four, 20
th Century Fox – August 7
th, 2015
Director: Josh Trank
The Buzz: This reboot sees
Chronicle’s Josh Trank stamp his own unique style of filmmaking on Marvel’s first family. Not much is known as far as the story goes, but a lot of work has seemingly gone in to make it ‘gritty and realistic’ – and you can bet it’s an origins tale too. The movie’s cast is undeniably full of rising talent, and Toby Kebbel’s take on
Doctor Doom ought to be a villain that fans can truly be excited to see.
2016
Deadpool, 20
th Century Fox – February 12
th, 2016
Director: Tim Miller*
The Buzz: Expectations for this movie couldn’t be higher after that brilliant test footage leak. Regardless of the PG-13/R-Rated debate that endlessly follows this movie around, the key to success here is finding the right
tone - and lead actor Ryan Reynolds looks the right man to deliver it. While it’s most likely a solo outing for
Wade Wilson, don’t rule out seeing a few
X-Men easter eggs – they’re part of the same universe.
Batman V. Superman: Dawn Of Justice, DC/WB – March 25
th, 2016
Director: Zack Snyder
The Buzz: The ‘key to the DCCU’ – this movie will launch DC’s much-anticipated shared universe. In addition to appearances from Ben Affleck’s
Batman and Jesse Eisenberg’s
Lex Luthor, we’ll also be seeing
Cyborg,
Aquaman and
Wonder Woman for the first time, and maybe a few more
Justice League hero cameos too. This is still primarily believed to be a sequel to Man Of Steel – so expect the lead role to be
Superman’s.
Captain America: Civil War, Marvel Studios – May 6
th, 2016
Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
The Buzz: Almost acting as an Avengers: 2.5, Cap 3 will continue the stories from both
Age Of Ultron and
The Winter Soldier. The core premise of the story will, however, be the rivalry between
Tony Stark and
Steve Rogers as Marvel adapt the famous ‘Civil War’ storyline. Caught in between them will be Chadwick Boseman’s
Black Panther, while fans can hope to see a host of MCU heroes – from
Ant-Man to the
Hulk.
X-Men: Apocalypse, 20
th Century Fox – May 27
th, 2016
Director: Bryan Singer
The Buzz: X-Men: Days Of Future Past changed the X-Men franchise for good, and the movie’s sequel will explore the new future it created. Most likely set in the
1980s, Bryan Singer is rumoured to be on the hunt for younger versions of
Storm,
Cyclops and
Jean Grey, as James McAvoy’s
Charles Xavier prepares to face his biggest threat yet:
Apocalypse. Channing Tatum’s
Gambit is likely to appear in a small role too.
Suicide Squad, DC/WB – August 5
th, 2016
Director: David Ayer
The Buzz: With David Ayer now seemingly confirmed to helm this piece, WB are looking to cast some A-List acting talent in the lead roles – including the likes of Will Smith, Ryan Gosling, Tom Hardy and Margot Robbie. The roster has yet to be announced, but you can bet that
Deadshot is involved, while
Capt. Boomerang,
Harley Quinn and
Lex Luthor have all been rumoured to appear.
Doctor Strange, Marvel Studios – November 4
th, 2016
Director: Scott Derrickson
The Buzz: Kevin Feige’s passion project will open up a new ‘supernatural corner’ of the MCU, aiming to be the most visually breath-taking Marvel movie yet. Bennedict Cumberbatch is being heavily linked to the lead role as the arrogant but brilliant
Stephen Strange – set to take on
Iron Man’s responsibilities as the MCU’s ‘core hero’. Don’t rule out appearances from either
Scarlet Witch or an
Infinity Stone here.
Sinister Six, Sony – November 11
th, 2016
Director: Drew Goddard
The Buzz: In light of
Spider-Man’s bad publicity, and the recent Marvel and DC news, this movie may end up moving or simply not happening altogether. If it is released, it’ll be sure to feature Dane DeHaan’s
Green Goblin and Paul Giamatti’s
Rhino, while
Kraven,
Mysterio,
Vulture and
Doctor Octopus are all believed to be in the frame. The
TASM franchise has stalled somewhat recently. Will this get things back on track?
2017
Untitled Wolverine Sequel, 20
th Century Fox – March 3
rd, 2017
Director: James Mangold
The Buzz: Wolverine’s stand-alone 2013 adventure was, for the most part, a big success, prompting Hollywood’s longest serving superhero, Hugh Jackman, to re-team with director James Mangold. Free to adapt almost whatever they choose in this new timeline, many believe we’ll get to see
Old Man Logan – or perhaps a fresh take on the
Weapon X Saga... you know...
without butchering Deadpool…
Guardians Of The Galaxy 2, Marvel Studios – May 5
th, 2017
Director: James Gunn
The Buzz: Everyone’s favourite bunch of A-Holes return with a new and improved May release date – showing just how much faith Marvel have in this kooky little franchise. Likely to spin-off into deeper cosmic mythology, the movie will hopefully reveal the identity of
Star-Lord’s father, as well as feature more of Marvel’s cosmic universe. If the rumours are true, we may see
Hulk,
Thanos &
Adam Warlock too.
Wonder Woman, DC/WB – June 23
rd, 2017
Director: TBD
The Buzz: The first solo female superhero outing (that we’d like to remember at least…) rests on the shoulders of comics’ most famous heroine. Appropriate, isn’t it? With the release being so far away, not much is known about this project, but for the fact that it'll star Gal Gadot – building on her appearance in
Batman V Superman the year before. This movie will most likely set-up
Justice League.
The Fantastic Four 2, 20
th Century Fox – July 14
th, 2017
Director: Josh Trank*
The Buzz: Fox are confident, aren’t they? Assuming everything goes well, and Josh Trank and co are able to smash it out of the park with 2015’s
The Fantastic Four, we should be getting a sequel two years later. With both
Doom and
Mole Man involved in the first movie, fans can hope to see a little bit more of the cosmic side of the F4-verse with this one – possibly leading towards either
Galactus or
Annihilus?
Thor: Ragnarok, Marvel Studios – July 26
th, 2017
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Reuniting
Thor with his fan-favourite brother
Loki, this movie is said to “impact everything that comes after” it in the MCU, with an effect comparable to
The Winter Soldier’s on Phase 2. Kevin Feige claimed that
Ragnarok in this sense was meant to represent “the end of all things”. However it plays out, fans will most likely see
Surtur as the movie’s villain, as well as further exploration of the nine realms.
Black Panther, Marvel Studios – November 3
rd, 2017
Director: TBD
The Buzz: It’s finally happening! After making his first appearance in
Civil War, this movie will likely flesh out the character of
T’Challa, - perhaps including his origins. With
Ulysses Klaw likely to pop-up in
Age Of Ultron, and with him, hopefully,
Wakanda, we may already have had a significant peek at the story of
Black Panther onscreen. One thing’s for certain though: Chadwick Boseman will own the role.
Justice League, DC/WB – November 17
th, 2017
Director: Zack Snyder
The Buzz: This is what it all comes down to, in the DC Cinematic Universe. Uniting
Batman,
Superman,
Wonder Woman,
Aquaman,
The Flash,
Cyborg and possibly
Green Lantern too to protect the Earth from a powerful threat. The villain is widely rumoured to be
Brainiac, while the story will most likely set-up the arrival of
Darkseid in
Justice League, Part 2, in 2019.
Untitled Female Spider-Man Spin-Off, Sony – Unknown, 2017
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Not much is known about this property, although the protagonist is widely rumoured to be Felicity Jones’
Felicia Hardy aka
Black Cat. Much like the
Sinister Six, the release of this film all depends on Sony’s future plans with its
Spider-Man universe – and whether they were affected by the new Marvel/DC titles. You have to wonder how a character like Black Cat could sustain a movie by herself though…
Venom/Carnage, Sony – Unknown, 2017
Director: Alex Kurtzman
The Buzz: This is a movie Sony have had in the works for a very long time now. It’s easy to see it’s a appeal:
Venom is a fan-favourite character, and could make for a fantastic movie subject if handled correctly. Additionally, the deranged
Cletus Kassidy is a villain
Spider-Man fans have been waiting to see for years. However, with 2017 so full of CBMs already, it would not be surprising to see this movie delayed a further.
2018
The Flash, DC/WB – March 23
rd, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: The reaction to Ezra Miller as
The Flash was incredibly mixed, with many hailing his fantastic acting ability, while others questioned his physical likeness to the role. Regardless, we’ll only be able to judge fairly closer to the time of release. By then, general audience buzz for the Scarlet Speedster should be at an all-time high, with Grant Gustin and co. delivering the goods week-in-week-out over on The CW.
Avengers: Infinity War, Part 1, Marvel Studios – May 4
th, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Well this was inevitable. It’s
Thanos Vs.
The Avengers (and hopefully a few friends) as the first three Phases of the MCU begin their exciting climax. It’s difficult to speculate on any details, but you can imagine
Civil War and
Ragnarok will both play a big part in the build-up to this movie. As for the villain, expect the Mad Titan to have a limited role as The Avengers fight a smaller foe – as well as
each other!
Captain Marvel, Marvel Studios – July 6
th, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Meet
Carol Danvers – a member of the USAF whose encounter with a
Kree named
Mahr-Vehl left her as a Kree-Human hybrid… with superpowers to boot. Like Black Panther, by the time this movie rolls around, we may have already been introduced to Carol – either in
Age Of Ultron or
Guardians Of The Galaxy 2. Regardless, this movie will definitely play a key role in the
Infinity Gauntlet storyline.
Untitled X-Men Movie, 20
th Century Fox – July 13
th, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: This is most likely one of three films: either a sequel to 2016’s
X-Men: Apocalypse, an
X-Force spin-off, or a
Gambit solo movie. Personally, I’m leaning towards the latter, with Channing Tatum already confirmed to play the fan-favourite character in his own movie. If so, don’t rule out appearances from the likes of
Rogue,
The Marauders and potentially even
Mister Sinister as the movie’s main villain.
Aquaman, DC/WB – July 27
th, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: “
Aquaman sucks!” Said no one, ever... once they had a look at Jason Momoa, that is. It’s already pretty clear that we’re going to get a more badass, barbaric side to the King of the Ocean – who will have already appeared in 2016’s
Batman V Superman and 2017’s
Justice League by the time we get to see this. Joining Orin will most likely be his wife
Mera, his treacherous brother,
Ocean Master and
Black Manta.
Inhumans, Marvel Studios – November 2
nd, 2018
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Set to introduce a host of new characters to the MCU, this movie will likely not only play into the
Infinity Gauntlet story, but also set-up Marvel’s ‘post-Avengers’ future. It will likely centre around the royal family (led by the all-powerful
Black Bolt), but may also feature an Earth-based storyline, involving various
Miracles created by the
Terrigan Mists – so don’t rule out seeing
Scarlet Witch or
Quicksilver either.
The Amazing Spider-Man 3, Sony – Unknown, 2018
Director: Mark Webb*
The Buzz: Six months ago, Sony seemed a lot more confidant about their
Spider-Man universe, setting a summer 2016 release for this threequel, as well as looking at a number of spin-offs too. Since then, this film has seen a two-year delay, possibly on the back of it’s predecessor’s mixed critical and commercial performance. The story and existence of this movie now heavily depends on the outcome of
Sinister Six.
2019
Shazam, DC/WB – April 5
th, 2019
Director: TBD
The Buzz: Likely to be based on Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s excellent New 52 relaunch, DC’s latest adventure will focus on
Billy Batson, a young teen who gains extraordinary powers, allowing him to turn into the adult hero known as
Shazam. The Rock will play his nemesis,
Black Adam, while family has always been a key theme with this character, so expect appearances from
Mary Marvel and
Freddie Freeman too.
Avengers: Infinity War, Part 2, Marvel Studios – May 3
rd, 2019
Director: TBD
The Buzz: “And so we come to it at last.” This is the movie that ends Marvel’s 11-year project, which began with
Iron Man all those years ago, and spawned one of the greatest franchises in movie history. It will probably be the last time we will see the likes of
Tony Stark,
Captain America and
Thor as they team-up with a new generation of
Avengers,
The Guardians Of The Galaxy and maybe even
The Inhumans to defeat the Mad Titan,
Thanos - once and for all.
Justice League, Part 2, DC/WB - June 14
th, 2019
Director: Zack Snyder
The Buzz: 2019 is likely to be a very special year for the CBM fan. For the first time ever, we will be receiving movies from both Marvel and DC’s premiere teams in the same calendar year. Matching
The Infinity Gauntlet’s Thanos will be DC’s universal big bad:
Darkseid, as he takes his war to Earth to fight the
Justice League. With a 2020 movie on the horizon, expect
Green Lantern in particular to play a big role in this movie, as well as a few more new faces.
The Future
With
Green Lantern and
Cyborg solo movies already confirmed for 2020, the superhero movie-making machine certainly doesn’t stop in 2019. Who can count against Batman and Superman movies popping up at some point? Elsewhere, Marvel have already sown their seeds for a fourth and fifth Phase with their
Doctor Strange and
Inhumans franchises, while there’s no telling what Fox or Sony have planned beyond 2016. We could be receiving updated slates from either company at any point in the near future.
However, if there were ever a perfect time for the ‘bubble’ to burst, it would be at the end of this magnificent period. All good things must come to an end, and it would be wonderful to watch both The Avengers and The Justice League go out with a bang - for the fans - rather than being dragged out for profit motivations. Regardless, I do believe that 2019 will represent the ‘end of an era’ of sorts – but that doesn’t necessarily mean the CBMs have to stop. They just have to... adapt.
It’s going to be a great few years.
Thanks for reading! Apologies to
MrBlackjack for borrowing his trademark gif-subject! So, which of these movies are you looking forward to the most? Do you think the industry will continue being so successful with all these movies coming out? Let me know below in the
comments, and hit the big red
thumbs-up if you enjoyed this!
I’ve been Minty. You’ve been wonderful. Check out my blog if you’re interested too!