This is my first editorial, so feel free to offer me any future tips and tricks.
I'm posting this here to offer my insights into what options Marvel Studios might take to expand their in film universe. Before I get to that however, let's take a look at the current trends in the MCU. For starters, what films already exist (or are planned) in that world:
2008 - Iron Man
2008 - The Incredible Hulk
2010 - Iron Man 2
2011 - Thor
2011 - Captain America: The First Avenger
2012 - The Avengers
2013 - Iron Man 3
2013 - Thor: The Dark World
2014 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier
2014 - Guardians of the Galaxy
2015 - Avengers: Age of Ultron
2015 - Ant-Man
Of these twelve films, six are "origin" stories, four are single character sequels, and two are ensemble crossover pieces.
Note: I counted GOTG as an origin story, and from here on out I will refer to the Guardians team as a single character. If that puts you off at all, I apologize, but that's how I've chosen to proceed.
Now as lucky as we are to have this awesome web of stories and characters, we the fans, are never satisfied. We always want more, but the good news is that Marvel always wants to give us more. We want more heroes pulled from the comics, we want more sequels, and we want more ensemble pieces. The problem is that Marvel Studios has only just stabilized at two films per year. Kevin Feige has expressed interest in producing three films per year, but that is at least a few years away.
The problem that this causes is that we only have 6 feature carrying characters: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Ant-Man, and the Guardians. Between two films per year and the necessity for sequels, Marvel's ability to expand (without cutting off the older franchises) will become severely limited. What would be the best course of action to avoid such an issue?
Let's now consider a few of the different options for Phase 3 of the MCU. We the fans have a lot of different ideas and we've also heard rumors of what may pop up. Here's a list of
some of the possibilities, the rumors, and fan wishes:
Captain America 3
Thor 3
Guardians of the Galaxy 2
Doctor Strange
Black Panther
Inhumans
Iron Man 4
Ms. Marvel
The Incredible Hulk 2
I'm sure you could think of more. But there is no way Marvel will be doing more than 6 films before Avengers 3. Even that seems like a stretch. But that doesn't mean we have to sacrifice all of those characters. And so here are my two suggestions to Marvel Studios:
1)
On occasion, use established character sequels to introduce new super heroes. For example, introduce Black Panther in the third Captain America and then wait until the next "phase" to give BP a stand alone film.
2)
Again, on occasion, give us partner movies of previously established characters, that can work as a sequel to both character franchises. For example, Marvel is hesitant to give us another Hulk film and they are also going to lose RDJ soon, so why not make the best of both situations and give us a Hulk & Iron Man partner movie in Phase 3.
This would help Marvel increase the amount of characters we want to see, without drastically increasing the amount of films they produce each year. It would be the perfect growth plan as they work towards three films a year.
What do you guys think? Would you like to see team ups and obvious cross overs happen outside of the large ensemble films? I know I would. And this method doesn't have to dominate the majority of their films, either. One year the Hulk may be in a crossover, but then a few years later he can pop up in his own film. So on and so forth with all of the other characters as well. Leave your thoughts in the comments section. I'd love to see what you all have to say.