Superhero movies are ubiquitous at this point, and the biggest name in the game is Marvel. Not just any Marvel, mind you, but Marvel Studios. Starting with 2008’s “Iron Man,” Marvel Studios and its now-president Kevin Feige started experimenting with the idea of telling one long, interconnected story over multiple movies with different lead characters, crossing over from time to time – just like in the comics. That experiment proved successful with 2012’s “The Avengers,” and it’s been hit after hit ever since.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to grow, even in the wake of the conclusive nature of 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” and it can be hard to keep track of what’s coming down the pike. Below, we’ve assembled a list of every confirmed MCU movie currently in the works, when it’s coming out, who’s in it, and what we know about each project so far.
This list is specific to only Marvel Cinematic Universe Marvel movies, so you won’t find Sony’s “Venom 3” on this list.
Check out a full list of upcoming Marvel movie release dates below.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Release Date: May 5, 2023
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Will Poulter, Chukwudi Iwuju, Elizabeth Debicki, Sylvester Stallone, Maria Bakalova, Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper
While originally scheduled to go into production in 2019, “Guardians of the Galaxy 3” hit a snag when writer/director James Gunn was briefly fired off the film. He made “The Suicide Squad” first, but “Vol. 3” is now set to begin filming in November 2021 with Gunn back in the director’s chair. The filmmaker has described the film as a concluding chapter for this iteration of the Guardians, specifically as it pertains to their story arc. Will Poulter will be playing fan-favorite Marvel character Adam Warlock in the film, while “Peacemaker” actor Chukwudi Iwuju plays the High Evolutionary. Maria Bakalova provides the voice of Cosmo the Spacedog. Production began in Nov. 2021 and the first trailer was released in December 2022.
The Marvels
Release Date: Nov. 10, 2023
Cast: Brie Larson, Iman Vellani, Teyonah Parris, Zawe Ashton, Saagar Shakih, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur and Park Seo-joon
Followingf her new take on “Candyman,” Nia DaCosta directs the “Captain Marvel” sequel “The Marvels” from a screenplay by Meghan McDonnell. As the title suggests, the film brings together Brie Larson’s superhero with other heroes in the MCU – namely Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau from “WandaVision” and Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel from the Disney+ series “Ms. Marvel.” The story concerns the three characters swapping places with one another every time they use their powers, so they must unite to find out why. The film was originally scheduled to be released in July, but was pushed back to November.
Captain America: New World Order
Release Date: May 3, 2024
Cast: Anthony Mackie, Tim Blake Nelson, Carl Lumbly, Danny Ramirez, Shiri Haas and Harrison Ford
“Captain America 4” is officially subtitled “New World Order,” and will finds Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson picking up the mantle of Captain America after the events of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” Julius Onah (“Luce”, “The Cloverfield Paradox”) is set to direct from a screenplay by Malcolm Spellman (“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” head writer) and Dalan Musson, and Tim Blake Nelson will be reprising his “The Incredible Hulk” role as villain The Leader. Carl Lumbly and Danny Ramirez return from “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” Harrison Ford also takes over the role of Thaddeus Ross from the late William Hurt.
Thunderbolts
Release Date: July 26, 2024
Cast: Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Hannah John-Kamen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Harrison Ford
In the comics, the Thunderbolts are a team of Marvel villains tasked with forming a team by the government, and Marvel announced at D23 in September that this film’s lineup will include Yelena (Florence Pugh), Alexi (David Harbour), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and their leader Valentina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). Jake Schrier (“Paper Towns”) is directing from a screenplay by Eric Pearson (“Black Widow”). Filming is due to begin in July 2023.
Blade
Release Date: Sept. 6, 2024
Cast: Mahershala Ali and Delroy Lindo
A release date has not yet been set for the MCU’s “Blade” reboot, but the film does have a star and a director. Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali will play the daywalking vampire. Bassam Tariq was set to direct from a screenplay by Stacy Osei-Kuffour, but Tariq exited the film in September 2022 ahead of a November production start. Marvel subsequently tapped Yann Demange (“White Boy Rick”) to direct.
Deadpool 3
Release Date: Nov. 8, 2024
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and Emma Corrin
Since Disney’s acquisition of Fox, the “Deadpool” franchise is now poised to formally join the Marvel Cinematic Universe — in all its R-rated glory. Ryan Reynolds has tapped his “The Adam Project” and “Free Guy” director Shawn Levy to take the helm, and while sisters Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin were the film’s original screenwriters, original “Deadpool” scribes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are now working on the screenplay. Reynolds announced in September 2022 that Hugh Jackman will be co-starring in the film as Wolverine, while noting the sequel won’t undo his character’s death in 2017’s “Logan.” How, exactly? It’s the multiverse, baby!
Emma Corrin joined the ensemble in February.
Fantastic Four
Release Date: Feb. 14, 2025
Cast: TBA
Another Marvel movie that’s been confirmed but doesn’t have a release date is a reboot of “Fantastic Four.” Marvel Studios gained control of these characters for the first time when Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, which had previously licensed the characters for use in two prior franchise attempts. Jon Watts, who directed all three “Spider-Man” movies for the MCU, was attached to direct, but he dropped out of the project in April 2022. In August 2022, Matt Shakman — who directed all of “WandaVision” — signed on to direct, dropping out of spearheading the next “Star Trek” movie in the process. The cast has not yet been announced, but Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer are writing the screenplay.
And according to John Krasinski, he is not likely to reprise his role as Reed Richards. Filming is not expected to begin until early 2024.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty
Release Date: May 2, 2025
The first of two “Avengers” films that will cap off Phase 6 of the MCU — and “The Multiverse Saga” as it’s now known — is called “The Kang Dynasty.” That sets up Jonathan Majors’ Kang as the Big Bad of the next few years of Marvel movies, first appearing in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” after we met his variant in “Loki.” If the title of this film has anything to do with the comics with the same name, it’ll find Kang taking over Earth. “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton is onboard to direct while Jeff Loveness (“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” “Rick and Morty”) is writing the screenplay.
Avengers: Secret Wars
Release Date: May 1, 2026
Cast: TBA
Fans have long waited for Marvel to adapt the “Secret Wars” comics run, and it appears they’ll get their wish. In the comics, “Secret Wars” found a being of immense power teleporting a bevy of Marvel heroes and villains to a planet called “the battleworld” where they were forced to fight to the death. Michael Waldron, the head writer of “Loki” Season 1 and screenwriter of “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” is writing the screenplay.
