Spider-Man: Homecoming
Release: July 7th, 2017
Directed by: Jon Watts
Written by: Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, Jon Watts, Christopher Ford, Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Downey Jr., Marisa Tomei, Donald Glover, Michael Keaton, Jon Favreau, Hannibal Buress, Bokeem Woodbine, Kenneth Choi
Significant characters introduced: Michelle, Ned, Flash Thompson, Adrian Toomes/Vulture, Herman Schultz/Shocker, Mac Gargan, Aaron Davis.
Notable universe developments: Tony Stark sells Avengers Tower in New York with a view to consolidating Avengers resources at the new upstate Headquarters; Contractors, under the guidance of Adrian Toomes, scavenge for alien and Stark technology at the site of Avengers incidents, and weaponize them for crime; Spider-Man is revealed to the world and makes enemies of Adrian Toomes and Mac Gargan; Spider-Man rejects an offer to move to the Avengers Headquarters, Tony Stark reveals his intention to propose to Pepper Potts.
Spider-Man: Homecoming is based on the Marvel character of the same name, created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in 1962.
After the seismic events of Captain America: Civil War, 15 year-old Peter Parker struggles to strike a balance between high school student life, and the pressures of being a superhero. Tony Stark steps in as his mentor, and tasks Happy Hogan with day-to-day supervision of the young web-slinger. Parker’s desire to take on more responsibility conflicts with Stark’s desire to restrict his activities in light of his relative inexperience. Parker also goes to great lengths to keep his superhero status secret from his Aunt, May (Marisa Tomei) – with whom he lives. His best friend Ned, however, discovers his secret, and nominates himself to be Parker’s “man in the chair.”
Amid these power struggles, Parker becomes aware that Adrian Toomes is scavenging technology from the Avengers incidents sites and weaponizing them for criminal enterprise. Parker repeatedly tries to warn Stark, who is dismissive of his claims – so Parker takes Toomes on himself.
In supporting roles, we meet Aaron Davis (Donald Glover), whose nephew is Miles Morales – setting up possible future appearances by that Spider-verse character. Additionally, Mac Gargan (Michael Mando) features in a credits sequence clip with an imprisoned Vulture, suggesting future appearances by Scorpion.
Thor: Ragnarok
Release: October 27th, 2017 (UK)/November 3rd, 2017 (US)
Directed by: Taika Waititi
Written by: Stephany Folsom, Eric Pearson, Christopher Yost, Craig Kyle
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Mark Ruffalo, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jaime Alexander, Karl Urban, Tessa Thompson, Anthony Hopkins, Jeff Goldblum
Significant characters introduced: Hela, Valkyrie, Grandmaster, Skurge.
Rumours: Thor needs to find the ultimate weapon to prevent Ragnarok (the end of all things) – does Hulk prove to be that ultimate weapon? Is Hela – Asgardian goddess of Death – the motivation for Thanos collecting the Infinity Stones? Doctor Strange may appear; it is possible that Hulk will ultimately help Thor prevent Ragnarok, which brings them both back in from the cold in time for Avengers: Infinity War.
Thor is stranded, out in the universe, without his hammer. Desperately trying to make his way home before Hela destroys his world with Ragnarok – an apocalyptic event – he crosses paths with Hulk, who is stuck on a planet undertaking Gladiator matches. Thor and Hulk must fight each other to survive, in what seems to be an epic Thor-Planet Hulk story mash-up.
The main villain will be Hela (played by Cate Blanchett), the Asgardian goddess of Death and ruler of Hel and Niflhelm. She is joined by the villainous Grandmaster (played by Jeff Goldblum), who is an Elder Of The Universe, master manipulator, and expert in the games of chance of most civilisations.
Valkyrie (played by Tessa Thompson) and Skurge (played by Karl Urban) will also appear. They are both Asgardian warriors, though Skurge is known as a sometime antagonist turned hero, by the events of Ragnarok.
Black Panther
Release: February 16th, 2018
Directed by: Ryan Coogler
Written by: Ryan Coogler, Joe Robert Cole
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’o, Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Forest Whitaker, Angela Bassett, Andy Serkis, Daniel Kaluuya, Florence Kasumba, Letitia Wright, Sterling K. Brown
Significant characters introduced: Erik Killmonger, Okoye, Nakia, M’Baku/Man-Ape, Zuri, N’Jobu, Ramonda, W’Kabi, Ayo.
Rumours: Possible appearances by Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Everett Ross (Martin Freeman), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), and Captain America (Chris Evans); John Boyega may appear; Though Nakia becomes the supervillain Malice in the comic books, the inclusion of Man-Ape as a second villain suggests she will remain a Dora Milaje and fight alongside Black Panther in this movie – possibly indicating that the Malice storyline could be used in a later movie (and therefore Erik Killmonger could also return, since Malice is his ally); Additional characters may include: Monica Lynne (T’Challa’s love interest), N’Gassi (a senior advisor to T’Challa), Queen Divine Justice (Queen of the Jabari tribe), Achebe (an unhinged warrior-mystic), and White Wolf (T’Challa’s estranged, adopted older brother).
Black Panther is based upon the Marvel character of the same name, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1966.
The known plot details of Black Panther are currently limited to it being a story about the newly crowned King T’Challa having to defend his country of Wakanda from enemies both without and within. The casting of Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger suggests that the story will include Killmonger’s attempted coup, as he seeks revenge for his temporary exile and the death of his father.
Erik Killmonger is an expert martial artist with a genius intellect. His father was manipulated into treachery by Ulysses Klaue, and consequently died. As a result, Killmonger was exiled to New York, where he watched T’Challa become a superhero. He then appealed to the newly crowned King for clemency, and returned to Wakanda to plot his coup.
Also cast are two Dora Milaje. The Dora Milaje are the personal guards of the Wakandan King, and ceremonial wives-in-training. They are selected from each of the rival tribes to serve with the King as a peace-keeping measure. They speak only to the King, and only in the obscure Hausa dialect. Okoye (played by Danai Gurira) is the Head of the Dora Milaje, and close friend of colleague Nakia (played by Lupita Nyong’o). Additionally, Winston Duke has been cast as M’Baku – one time friend of T’Challa who kills and eats a white gorilla, becoming the powerful supervillain Man-Ape. In this guise in the comics, he tries to overthrow T’Challa as leader of Wakanda.
