‘Deadpool 3’ and ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ reaching opposite milestones days apart proves 2024 will make or break the MCU

What a busy year for Marvel 2024 is turning out to be. January has delivered not just all of Echo and the digital release of The Marvels but also major updates for both Deadpool 3 and Daredevil: Born Again. As they say, when one door closes another must open…

On Jan. 22, the much-anticipated reboot of the Man Without Fear’s adventures resumed filming, following a long break brought about by both the 2023 strikes and a major creative overhaul which saw the show’s writers and directors replaced. Meanwhile, on Jan. 24, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman announced that production had finally wrapped on DP3, which has likewise had an uphill journey since cameras started rolling last May.

So while one of Marvel’s most eagerly awaited projects calls it a day, another is just starting out in its new form. And the coincidence of these two comings and goings happening in the same week reminds us just how important this year is to the MCU at large.

Deadpool 3 and Daredevil: Born Again will determine the future of the MCU on the big and small screens

It’s hard to sugarcoat it: 2023 was almost a uniform disaster for Marvel Studios across the board. Barring the success of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (which speaks more to the chances of James Gunn’s DCU than the future of Marvel), the studio was hit by flop after flop, from Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania to Secret Invasion to The Marvels.

With even a sequel to a billion-dollar earner (2019’s Captain Marvel), one which also teased the arrival of the X-Men, crashing at the box office, it’s clear that the studio needs to win back audiences ASAP. And, wouldn’t you know it, it has literally one single attempt in which to do that this year, as July’s Deadpool 3 is Marvel’s only cinematic release of 2024.

Unfortunately, Marvel’s Disney Plus endeavors are facing their own crisis. As She-Hulk being canned due to exorbitant costs makes plain, the studio is going to have to majorly rethink how it makes these shows. Luckily, it’s already in the process of doing that, hence Marvel taking the drastic measure with Born Again to go back to the drawing board halfway through. Casting updates offer an encouraging tease that this was the right decision.

Although Born Again won’t be premiering until 2025, the upcoming TV releases — Agatha: Darkhold Diaries, for example — were produced via the old way of doing things. The Daredevil revival, meanwhile, looks to be the start of a brand-new era. Or, rather, one that goes back to Netflix’s successful methodology — street-level, cheaper shows with longer episode counts.

Similarly, Deadpool 3 seems to be going back to what worked so well for Marvel during the Infinity Saga: star power squared. The partnership of Reynolds and Jackman, and Deadpool and Wolverine, will be the big make-or-break test that determines whether the right combination of movie stars and beloved characters can still reel ’em in like it used to.

Basically, if either or both Daredevil: Born Again and Deadpool 3 fail then, well, we might not need Kang to threaten the Marvel multiverse. Good luck, boys, you’re going to need it.