The Marvel Cinematic Universe is looking a little more fearless with every passing day; though it may never take the creative risks that so often pay off for a studio like A24, the emergence of Disney Plus especially has allowed Marvel Studios to branch off into new ideas and genres that it hadn’t previously explored before, such as the astoundingly refreshing WandaVision, which just so happened to kick off the whole of Phase Four.
Last year in particular saw the MCU get even wilder; thanks to director Sam Raimi’s signature touch, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness saw the franchise dip its toes into the horror genre, only to go waist-deep several months later with the release of the Werewolf by Night television special, which introduced the eponymous monster, Elsa Bloodstone, and Man-Thing to the MCU in a wickedly creative, gore-happy outing that may have never found its way to the big screen otherwise.
According to Stephen Broussard, who served as a producer on Werewolf by Night and has been involved with the franchise since 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger, Marvel won’t be stepping away from horror any time soon, revealing in an interview with ComicBook that some particularly spooky characters are well on their way.
“Well, I will say that we’re starting to introduce some cool characters that are in the darker side, the more monster side and the supernatural and the occult in a very organic way as you’re seeing these character pop up. I think in very organic ways, it feels like there could be ways to continue those stories in ways that feel very fresh and new and keeping our toe in that horror side of things.”
As for who these characters could be, several obvious choices spring to mind immediately. We’ll be surprised if the upcoming Blade movie doesn’t lend itself to any horror elements, and Doctor Strange’s next outing will likely be taking place in the Dark Dimension, which will open up whole new doors for occult-tinged themes and characters. And, of course, it’s only a matter of time until Ghost Rider shows up; an appearance that will no doubt elicit some of the loudest cheers imaginable.
Broussard’s latest gig, however, was producing the highly anticipated Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which will release to theaters on Feb. 17, and just might add one more Avenger to the “deceased” category.
