Fans will lap up anything the Marvel Cinematic Universe puts out, such is the connection that audiences all over the world have forged with the franchise across the last thirteen years, and the recent move into episodic television has been more than welcome. WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki all received widespread acclaim, with the first two becoming awards season favorites, but that doesn’t mean people won’t want even more.
After all, content is king in the age of streaming, and one aspect of the MCU capable of generating massive enthusiasm from the fanbase would be the return of the Marvel One-Shot. The Consultant, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor’s Hammer, Item 47, Agent Carter and All Hail the King provided brief bursts of backstory and entertainment, roping in several recognizable faces along the way.
Agent Carter even led to Hayley Atwell getting her own TV show, while All Hail the King set a subplot in motion that’s finally being paid off this weekend when Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings arrives. It’s been seven years since the last One-Shot, but we’re hearing from our sources – the same ones who told us Captain America 4 with Anthony Mackie was in development long before it was confirmed – that they could be brought back as streaming exclusives.
The Simpsons have moved into short film territory on Disney Plus, so there’s no reason why Marvel couldn’t follow suit. The One-Shots were generally filmed during production on the movies they were spun off from, so it wouldn’t take much effort on the logistical side of things to have a string of five-to-fifteen minute interludes drop in between each new MCU show, and they’d be guaranteed to go down a storm with subscribers.
