What do Marvel and Disney+ have in store for 2024? There’s more questions than answers, but the shows on the short list are highly intriguing.
One of the biggest complaints about the MCU’s Phase 4 is the lack of a linchpin to bring the sprawling universe together. The hallmark of the first three phases was how the movies introduced characters that interlocked into the larger Infinity Saga. It began with the Avengers banding together to combat Loki, who was merely a pawn of Thanos. The MCU culminated with Phase 3’s Infinity War and Endgame, which both induced cheers from theatrical audiences worldwide.
Phase 4 began last year with Disney+’s first MCU episodic entry, WandaVision, and the streaming series comprised the foundation of the latest chapters. The trouble for many viewers has been that much of it seems disjointed in comparison to the first three phases. Loki teased Kang’s arrival, but nothing else has mentioned him. Once San Diego Comic-Con came around, things started falling in place with the announcement of The Multiverse Saga, and Disney+ will apparently lean heavily into the concept of the Multiverse in the upcoming arc.
As laid out in SDCC, Marvel has a packed schedule between 2023 and 2024, though the latter has a bit more wiggle room, particularly for the shows. When it comes to the Disney+ roster, nothing past the remainder of 2022 is set in stone. In fact, none of the streaming series on the slate for 2023 or 2024 have concrete release dates. Instead, Marvel has given a seasonal window for the shows’ premieres, though it should still be in the ballpark of when we will actually see the latest offerings.
Release date: Winter/Spring
Starring Kathryn Hahn
When Marvel Studios announced that Agatha Harkness would star in her own spinoff show, it took most of us by surprise. The antagonist for WandaVision was dispatched when Wanda Maximoff became the Scarlet Witch and completed her story arc. The last we saw of Agatha, she had been enchanted to believe she was once again the wacky neighbor, and Wanda left her in Westview, New Jersey.
There’s no definitive plan for when this show will be released, and the window spans from winter 2023 to spring 2024 and all parts in between. If the plot follows the comics, Agatha could run into her magical son, Nicholas Scratch. Don’t forget that Agatha’s pet rabbit happened to be named “Scratch,” and it has led to plenty of theories that the bunny is actually Nicholas. In the comics, Nicholas condemns Agatha for adopting the modern world and, in his eyes, rejecting the secret magical community.
Release date: Spring
Starring: Charlie Cox, Vincent D’Onofrio
We are going to be seeing plenty of Charlie Cox as the blind lawyer by day, vigilante by night. He is featured in the She-Hulk: Attorney at Law trailer, and reportedly he will appear in 2023’s Echo. Cox also will lend his voice to the animated Spider-Man: Freshman Year. In the end, it is all build up for the return to his own series. While both Cox and D’Onofrio will reprise their roles from Netflix’s Daredevil, it has not been said if we will see the rest of the original DD cast.
The title is taken from a classic Frank Miller comic story of the same name, though Disney is likely to soften the thematically heavy story. In Miller’s Born Again, Karen Page has become a heroin addict who sells her knowledge of Matt Murdoch’s double life as Daredevil. Kingpin catches wind of this, and he uses his influence on a corrupt justice system to take everything from Matt. Homeless, alone, and on the run, Daredevil must fight for survival against a determined Kingpin, who is more powerful than ever.
While we may not see the gritty, mature Daredevil from Netflix, Kevin Feige’s latest comments suggest we’ll see Tom Holland in Born Again. At SDCC, the Marvel chief said that DD and Spider-Man would lead the MCU’s street-level heroes, and that implies the two will crossover between one another’s shows and future movies.
Release date: 2024
Starring: TBD
We know that Marvel Zombies will be the MCU’s first Disney+ series with a TV-MA rating. That should delight most fans, since it’s hard to picture a PG-friendly show based around a zombie apocalypse.
The official synopsis doesn’t offer much, which Marve says “re-imagines the marvel universe as a new generation of heroes battle against an ever-spreading zombie scourge.” That suggests this will align more with the Marvel Zombies episode of What If…? rather than the MZ comics.
We can assume those new heroes that were mentioned would include some old favorites as well, namely the survivors from What If…?, Spider-Man and the talking head of Scott Lang. T’Challa survived the ordeal as well, but without actor Chadwick Boseman, my guess is that his character will have died off screen before the series begins. Along with Spidey and Scott’s head, there will be Jimmy Woo, Kate Bishop, Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, Shang-Chi, and Ms. Marvel joining the zombie-hunting crew.
Release date: TBD
Starring: Charlie Cox
Marvel Studios made an interesting statement regarding Freshman Year. The animated Spidey series will be official MCU canon as it will be part of the vast Multiverse. Implications and theories will abound from that statement, but it confirms the new show will mostly keep in sync with the Homecoming films, though Tom Holland is not expected to voice Peter Parker/Spider-Man.
Another interesting development is that Charlie Cox will appear once again as Matt Murdoch/Daredevil, providing the character’s voice. This should further establish the connection between the two street-level vigilantes. When the show will premiere is still in the air, but it looks like it could make the 2024-25 slate.
Published: Jul 31, 2022 09:57 am