If I Ran Marvel Studios…
Yeah… I got nothing. Given the general superhero fatigue setting in, the kick off of Phase 5 and the overall tone of the past few years, rebuilding this franchise nearly impossible.
If I had to give advice instead, I’d say delay. Delay. Delay. Delay. Slow down your release dates and completely revisit everything you have for Phase 5 so far with an eye toward correcting mistakes from Phase 4. Enough with the bad TV shows! Loki is probably already done but I’d delay or axe the rest of them.
Marvel’s best characters right now:
Doctor Strange - All good here.
Spider-Man - most popular movie super hero. Exited MCU for business reasons.
Guardians of the Galaxy - third and final movie premieres in May.
Ant-Man & the Wasp - Quantumania is on track to be biggest bomb in years.
Who are the newer Avengers and lead characters:
Shuri as Black Panther - overshadowed by tribute to Chadwick Boseman. It is doubtful audience warms to her as the next Black Panther
Ironheart - no sign this character has generated any buzz, nor has any fan base from comics. She could be a pleasant surprise but right now it’s not looking good.
Captain Marvel - She is the least liked Avenger character thanks to Brie Larson.
The Other Marvels - does anyone care about them?
Scarlet Witch - became a villain and possibly deceased.
Vision - viable option with the new “white” version but original is deceased.
She-Hulk - the lowest point in MCU. This character may be unsalvageable.
Loki - Deceased. The TV show is a gimmick that got the benefit of the doubt for season one but won’t for season two.
Falcon and the Winter Soldier - you can try Falcon as Captain America. I guess that is a reasonable selection for a successor. Winter Soldier would be a complicated successor. Yet, there’s no sign of buzz or hype for the show or either character going forward.
Kate Bishop as the new Hawkeye - based on audience reaction to the Hawkeye TV show, this isn’t looking good. Having said that, Hailee Steinfield is a good actress, just needs much better material.
Yelena (Natasha’s sister) - yeah, I forgot about her too.
You can see we don’t have the most promising roster, although in some cases it is due to bad writing not necessarily the character or actor/actress. Thus far, the MCU has failed to create viable successors to Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. The attempt to pivot with the desire to have non-white male heroes replace the first Avengers has largely failed.
Shuri could be major part of the MCU future but I’m not sure it would be as the Black Panther. There is some potential with Riri Williams as Ironheart but based on how the new heroines have been written and developed lately, I am not optimistic. Her comics aren’t popular either. Someone needs to really deliver on a story and the actress needs to surpass expectations.
Possible Solutions
These are desperate stabs in the dark but here are my suggestions.
First, build a new big three (Iron Man, Captain America, Thor), starting with Doctor Strange and a true Black Panther. If it is Shuri, you need to build her up into a more credible Avengers hero. While she is a genius and relatively likable, I do not think she is credible as the next Black Panther. Where did she learn to fight? Does anyone find a tiny woman in a cat suit intimidating? Likely solution is to use T’Challa’s son in a sequel that will take place years from now. So this pathway doesn’t help you in the next few years.
Second, recast Captain Marvel. She should be one of the “big three” but the first movie is not remembered fondly despite doing well at the box office. Brie Larson has also done a tremendous job alienating the audience and behaving as abrasive and petty as any celebrity I’ve seen in years.
Third, move away from the multiverse bullshit. It lacks stakes, creates confusion and numerous narrative problems. Close the door on this and find a new overarching thematic battlefield for your heroes.
Finally, find a way to get Spider-Man back. If Captain Marvel isn’t part of your new big three, Spider-Man has to be it. Otherwise, Marvel lacks popular and enthralling characters and likely will never be able to recapture the magic of the earlier movies.
If Disney/Marvel is insistent on the future being Riri Williams, Shuri, America Chavez, Ms. Marvel, Monica Rambeau, girl Hawkeye, Yelena, Sam Wilson, and Bucky… well, good luck. You have a ton of character development to do. Basically what you tried and failed to do in Phase 4.
Sorry, that’s all I got. If this job were offered to me, I would decline. No lie.