Aidan Reidy is a writer who’s currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in motion pictures screenwriting at the University of Miami. He is passionate about the entertainment industry and enjoys watching most genres. He is interested in every aspect of filmmaking ranging from technical aspects like editing and sound mixing to acting and directing styles. Hollywood Insider’s commitment to substance-filled articles rather than gossip columns attracted him to the website, creating an enjoyable environment for him to write in and aligning with his personal values, as well.
Jun 16, 2025
Why is Marvel Deciding to Change Their Formula Now?
Marvel’s track record post ‘Avengers: Endgame’ has been hit or miss. With underwhelming releases and over-saturation of the comic book genre as a large reason why, it’s easy to place the full blame on the studio and executives, but COVID-19 and the Writer’s Strike heavily impacted their theatrical release schedule, and projects that were announced years in advance (I.E. ‘Blade’) began to get stuck in the gutter, definitely not helping the cause. Let’s face it: Pumping out content left and right was never going to be sustainable. There needed to be some sort of change to get people excited for these event movies like they were during Marvel’s peak over the Cinema landscape back in the late 2010s. But what will that change look like, and how far will it take them?
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige told other producers at the company that watching their newer TV shows and movies “felt more like homework than entertainment”. This directly correlates to some of the “Marvel Fatigue” fans have been feeling in the past few years. It’s hard to keep up with every single TV show before new theatrical releases, especially when there is little marketing behind them.
Take ‘The Marvels’ (2023) as an example. Ms. Marvel was one of the three main characters in this movie, but in order to understand her origins in the MCU, one would have to watch the entire series dedicated to her beforehand, which is a hard ask for people who aren’t diehard fans. There was a lackluster marketing campaign behind both the show and movie, and when the movie flopped, some unfair criticism of the lead actors came out as a result. There needs to be a better balance, and Marvel needs to look out for their stars rather than throwing them under the bus if the movie doesn’t perform up to expectations.
In recent weeks, reports have come out stating that Marvel Studios’ updated release schedule will account for a maximum of three movies, one to two live action shows, and two animated shows a year from now on. This seems like a good balance going forward, with the studio hopefully focusing more on quality than quantity.
In the years 2021 and 2022, there were seven feature films and eight TV shows released by the studio. Generally speaking, that’s too much for anyone to keep track of, especially when you’re introduced to so many characters in a short amount of time, each one having their own individual stakes set up for arcs in future projects. Granted, a few of these projects, such as ‘Loki’ and ‘WandaVision’, were enjoyable and allowed fans to get a new type of experience in the MCU, but unfortunately, not every show can be like those two. Most were just fine, others felt rushed, and some seemed to just have no target audience.
I’d much rather see one or two good Marvel movies a year, maybe tapping into a TV show here and there, than five mediocre projects that I will most likely never think about again the second I step out of the theater or get off the couch. The talented people who work in the special effects department and other post-production areas need enough time to deliver the best possible product to us without feeling crunched for time, which felt like was becoming the new normal, with ‘Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ being a prime example of an anticipated film that was clearly rushed through and not finished properly.
‘Thunderbolts*’ Should be the New Gold Standard
Marvel’s most recent release, ‘Thunderbolts*’, is what movies in this genre should be like all the time: A fun, self-aware story that isn’t reliant on CGI and actually has a central theme. The director, Jake Schreier, wanted most of what we saw on the screen to actually happen in front of the camera, emphasizing shooting on location, contrasting the seemingly-standard use of sound stages and green screen in this genre. It’s the first time a Marvel movie has felt and looked like an “actual movie” in years. Watching it in theaters on the big screen, enjoying it with a crowd, is how projects from this genre are meant to be watched.
The studio seemed to have lost this simple, profitable formula after they found themselves on top of the mountain due to the success of their Infinity Saga projects, and it doesn’t help when budgets start to balloon upwards of $300 million. They will never be able to capture the magic of the original ‘Avengers’ movie where the battle sequences and characters were much more grounded compared to today, with ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ potentially having a budget of $500 million, focusing on a massive scale.
Upcoming Theatrical Releases
After ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ is released in late July, there won’t be another feature film from Marvel Studios until July of 2026, with ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ expected to be released then. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, which was originally slated for that July release date, will now be released in December of 2026. This is a smart decision by the studio, for filming started taking place around a month ago, and there have been rumors floating around online that the script is still being written.
This will be the longest wait in between two films of the MCU since Phase 1, when ‘Thor’ and ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ were released almost a year apart, as well. The only downside of long gaps between features is less anticipation leading up to the premiere date. ‘Thunderbolts’ sets up the future of the franchise, giving audiences a sneak peak at The Fantastic Four’s ship in the post credits scene, which directly relates to ‘Avengers: Doomsday’. What if the latter teases something even bigger, setting up for stakes for the franchise?
I’m glad the crew is getting more time to put out a finished, polished product, but diehard fans may lose patience if they are waiting a year to get a payoff for certain scenes, especially in a movie so pivotable, almost crucial for the MCU, setting up the exciting future for the franchise.
By Aidan Reidy
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Aidan Reidy is a writer who’s currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in motion pictures screenwriting at the University of Miami. He is passionate about the entertainment industry and enjoys watching most genres. He is interested in every aspect of filmmaking ranging from technical aspects like editing and sound mixing to acting and directing styles. Hollywood Insider’s commitment to substance-filled articles rather than gossip columns attracted him to the website, creating an enjoyable environment for him to write in and aligning with his personal values, as well.
Aidan Reidy is a writer who’s currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in motion pictures screenwriting at the University of Miami. He is passionate about the entertainment industry and enjoys watching most genres. He is interested in every aspect of filmmaking ranging from technical aspects like editing and sound mixing to acting and directing styles. Hollywood Insider’s commitment to substance-filled articles rather than gossip columns attracted him to the website, creating an enjoyable environment for him to write in and aligning with his personal values, as well.
Aidan Reidy is a writer who’s currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in motion pictures screenwriting at the University of Miami. He is passionate about the entertainment industry and enjoys watching most genres. He is interested in every aspect of filmmaking ranging from technical aspects like editing and sound mixing to acting and directing styles. Hollywood Insider’s commitment to substance-filled articles rather than gossip columns attracted him to the website, creating an enjoyable environment for him to write in and aligning with his personal values, as well.
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