After HYDRA leaked the Avengers: Age of Ultron trailer, Marvel officially released the trailer for the world to see. They also announced a special event that was open to media and fans. The "Marvel Event" turned into what I called Marvel-Con by the amount of news and excitement Marvel generated through the event.
When Marvel first made the announcement of the event many started trying to figure out what kind of big news Marvel could announce. I was in a small corner that did not expect anything major to be revealed. Then reports surfaced that Benedict Cumberbatch is close to signing on for the role of Doctor Strange. After that happened, my thought process started to change but did not expect what Marvel had up their sleeves.
This afternoon Marvel announced their entire Phase 3 movie lineup! That's right, after announcing dates earlier in the year, Marvel officially put titles on those dates. Among the movies announced was Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok, Inhumans, Captain Marvel, Black Panther, and Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 and 2. It's time to breakdown each title announced as well as speculate on what each movie could hold.
Captain America: Civil War
The first movie Marvel announced at their event was Captain America: Serpent Society! Wait what? That's what Marvel initially said but it was all just a hoax. They announced what had been reported a few weeks ago. Tony Stark and Steve Rodgers will go head to head and bring a new friend along for the ride. Black Panther will make his big screen debut as he will be asked to choose a side in this world changing debate. Captain America: Civil War will feature the previously mentioned characters as well as Falcon and the Winter Soldier. How both of these characters factor into the story will surely be interesting to watch unfold. Captain America: Civil War will release in theaters on May 6th, 2016.
Doctor Strange
Marvel also put an official date and title on Doctor Strange. Director Scott Derrickson has been attached to the movie since June and will bring his horror background to Marvel. While there is no current lead officially on the project, this week reports surfaced of Benedict Cumberbatch closing in on the lead role. Doctor Strange will release in theaters on November 4th, 2016.
Guardians of the Galaxy 2
Marvel announced Guardians of the Galaxy 2 at Comic-Con this year before Guardians of the Galaxy even released in theaters. So why is it on this list? Well Marvel bumped its release date up 2 months! Instead of releasing on July 28, 2017, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 will release in theaters on May 5th, 2017. James Gunn is scheduled to return to direct the sequel as well as returning the core members of the team. This movie will see the team continue to patrol the galaxy and probably have a run in with Thanos, which brings them on a path to earth.
Thor: Ragnarok
The day after comments from Chris Hemsworth surfaced where he hinted at a 2017 release date for Thor 3, Marvel gave us an official title and release date. That's right, Thor 3 will officially be called Thor: Ragnarok! It will feature the return of Tom Hiddleston as Loki. Thor will also likely travel to Ragnarok and have to deal with the fallout to what is happening or will happen to his father Odin. I expect this to be the final movie for Loki and Odin. Thor will take the throne of Asgard and be out of the way to protect earth from imminent threats. Thor: Ragnarok will release in theaters on July 28th, 2017.
Black Panther
After the fallouts from Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther will embark on his first solo movie in 2017! Who will be playing T'Challa? Chadwick Boseman! The fan favorite has officially joined the Marvel universe! Concept art for the suit was also revealed and it looks fantastic. Black Panther will release in theaters on November 3, 2017.
Avengers: Infinity War Part 1
Avengers 3 will be split into two parts now after Marvel had denied such a possibility. With the fallouts of Avengers: Age of Ultron unclear, how part one plays out could be very interesting. By this point Thanos will likely have the gauntlet in his possession and a few of the infinity gems. He will likely take to earth to destroy the Avengers but have a tough time taking them all down. Part 1 will most likely end with Thanos seemingly defeating the Avengers before the Guardians and the other cosmic allies come to the rescue. Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 will release in theaters on May 4th, 2018!
Captain Marvel
Marvel is finally doing a movie with a female lead! Carol Danvers will be the lead of Captain Marvel. Captain Marvel will have earthbound adventures but her powers are based on the cosmic side of Marvel's universe. Captain Marvel will release in theaters on July 6th, 2018!
Inhumans
Marvel announced that for their 20th movie they release another team based franchise, this time it will be the Inhumans. The Inhumans are a group of people who have been given powers from the alien race of the Kree. One actor who has commonly been linked to an Inhumans movie is Vin Diesel starring as the leader of the team Black Bolt. Marvel and Diesel have been negotiating a role that would be bigger and combine different properties. There has been much speculation that Skye from Agents of SHIELD could have Kree or Inhuman ties, which would provide a big payoff and connection from the show to the big screen. Inhumans will release in theaters November 2nd, 2018.
Avengers: Infinity War Part 2
Marvel's Phase 3 will conclude with Avengers: Infinity War Part 2. This movie should be the conclusion of the current Thanos story arc, with him having the real possibility to have a part in many of these Phase 3 movies. This will likely be Marvel's first big mega crossover event. Not only do I expect the Avengers, Guardians, and Inhumans to team together to stop Thanos but also the smaller characters. I expect Marvel's Netflix characters to appear as well as some of the other characters they develop through Agents of SHIELD. Thanos will ultimately survive the onslaught of attacks and probably be back in a few years to try again. Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 will release in theaters on May 3rd, 2019.
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