Marvel is ‘not going to give up’ as it retools Avengers 5 away from Kang
Marvel Studios is reportedly in the midst of a ‘creative retooling’ that includes refocusing Avengers 5, dropping Kang from the title in the wake of Jonathan Majors’ firing.
Originally titled Avengers: Kang Dynasty, Marvel’s next major team-up movie is slated to debut in cinemas in 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027. The Hollywood Reporter now claims that the studio is working on a new title for the 2026 film to ‘clean up the creative mess’ left by Jonathan Majors, who signed on as the series’ next big bad Kang but was fired in December after being found guilty of reckless assault in the third degree and harassment.
Marvel is apparently rewriting both of its next Avengers movies to ‘either minimise the character or excise him entirely’, although sources told THR that such plans were already in the works following the poor critical and commercial reception to 2023’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (in which Majors played the central villain). But that’s not the only project the studio is said to be tinkering with in 2024 – a year that will see only one MCU movie, Deadpool & Wolverine, hit the big screen.
“Some of our studios lost a little focus. So the first step that we’ve taken is that we’ve reduced volume,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in an earnings call earlier this month. “We’ve reduced output, particularly at Marvel, [in order to ensure] the films you’re making can be even better.”
That tees up with one insider’s claim to THR that Marvel’s focus is ‘internal’ in 2024. The studio has apparently hired screenwriting veteran Eric Pearson to get the Fantastic Four script over the line ahead of shooting this summer, while The Bear showrunner Joanna Calo is said to be tweaking the script for anti-hero team-up movie Thunderbolts, which starts shooting in March and stars Florence Pugh (reprising her role as Yelena Belova).
Over on Disney+, Marvel is reported to be taking stock and reorganising its strategy in the wake of the reception to Secret Invasion. Just two shows will land on the streaming platform in 2024: Echo, which dropped in January, and WandaVision spin-off Agatha, which debuts later this year. THR says that other shows such as Ironheart have completed filming but have no current release date.
Captain America: New World Order and Fantastic Four will premiere in cinemas in 2025, meanwhile, as Marvel seeks new tentpole heroes to replace Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Chris Evans’ Captain America. While the studio may not have had the ideal past year, one source told THR: “They’re not going to give up. They want to make something great.”
This grand reshuffle will likely have a major impact on the LEGO Marvel line, which has become ever more intertwined with the Marvel Cinematic Universe over the past few years. It has the Infinity Saga to fall back on and isn’t afraid to keep pumping out original LEGO Spider-Man sets, while this summer is rumoured to see the LEGO Group revisit Avengers: Age of Ultron, Guardians of the Galaxy and Thor: Ragnarok (at least).
Any hope of a Kang minifigure inspired by the character’s appearance in Quantumania and Loki Season 2 is probably long gone by now, though – while any early plans for Avengers 5 LEGO sets are presumably being rewritten as we speak.
LEGO Marvel sets confirmed and rumoured for 2024
| LEGO set | Price | Pieces | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock | £8.99 / $9.99 / €9.99 | 77 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76276 Venom Mech Armor vs. Miles Morales | £12.99 / $14.99 / €14.99 | 134 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76277 War Machine Mech Armor | £12.99 / $14.99 / €14.99 | 154 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76278 Rocket’s Warbird vs. Ronan | £31.99 / $37.99 / €37.99 | 290 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76279 Spider-Man Race Car & Venom Green Goblin | £24.99 / $34.99 / €29.99 | 227 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76280 Spider-Man vs. Sandman: Final Battle | £31.99 / $37.99 / €37.99 | 347 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76281 X-Men X-Jet | £74.99 / $84.99 / €84.99 | 359 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76282 Rocket & Baby Groot | £54.99 / $59.99 / €59.99 | 566 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76285 Spider-Man’s Mask | £59.99 / $69.99 / €69.99 | 487 | January 1, 2024 |
| 76286 Guardians of the Galaxy 10th Anniversary Milano | $169.99 | TBC | August 1, 2024 |
| 76287 Iron Legion vs. Ultron Bots | $14.99 | TBC | August 1, 2024 |
| 76288 Surtur Battle | $24.99 | TBC | Summer 2024 |
| 76289 Iron Man [?] Motorcycle | $10.99 | TBC | Summer 2024 |
| 76290 Avengers Battle | $59.99 | TBC | Summer 2024 |
| 76291 Avengers Age of Ultron Final Battle | $109.99 | TBC | August 1, 2024 |
| 76292 Captain America: Brave New World | $49.99 | 223 | Summer 2024 |
| 76293 Advent Calendar | $44.99 | TBC | Summer 2024 |
| 76295 Helicarrier Midiscale | $59.99 | 509 | Summer 2024 |
| 76296 Potted Groot | $59.99 | TBC | Summer 2024 |
| 76297 TBC | TBC | TBC | Summer 2024 |
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