Marvel Unveils Phase 4 Slate At Comic Con. Black Widow, The Eternals, Blade, Thor 4 Announced

Marvel panels at the revered Hall H in San Diego Comic Con have always been a thing of beauty and wonder for fans. For those who might recall, the cast of the very first Avengers movie had assembled for the first time during one of these panels. Major announcements, cast introductions and epic revelations have happened here. This year, at the San Diego Comic Con 2019, Marvel’s Hall H panel was even more of a blockbuster as it announced its slate for the highly anticipated Marvel Phase 4!

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige had the stage on Saturday during the hour and a half panel, where he laid bare all of Marvel’s plans for the next couple of years. From new movies, to sequels to the shows that’ll be coming up on Disney+, we’re all now as knowing as Doctor Strange!

Here’s a quick run-through of all that’s coming for ya, Marvel fans!

Black Widow

Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow broke our hearts in Avengers: Endgame. But we’re finally getting the Natasha Romanoff origin story we’ve always wanted. The solo Black Widow film will also star Stranger Things alum David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, Florence Pugh and Rachel Weiz. Director Cate Shortland will be helming the film, which is slated for a May 2020 release.

While the movie has barely been shooting for a month, the cast still brought along some footage of a fight scene between Johansson and Pugh as well as the introduction of the villain, Taskmaster.

Thor 4 / Thor: Love and Thunder

With the return of Taika Waititi as director on Thor 4, the excitement was already high enough for the God of Thunder’s future. But this new announcement left fans screaming! Two words: FEMALE THOR!

Waititi announced Thor: Love and Thunder (yep, that’s the title) as the cast filed on stage, including Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie). And fans were ecstatic to meet the female Asgardian God of Thunder, which will be played by none other than a returning Natalie Portman!

Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness

Scott Derrickson is returning to direct Doctor Strange 2, which it was announced, is titled Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. The possibility of a multiverse was teased by Quentin Beck/Mysterio in Spider-Man: Far From Home, and it’s all ready to take shape in this installment.

But what’s more amazing is that Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch will be joining Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange on this! And from Derrickson’s little hint, things could get a little scary here!

Doctror Strange and Wanda Maximoff’s team up will hit theaters on May 7, 2021.

Wanda Vision

Speaking of Wanda teaming up, she’s got her own series too on Disney+, where she teams up with Paul Bettany’s Vision. Wanda Vision is set to be a crazy ride, and also also star Teyonah Parris as the grown-up Monica Rambeau. Remember that little girl from Captain Marvel?

Just wait for Spring 2021!

Loki

Also heading our way in Spring 2021 is the God of Mischief, Loki! Kevin Feige confirmed that the Loki we see here is the same one that we saw grab the Tesseract in Avengers: Endgame and disappear. Hiddleston pointed out that this Loki has not yet found his redemptive arc and transformed into the good guy we see in Infinity War. Which means he’s up to some OG Loki mischief!

Now that is going to be fun!

Hawkeye

Getting ready to hit bullseye again is another Marvel series on Disney+, Hawkeye. Jeremy Renner was present on stage for this announcement, and spoke about how this series will feature the old Hawkeye, Clint Barton, teach the ropes to a young Kate Bishop and turn her into a better version of himself.

Keep an eye out for some new blood in Fall 2021!

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

The team of Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson aka The Falcon and Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes aka the Winter Soldier is coming for us fans in Fall 2020. And it sure looks exciting considering a familiar villain from Captain America: Civil War is returning too! While Mackie and Stan were present on stage for the announcement, it was interrupted by a video message from Daniel Brühl’s, who will be reprising his role as Baron Zemo in the series!

The clip also debuted Zemo’s purple mask, which comic fans will find all too familiar!

While the above marked the return of familiar heroes and villains, there was also a whole new world of stories opened up!

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

The highly anticipated martial arts master Shang-Chi will be making his screen debut in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Chinese-Canadian actor Simu Liu will be playing the titular role, with Awkwafina and Tony Leung as joining the cast. Leung will be reprising the role of the real Mandarin (not the fake one from Iron Man 3 played by Ben Kingsley, peeps).

Daniel Destin Cretton will be directing the film which will release on February 12, 2021.

What If…?

Marvel’s also gunning to venture into the animated world, with its new series What If…? And the premise is equally fantastic. What If…? is the perfect way to explore different timelines and stories in the multiverse through the eyes of a familiar character we all know as The Watcher. The role will be reprised by Jeffrey Wright.

And guess what? A bunch of MCU actors will be lending their voices to their characters as they make an appearance on the show! Can’t wait for Summer 2021!

The Eternals

Perhaps the biggest and most anticipated announcement of them all was for The Eternals, a group of God-like aliens that are all set to be the next big Marvel ensemble film. Speculations were rife as to who was cast in this movie, ranging from Angeline Jolie to Millie Bobby Brown. However, all was revealed as the cast walked on to the stage!

And behold, there was Angeline Jolie (Thena), Richard Madden (Icarus), Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo), Salma Hayek (Ajak), Lauren Ridloff (Makkari), Lia McHugh (Sprite) and Don Lee (Gilgamesh)!

Chloe Zhao is all set to direct this mammoth which, though is about a bunch of eternal beings, but actually deals with what it means to be human in our time on the planet. The film will release on November 6, 2020.

Oh wait, we aren’t done yet! At least that’s what Kevin Feige said after he was done announcing everything but had just one more bomb to drop! And it was a big one!

Blade

The movie that is low-key responsible for lending that initial oxygen to Marvel’s cinematic dreams, Blade, starring Wesley Snipes, is getting a reboot! And in a stroke of perfect casting, Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali has been cast as Blade, the iconic half human-half vampire, vampire hunter!

Feige left us wanting more, and more there was! While we didn’t get much details, he did announce that Fantastic Four and X-Men are coming our way too! Also a part of the slate were Captain Marvel 2, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and Black Panther 2! In a true superhero movie fashion, the panel ended with a class photo of all the actors and directors on stage!

Phew! Marvel fans, you better map your social calendars and plan your finances for the next two years because you know what’s coming for ya!