Avengers Endgame was one of the biggest and most anticipated movies, concluding Marvel’s Infinity Saga and asserting itself as the second-highest-grossing movie of all time, right after Avatar. Although Endgame stunned fans with moments like Captain America lifting Mjolnir and Tony’s sacrifice, it left many fans questioning what will happen next. Clarkstown North students are no strangers to questioning what the Marvel Cinematic Universe will have in store in the future. Isaac Nadler ’29 , a Marvel critic, captured this perfectly:
“It was a good movie, but right after I left the theater, I immediately asked myself, what’s next? What does the future hold for Marvel Studios?”
As phase four of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) started, it soon became clear what path Marvel was going to take: the expansion into the Multiverse and integration of new heroes. However, this didn’t sit right with a lot of fans. Instead of introducing new characters for people to bond with, they tried to replace old ones. She-Hulk replaced Hulk, Kate Bishop replaced Hawkeye, and most notably, Iron Heart took the place of Iron Man. Story lines became repetitive, while the plot lacked creativity. The multiverse concept felt confusing to many, and with the introduction of TV shows, many felt as if story lines were stretched out. Eventually, fans had enough, with some saying:
“Marvel died with Iron Man.”
Although many still enjoyed watching Marvel films, with COVID shutting down movie theaters and overall profit decreasing, Marvel had to announce something fast– something to excite fans and investors alike. In July of 2022, they announced not one, but two Avengers movies: The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars. Even crazier? They were to be released just six months apart. Despite the movies being scheduled for three years in advance, fans were thrilled with excitement and optimism for the future of Marvel. The overall community was flourishing with movies like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3. However, with these amazing productions, there were some that failed, most prominently, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Quantumania featured Kang the Conqueror as a villain. Since the movie underperformed, Marvel started to doubt Kang’s ability to cultivate the audience. Jonathan Major, the actor who portrays Kang, found himself in serious legal trouble, driving Marvel to make changes. In July of 2024, Marvel announced that Avengers: The Kang Dynasty was cancelled. To avoid upset fans, they offered a new movie to replace it: Avengers: Doomsday. Although it would be released two years later than Kang was, it still gives fans a new movie to look forward to. Later, it was revealed that Robert Downey Jr. was to portray the main character of Doctor Doom.
Despite just killing off his character in the last Avengers movie, fans are generally supportive of this redirection, with many forgetting about Kang entirely. Since this initial announcement, Marvel has gradually released four different teasers, hinting that characters like Captain America and Thor will make an appearance in Doomsday. While many are glad to see familiar faces and characters, others are outraged, saying that Captain America’s coming back defeats the purpose of Endgame. Despite these differences, the main question still remains: Will Avengers Doomsday resurrect the MCU, or will it lead to its ultimate demise?
