Marvel Cinematic Universe: Every Phase 5 Project Explained

Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is reaching its end. The last movie of the phase Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was recently released in theaters. The last Phase 4 project overall, The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, was released exclusively on Disney+ on November 25. After that, Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will officially come to an end.

At San Diego Comic-Con 2022, Marvel boss Kevin Feige announced that Phase 5 will kick off with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in February 2023, and will conclude with the Blade in September 2024. The phase will consist of six movies, five new shows, and two shows that are returning for the second season. In the rest of this article, we will list every project set in MCU’s Phase 5.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Release Date: February 17, 2023

Paul Rudd debuted as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in his first solo movie in 2015, which was followed by the sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp in 2018. He also reprised the role in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War and 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Now, Rudd’s Ant-Man and Evangeline Lilly’s Wasp are returning once again in the threequel. Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer are both returning as Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne, while Kathryn Newton will play Cassie Lang, replacing Emma Fuhrman who played the character in Avengers: Endgame.

After debuting in Loki as He Who Remains, Jonathan Majors will make his first appearance in this movie as Kang the Conqueror, the main villain of the Multiverse saga. Marvel Studios already confirmed that Quantumania will be the first real step in building the stage for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, the next big MCU event which will hit theaters in May 2025. After feeling that lack of focus in Phase 4, Phase 5 will now surely set the ground for the next big cinematic event.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Release Date: May 5, 2023

Even if you’re one of those who say that the MCU finished with the end of the Infinity Saga, the third installment of the Guardians of the Galaxy is surely something that will catch your eye. James Gunn introduced the weirdest superhero family to the big screen with the original movie in 2014, and the sequel followed in 2017. Guardians had a huge role in crossover movies Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will serve as their own Endgame.

Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Sean Gunn, and Sylvester Stallone are all reprising their roles from the previous Guardians movie. James Gunn confirmed that this will be his last MCU movie, and although there’s still a chance that there could be a fourth movie with a bit of a different team, Gunn will have no involvement in that.

The Marvels

Release Date: July 28, 2023

Brie Larson debuted as Carol Danvers in the Captain Marvel movie ahead of her appearance in Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Captain Marvel is one of those MCU movies that received mixed reviews from fans, but it was still commercially successful so it was only a matter of time before the sequel happens. Not much is known about the movie’s plot, but one thing can be certain; this will be a much bigger movie than its predecessor.

Unlike the original Captain Marvel movie, the sequel The Marvels will be a crossover movie in which Larson will reprise the role of the main character, and she will be accompanied by Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel, who we previously met in her own Disney+ series, and Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau, who we met in the WandaVision series last year. Samuel L. Jackson will also reprise the role of Nick Fury, and Zawe Ashton has been cast as the unknown villain.

Captain America: New World Order

Release Date: May 3, 2024

After Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers hung up Captain America’s shield at the end of Avengers: Endgame, he chose Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson as his successor. Wilson didn’t want to take the shield at first, but he eventually decided to become the new Captain America in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Now, after establishing himself as the new star-spangled man with a plan, Sam Wilson will return to the big screen in the fourth Captain America movie, the first one with him as the titular character.

The movie’s director Julius Onah has described New World Order as a “paranoid thriller”. Tim Blake Nelson will reprise the role of Samuel Sterns/Leader from The Incredible Hulk, and Danny Ramirez and Carl Lumbly will reprise their roles from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier as Joaquin Torres/the new Falcon and Isaiah Bradley, respectively. Harrison Ford will also make his debut as Thaddeus Ross after the original actor William Hurt passed away earlier this year. Shira Haas is also set to debut as Ruth Bat-Seraph/Sabra, the first Israeli superhero in the MCU.

Thunderbolts

Release Date: July 26, 2024

If it wasn’t for that delaying of Blade, Thunderbolts would’ve served as the conclusion of Phase 5’s movie slate. The movie adaptation of this ferocious Marvel team, which can be described as Marvel’s Suicide Squad, was rumored to be in development for years, and it was finally officially announced last Summer. The movie will feature an ensemble cast of already-known names and faces.

Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, Wyatt Russell as US Agent, Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, Harrison Ford as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross. Yep, this movie surely has a strong roster of characters. Not much is known about the movie’s plot, and we’re still waiting for some official news on who could be the movie’s villain.

Blade

Release Date: September 6, 2024

The development of the Blade reboot set in the MCU has been a pretty rough road for Marvel Studios so far. Originally announced in 2019, with Mahershala Ali set to play the main role, Blade is set to bring another level of darkness to the usually joyful MCU. At SDCC 2022, Marvel Studios announced that the movie will be released in October 2023, before the director Bassam Tariq abandoned the project not long before filming was about to start.

Marvel Studios delayed the movie to September 2024, and a new director, Yann Demange was hired in November 2022. Michael Starrbury was also hired to rewrite the script, and we’re hoping the development of the movie will run smoothly now, without any further delays. Mahershala Ali played a small voice role in the post-credit scene of Eternals. Not much is known about how and whether will that be connected to his own movie and what will be the movie’s plot, but we can expect to see a whole new darker take on the MCU. As of right now, Blade is set to be the final movie in MCU’s Phase 5.

Secret Invasion

Premiere Date: Early 2023

Secret Invasion is one of the most-known comic book storylines Marvel has ever published. Now, ever since Skrulls were introduced to the MCU in Captain Marvel, the fans were expecting that the storyline will be adapted into a movie. Well, it will be adapted, although not into a movie, but a mini-series of the same name. Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn will both reprise the roles of Nick Fury and Talos from Captain Marvel. Cobie Smulders will also return as Maria Hill, Martin Freeman will return as Everett K. Ross, and Don Cheadle will return as James “Rhodey” Rhodes.

The series will also feature a number of known new names, including Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke and Oscar-winning actress Olivia Colman. Created by Kyle Bradstreet, the series will consist of six episodes. The official trailer was already released, although it’s not known if the series is set before or after the events of The Marvels, in which Jackson will also reprise the role of Nick Fury.

What If…? Season 2

Premiere Date: Early 2023

What If…? is the first animated project officially set within the canon of the MCU. The series first premiered in August 2021, and after Loki, it was the second Disney+ MCU series renewed for a second season. The second season will feature an episode with Gamora in Thanos’ armor which was originally set to be in the first season before it was pushed to the second season. Some of the storylines that the second season will explore will be about Hela, the battle between Odin and Mandarin, Captain Carter meeting Winter Soldier, and Tony Stark on Sakaar with Valkyrie and Hulk.

Echo

Premiere Date: Mid 2023

If you watched the Hawkeye series last year, then you know who is Echo. Alaqua Cox has made her acting debut as Maya Lopez, the antagonist of the series which allowed us not only to introduce the character, but also to explain her connection with her surrogate uncle and boss — Wilson Fisk aka Kingpin, whose appearance in the series was one of the biggest surprises for the fans, considering that Vincent D’Onofrio returned to the role for the first time after he played it in the Netflix series Daredevil.

The series will feature the origin story of Echo, but also show the audience her quest for revenge against Kingpin who orchestrated the death of her father William Lopez. Kingpin’s archenemy Daredevil, played by Charlie Cox, will also return in the series.

Loki Season 2

Premiere Date: Mid 2023

The Loki series was the first and so far the only live-action Disney+ MCU series that was renewed for Season 2. After killing He Who Remains, creating the Multiverse, and unleashing the evil variant Kang the Conqueror, Loki and his variant Sylvie return for a new MCU adventure. Tom Hiddleston returns once again as the titular character, and Sophia Di Martino will reprise the role of Sylvie. Jonathan Majors, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Owen Wilson are all set to reprise their respective roles in the second season. As for the season’s synopsis, it is still unknown.

Ironheart

Premiere Date: Late 2023

The Ironheart series was first announced in December 2020, with Dominique Thorne set to star as Riri Williams/Ironheart. In November 2022, Thorne debuted as the character in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Riri is an extremely intelligent college girl who managed to create her own advanced suit of armor. After showing the prototype suit in Wakanda Forever, we are expecting to see what’s next for Riri in her own series.

The plot is still unknown, but it was announced that the series will introduce the character of Parker Robbins/The Hood, who will be played by Anthony Ramos. The series will also feature a handful of supporting actors, out of which the best-known name is Solo: A Star Wars Story star Alden Ehrenreich. His role is still unknown.

Agatha: Coven of Chaos

Premiere Date: Late 2023/Early 2024

Kathryn Hahn played the villainess Agatha Harkness in the WandaVision series. Although her performance was praised by critics and fans, it was pretty surprising when Marvel Studios announced her spin-off series Agatha: House of Harkness, which was later renamed Agatha: Coven of Chaos. The series will reportedly follow the titular villainess after she was set free from the prison Wanda has put her in at the end of WandaVision. Aubrey Plaza has been cast to play an unknown antagonist.

Daredevil: Born Again

Premiere Date: Early 2024

Ever since Netflix was forced to cancel the Daredevil series starring Charlie Cox due to Disney regaining rights for the character, the fans were urging Marvel Studios to pick up the show. Netflix produced three seasons of the series, and Marvel Studios decided that they will not continue with Season 4, but start a new series Daredevil: Born Again, in which Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio will reprise the roles of Matt Murdock and Kingpin, respectively. The series will consist of 18 episodes, and it is surely one of the most anticipated Phase 5 projects for the fans.

Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will consist of six movies, five mini-series, and two returning series. It is expected that Phase 5 will build the stage further for Phase 6 in which we’ll get two all-new Avengers movies, with Avengers: Secret Wars, concluding the Multiverse Saga in 2026.