The Marvel Cinematic Universe is only going to expand further in the weeks and months ahead. The end of Phase Four means the start of Phase Five, and here’s what’s coming from the MCU in 2023.
Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has officially come to a close. The cinematic release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the Disney Plus debut of The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special brought an end to the MCU’s most experimental phase, but it’s still just the beginning of the universe’s new chapter.
Phase Five has now arrived and that means we’re ready for more MCU titles, and luckily 2023 still has plenty of them, with both returning and new heroes set to bring the big and small screens to life throughout the next year.
In fact, we have already seen some of those returning heroes end up back on the silver screen this year in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (which premiered in movie theaters in February) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (which arrived in theaters in May). But that’s not all you can expect.
With that in mind, here is what is still coming and when you can expect them.
Secret Invasion
Release date: June 21, 2023
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendehlson, Cobie Smulders, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, Martin Freeman, Don Cheadle
Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury (the real one this time) in the hopes of stopping a Skrull invasion of Earth. Based on the classic Marvel Comics series of the same name, the six-episode series appears like it has more in common with a British crime thriller than it does with the super-sized movies of the MCU and that already makes it one of this year’s most mysterious – and exciting – arrivals.
Secret Invasion was initially expected to premiere on our screens in Spring, but Disney Plus subsequently confirmed that the first MCU series of the year would actually arrive in June. That’s close to a year after the previous Marvel series, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, wrapped in October, so to say fans are ready for more Marvel on the small screen would be a major understatement.
The return of Nick Fury is more than enough to make us excited for this one, but Secret Invasion is also incredibly star-studded, and we can’t wait to see what it has in store for us.
Loki season 2
Release date: October 6, 2023
Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, Sophia Di Martino, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Tara Strong, Eugene Cordero, Jonathan Majors
There is no denying that Loki was one of the most successful of the Marvel shows to stream on Disney Plus. Heck, it might even be the most successful of them all. Thankfully, its format also made it one of the few to actually get a second season and make it work.
After the shocking events of the season 1 finale, the timeline is in crisis and Kang the Conqueror’s beginnings are now upon the MCU. It’s up to Loki, Sylvie and their old TVA frenemies to save the day, but can they put their differences aside to do that? Can Loki even convince Mobius who he is and what happened?
If you’ve seen Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, you’ll know that Kang is a force to be reckoned with that shouldn’t taken lightly by anybody, and after his run-in with his He Who Remains variant in season 1, you can bet Loki won’t be doing that. How will Loki season 2 play into Phase Five?
The show was initially expected to return in the summer, but after months of speculation surrounding Marvel’s new “less-is-more” approach, it was revealed that it would actually premiere in October 2023. The good news is that it will arrive on a Friday!
The Marvels
Release date: November 10, 2023
Starring: Brie Larson, Iman Vellani, Teyonah Parris, Samuel L. Jackson
The long-awaited sequel to Captain Marvel, The Marvels brings back Carol Danvers and unites her with some other powerful women as WandaVision‘s Monica Rambeau and Ms. Marvel‘s Kamala Khan team up to figure out why their powers are making them swap places with each other.
Nick Fury fans will also be ecstatic about the fact that Samuel L. Jackson will be making his second 2023 appearance as the character, reuniting him with his pal Carol on-screen. Given their friendship was a highlight of the first movie, we can’t wait to see how it develops in the second one.
The movie’s release date has been shifted around quite a bit. It was initially planned for 2022 before being moved to February 2023. It was then swapped with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, moving to July 2023. However, after Marvel’s plan to release their movie and TV content in a less overwhelming fashion, the studio moved The Marvels to the winter instead.
With that announcement came the first poster and eventually the first trailer for the movie, and it looks like a lot of fun!
Echo
Release date: November 29, 2023 (the whole series)
Starring: Alaqua Cox, Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning, Graham Greene, Zahn McClarnon, Vincent D’Onofrio, Charlie Cox
Back on the Disney Plus end of things, Echo will allow us to catch up with Maya Lopez after her debut in 2021’s Hawkeye. Set after the events of that series, it will see Maya return to her hometown of Oklahoma to reconnect with her Native American roots and confront events that happened in her past.
It will also feature appearances from Charlie Cox’s Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson “Kingpin” Fisk, reuniting the pair for the first time since Netflix’s Daredevil.
Echo was the first Marvel series that seemed like it might miss its 2023 release window as reports suggested that it wouldn’t be ready for its initially planned summer release (and that it would likely be moved to 2024 along with a few other Marvel titles). While Marvel Studios did opt against scheduling it in for the summer, they are going ahead with its release this year.
However, in an unanticipated move by the studio, it has been confirmed that all six episodes of Echo will premiere on Disney Plus on Wednesday, November 29. That makes it the first MCU series you can binge-watch on release day.
Is Ironheart coming out on Disney Plus in 2023?
Ironheart was initially planned for release in 2023, but now it’s looking unlikely that this will happen. As Marvel Studios changes its release strategy to spread out its titles, an early 2024 release window is looking more likely for this one, especially since Echo is released so closely to the end of the year.
We first met Riri Williams in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and now Dominique Thorne will reprise the role in the upcoming six-episode series. The character is an MIT student who creates a suit of armor so awesome that it rivals the creations of the great Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man.
Ironheart is one of the projects we know the least about at this point, but it will see Anthony Ramos introduce us to the MCU’s version of The Hood.
Is Agatha: Coven of Chaos coming out on Disney Plus in 2023?
Kathryn Hahn’s Emmy-nominated performance as Agnes / Agatha Harkness in WandaVision remains one of the most captivating in Phase Four of the MCU, so when it was confirmed that she would be back in her very own show, fans were ecstatic. Pleasantly surprised, but ecstatic.
Fans expected that this one could spill over into 2024 as Kevin Feige initially revealed it as part pf Phase Five with a “Winter 2023/2024” release window. With Echo releasing so close to the end of the year, the latter is looking more and more likely.
Described as a dark comedy, it will also reunite Hahn with WandaVision‘s Jac Schaeffer, who is writing and executive producing. Little remains known about the project at this point but casting is coming together with some major casting announcements, including Heartstopper‘s Joe Locke and Aubrey Plaza.
Is What If…? season 2 coming out on Disney Plus in 2023?
The second season of Marvel Studios’ What If…? was initially expected to premiere in early 2023 but that is obviously no longer the case. The Marvel Studios Animation panel gave us the most exciting updates about the show at that point in time, but it has since grown increasingly clear that it wouldn’t make that release window.
Disney Plus recently updated the show’s release information on the streamer from “Early 2023” to “Coming Soon”. With Secret Invasion, Loki season 2 and Echo all on the horizon now, it’s unlikely that the nine-episode second season of What If…? could be slotted in anywhere, so a 2023 release date is unlikely at this point.
Which upcoming Marvel project are you most looking forward to in 2023? Let us know in the comments below!