Television is an ever-changing beast that has enjoyed many eras throughout the past century, but there is one constant: Whenever an ongoing season of a TV show completes its run, fans wonder if there will be another. Even in today's day and age of streaming TV, that's still a thing. Well, except for Marvel Studios.
The most famous franchise in the world made its way to the small screen when a series of Marvel Cinematic Universe shows were launched on Disney Plus. With the exception of a few, there were never any announcements made on their futures (we just had to assume that they were miniseries, while secretly hoping that they would be renewed someday). Marvel has since changed its format, operating more like a traditional TV network by renewing its programs for more seasons and treating them like actual TV shows (instead of multi-part movies).
With that, there is one show that was initially envisioned as a miniseries that is now seemingly open for future seasons. A recent update suggests that the next season could very well happen.
Marvel Zombies reportedly performed very well for Disney Plus, making a second season all the more likely
Marvel Zombies season 2 could be happening after all. According to a recent report from The Direct, the four-part miniseries performed incredibly well for the Disney Plus streaming service, exceeding even Marvel Studios' own expectations. The show's initial viewership metrics have reportedly surpassed the studio's internal expectations, which has led to it becoming one of Marvel Animation's most successful shows to date.
In terms of how successful the show has been, it remained atop the Disney Plus daily charts for three days, while also remaining in the Top 10 in the weeks after that. That's very successful for an animated series that wouldn't be considered as mainstream as the live-action Marvel shows (particularly because it isn't canon to the MCU's primary timeline, even if it is a part of its Multiverse Saga). To highlight how impressive that is, Daredevil: Born Again struggled to capture the No. 1 spot in the UK throughout its run, despite performing very well for the streamer.
This unanticipated success story for Marvel Zombies bodes very well for the show's chances of renewal. Marvel's Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation Brad Winderbaum has recently confirmed that plans for the project have shifted somewhat, as there is potential for a second season even though it was originally envisioned as a miniseries. The only thing that fans have to do in order to ensure that this second season comes to fruition is to show up and watch it.
In a recent interview with Agents of Fandom, Winderbaum spoke about this, telling fans:
“We want to make more. If people want more, they need to subscribe to Disney+ and watch it as many times as they want, tell all their friends, and get really loud on the internet and demand more Marvel Zombies.”
The response to the show suggests that this is exactly what has happened. Although all Marvel projects are successful to varying degrees, the live-action MCU projects would have much higher expectations due to their larger budgets and existence within the MCU franchise. Zombies would have likely had lower expectations because it's so niche when compared to the likes of WandaVision or Loki, so overperforming in any capacity is a very, very good thing.
Marvel Animation has, thus far, produced What If...?, X-Men '97, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and Eyes of Wakanda. With the exception of Eyes of Wakanda (which was indeed envisioned as a miniseries), all of those projects have been renewed for second (and third) seasons. Taking that into account - along with the success of the series on Disney Plus - there is a good chance that the Marvel Zombies show will be back for another season too. Here's hoping that's the case!
The show is centred on a world within the MCU's multiverse where a zombie apocalypse has ravaged the planet. It's spun out of an episode of What If...? season 1, which introduced us to this world and all the dangers that it possesses. When some of the original Avengers can't overcome the zombie virus, it is up to a new generation of heroes to save what's left of the world and stop the Scarlet Witch's undead horde of nightmarish creatures.
Marvel Zombies is streaming on Disney Plus.