For Marvel Studios, the past few years have been a period of evolution. Known for its game-changing Marvel Cinematic Universe, the studio brought its multi-billion dollar franchise to the small screen, expanding the world of the MCU via the arrival of multiple TV shows and standalone specials all produced for the Disney Plus streaming service. With the Infinity Saga now closed after the record-breaking finale that was Avengers: Endgame, it was time for the franchise to find new challenges that could reach new audiences.
For the most part, the TV shows have been a success, starting off on a high with WandaVision and producing thrill-rides like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, Hawkeye, Moon Knight and Agatha All Along. But the Multiverse Saga as a whole has had highs and lows, resulting in the studio rethinking some of the ideas it had planned for both the big and small screens.
With reports of cancelled titles aplenty, the studio has now confirmed that one of its many long-awaited projects is no longer happening.
Marvel confirms that plans for Okoye series have been cancelled
Marvel Television is no longer producing that Okoye series it had been working on, the studio's Head of Television, Streaming, and Animation Brad Winderbaum has confirmed. Partaking in a round of interviews for upcoming MCU show Daredevil: Born Again, Winderbaum was asked by Pay or Wait about the status of the show and whether the character will return in the future, and he responded with something of a bittersweet answer:
"I think fans of Okoye are going to be excited to see her come back, but I don't think it's going to be in a television show. I can't say where and when, but I think there's a lot to look forward to."
The most important thing here is that this appears to confirm that we will see Danai Gurira back in the MCU as Okoye in the future, and that's obviously great news. But the sad part is that it also confirms that the once-planned show is no longer going ahead, which is undoubtedly upsetting for fans of both the character and the particular stories in Wakanda that will not be told.
Okoye is the general of Wakanda's Dora Milaje and she first appeared in the MCU in 2018's critically-acclaimed Black Panther. Gurira's next appearance in the role came that same year in Avengers: Infinity War before her return in 2019 sequel Avengers: Endgame. Her most recent appearance came in 2022's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It was hoped that the series would mark her next appearance in the MCU, but it appears that this won't be the case. As for where Okoye could return, the two upcoming Avengers movies or Black Panther 3 seem like the most likely options.
A change of direction for Marvel Television
As Brad Winderbaum ventures out on the press tour for Daredevil: Born Again, fans are getting more and more updates about the future of Marvel Television, and one thing is very clear from them: The studio is shifting its priorities, evolving how it once made these Disney Plus shows for its next chapter. In the past, shows were commissioned and made like movies, now they are developed like any other TV show and, if a project is unfeasible, then it's shelved for now.
It appears that this happened to the Okoye series, as well as the previously shelved Nova, Strange Academy, and Terror Inc. shows. The studio's new vision involves making these shows as if they are actual television shows, spending less money on these big-budget six-episode movies and producing long-running, grounded shows that can run for multiple seasons.
After the success of Agatha All Along, it's clear that this model is viable (especially in contrast to the reviled Secret Invasion, which cost over $200 million to make), and the studio looks to prove that again with Daredevil: Born Again, which is already renewed for a second season and is expected to return for a third.
Marvel has been evolving its strategies across the board over the past few years, and it all stems from the problem of potential oversaturation that the Multiverse Saga has seen. With titles like Eternals, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and The Marvels all underperforming at the box office, planned sequels were reportedly cancelled. Meanwhile, expensive shows like She-Hulk: Attorney At Law and Secret Invasion forced the studio to rethink its TV approach, with rumors of the former having a planned second season cancelled.
While the idea of Marvel Television feeling a lot more like actual television is a good thing, it's just a shame that it might come at the cost of some of the studio's most exciting in-development projects.
Daredevil: Born Again streams on Disney Plus on Tuesdays at 9/8c, starting March 4.