Marvel Studios is the undisputed king of the box office. It's well-documented that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the highest-grossing franchise of all time, with $31 billion to its name. It's true; it just doesn't get bigger than the MCU, and even though the franchise has had its ups and downs in recent years, it's still an unstoppable titan at the box office - something that the success of last year's Deadpool and Wolverine reiterated when it grossed $1.3 billion.
Despite some box office struggles this year, things are looking up for the MCU as we have both Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday to look forward to next year - both of which are set to be major releases destined for success. Excitement always raises for Marvel fans when there is a Spider-Man or Avengers movie on the horizon - imagine what next year will look like with both! And the year after that promises to be a big one too with the game-changing Avengers: Secret Wars.
That being said, a recent Marvel announcement has left fans feeling upset as it means that the MCU won't be able to capitalize on a similar type of success that it saw during the Infinity Saga.
Marvel Studios officially removes 2027 MCU movie from calendar
20th Century Studios has confirmed that the long-awaited sequel to The Simpsons Movie will arrive in movie theaters on July 23, 2027. This came as something of a surprise to fans as the film has been 18 years in the making and, with The Simpsons still ongoing, it was beginning to look like it might never make it to theaters. However, it was also surprising as that spot was officially reserved for an untitled Marvel Studios movie, which Disney has now removed from the calendar. That means that December's Avengers: Secret Wars will be the only MCU movie released in 2027.
Marvel was originally planning on releasing a movie on July 23, 2027, but the studio had yet to announce what it would be. With the franchise shifting a number of things around, it was always a possibility that they might free up that window - especially given that they hadn't revealed which film it was for - but there was hope that it wouldn't have to do that. Unfortunately, in doing so, the studio has robbed itself of a chance to recreate the successful formula that made the entire year between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame such a success.
With the Multiverse Saga's conclusion set to play out in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, Marvel were initially planning on having two movies come out between the heavy-hitting films. With that, fans were expecting a similar approach to the year between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Both Captain Marvel and Ant-Man and the Wasp overperformed when released between those movies, with the first in particular smashing expectations and crossing $1 billion because Infinity War's post-credits scene made it clear that the titular hero would be important to Endgame.
The studio was supposed to replicate that success with two releases during Doomsday and Secret Wars, as both the untitled movie and Spider-Man: Brand New Day were set to released between them. Now, with Spider-Man moving to before Doomsday and the untitled film being pulled from the calendar altogether, it has robbed any other MCU movie from experiencing that mid-Avengers bump that Captain Marvel enjoyed. Granted, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is destined for success regardless of where it releases but it probably would have benefitted from that Avengers bump if Doomsday's post-credits scene had set it up. The same could definitely be said for whatever the untitled movie is, especially if it's the one fans were hoping it might be.
There has been a lot of speculation that Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange will be the focus of the Doomsday post-credits scene (the actor confirmed his involvement in the movie but he wasn't among the confirmed cast members, so a post-credits scene seems like the obvious way of involving him). Strange is expected to have a particularly large role in Secret Wars, so positioning the long-awaited Doctor Strange 3 between the two movies might have made for the perfect marriage. A Doctor Strange post-credits scene leading into his own movie which then ultimately sets up his Secret Wars role? Perfection.
Of course, this is all speculation as it hasn't been confirmed as to what the untitled MCU movie was supposed to be, but it goes without saying that the idea of two Avengers movies releasing a whole year apart (and without another movie to benefit from that Avengers bump in the middle of it) has left fans feeling melancholic as they were hoping to enjoy the same levels of MCU-mania that they enjoyed during the final act of the Infinity Saga.