When the Marvel Cinematic Universe first started, it didn't have the luxury of creating movies around Marvel's most popular heroes. Back then, the live-action rights of these beloved characters were scattered across multiple companies, such as Fox, which was in charge of X-Men and Daredevil, and Sony, which oversaw Spider-Man and Ghost Rider.
As such, the first MCU project ever made had to settle for shining the spotlight on Iron Man, who was considered a B-tier character at best. Much to everyone's surprise, the film premiered to critical and commercial acclaim, and since then, we've seen this "underdog story" repeat itself throughout history.
Back in the day, nobody understood why the MCU would create a Guardians of the Galaxy theatrical movie, yet here we are years later with an entire trilogy that's considered among the best sagas in superhero history. While not every single project featuring relatively unknown characters has been a homerun (such as Eternals), Marvel's track record has been mostly on the good side of things. Some announcements may be a head-scratcher at first, but with time, audiences have come to understand why they came to be. So, with a bit of luck, a similar scenario might be upon us once again, as a new reported Marvel project may seem like a very strange decision at first sight.
Marvel Studios is reportedly working on a Hercules project
For multiple years, we considered the Thor: Love and Thunder mid-credits scene one of those set-ups that would never pay off, right along with the post-credits scene of Spider-Man: Homecoming and Eternals. This sequence revealed that Zeus was tired of not being respected anymore by humankind, and he would look to rectify that with the help of Hercules (played by Brett Goldstein). Back in the day, audiences assumed this was meant to tease a Thor 5 storyline, but then the critical reception of Thor: Love and Thunder put the hero's future in doubt. Fortunately, we might now have a better idea of what the MCU is looking to do with these characters.
According to renowned and reliable industry insider, Daniel Richtman, Marvel is currently working on a Hercules project. It wasn't revealed whether we'll get a theatrical movie or a Disney+ series, but the latter seems the most likely considering Marvel's new approach when it comes to the small screen. With that in mind, we need to ask ourselves: Did the original plan for Thor 5 suddenly change, and that's why Hercules will star in a different project, or was the God of Thunder's upcoming movie cancelled altogether?
It has recently been reported that Thor will die in an upcoming Avengers crossover, with Marvel using New Avengers (2013) No. 32 as an inspiration for such a tragic moment. While it may be easy to assume the character's story will come to an end right then and there, that isn't the case. It's also being claimed that after passing, he'll have another standalone movie, which isn't out of the realms of possibility considering that Valhalla awaits all of those who perish in battle (just as it happened with Mighty Thor).
Rumor has it that the long-awaited Thor 5 wouldn't be directed by Taika Waititi, as Chris Hemsworth wants Extraction director Sam Hargrave to take the helm. Such a change would likely mean that the original plans for the God of Thunder might be scrapped in favor of a new storyline. That's why Hercules isn't likely to appear in Thor's next adventure and, instead, will have his own stand-alone project in the MCU.
If done correctly, the MCU would have to big hits on its hands. Thor 5 could go back to the character's roots and deliver a much more serious version of the hero that we've not seen in years. Furthermore, the Hercules tease would not go to waste, and he can take over the spotlight as well in the near future. Let's just hope that both upcoming projects are crafted with love and a bit of thunder, and that they manage to surpass the lengths reached by a certain other failed MCU movie that lacked those same qualities, even if they were on its title.