Avengers: Endgame isn’t quite the final installment in Marvel’s Phase 3 (that honor will go to Spider-Man: Far From Home), but in the process of concluding some of the MCU’s main plot threads and character arcs, the film brings some pretty big changes to the MCU that will no doubt ripple through the upcoming Phase 4. And since we’re going to be discussing some of those changes right here, be warned that spoilers lie ahead.
While Marvel Studios has yet to officially announce any movies beyond 2019, it’s generally assumed that the first Phase 4 entry will be the long-awaited Black Widow solo movie. And after the sad fate suffered by Natasha Romanoff, it’s looking more than likely that her standalone outing will be a prequel. Specifically, there’s a good chance that the film will be an origin story, perhaps following through on the various teases dropped throughout Nat’s story, like the names of her parents.
After that, it’s expected that Black Panther, Doctor Strange and Ant-Man all have sequels on the way. As well as explaining how the first two are now back in the world of the living, Endgame showed the three of them making new superhero connections that may ultimately factor into their films. On a related note, here’s hoping that the MCU can use its newly grown up Cassie Lang in an interesting way.
Meanwhile, out of the original Marvel Trinity, it’s looking like the only hero with a future ahead of them is Thor, who’s now become part of the “Asgardians of the Galaxy.” With that in mind, there’s every chance that he’ll show up in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which will likely see Star-Lord continue to pine for Gamora. Asgard itself, on the other hand, looks to be Valkyrie’s territory now.
Lastly, we have the Disney Plus shows, many of which are based on characters who were dead before the events of Endgame. While WandaVision is still missing one of its two title characters, Falcon and Winter Soldier will apparently see the former inherit the Captain America title. As for the Loki show, in all likelihood, we’re looking at a series set in an alternate reality, where the trickster has run off with the Tesseract.
So, those are just a few of the things that Avengers: Endgame tells us about Marvel’s Phase 4. But with the film finally out in North American theaters, you can expect to hear plenty more speculation in the coming days.