A lot of Marvel Cinematic Universe fans were wondering what the future held for the Avengers after the events of Endgame, which drew the Infinity Saga to a suitably spectacular close but robbed Earth’s Mightiest Heroes of its two most important members.
Chris Evans’ Captain America was the leader of the team and their moral compass, while Tony Stark provided the financial muscle that gave them the shiny toys needed to save the universe on multiple occasions. With that pair out of the picture, a hole was blown into the fabric of the Avengers, one that’ll take a lot to fill.
However, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings confirmed that the superpowered all-stars are still active to some degree, with the mid-credits scene introducing Simu Liu’s title hero to Bruce Banner and Captain Marvel, both of whom are expected to remain integral parts of the MCU throughout Phase Four.
Marvel even went to the lengths of releasing a promo video specifically naming Shang-Chi as the newest Avenger, so Kevin Feige clearly already has a plan in mind, even if he confirmed that we might not be seeing the next ensemble epic for a while yet. As per ScreenRant, more recruitment is almost certainly incoming across the theatrical and Disney Plus slate, even if there’s a major leadership void that’s yet to be addressed in canon.