186-539: The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on superhero films and other series starring various titular superheroes independently produced by Marvel Studios and based on characters that appear in American comic books published by Marvel Comics . The shared universe, much like the original Marvel Universe in comic books, was established by crossing over common plot elements, settings, cast, and characters. Over
372-527: A FedEx delivery man, referring to Lee's cameo in Captain America: Civil War . This acknowledged the fan theory that Lee may be portraying the same character in all his cameos, with writer and director James Gunn noting that commentators believed Lee was portraying the character Uatu the Watcher and "that all of these cameos are part of him being a Watcher . So, Stan Lee as a guy who is working for
558-604: A crossover film; Arad, who resigned in 2006, doubted this strategy would work. He insisted that it was his reputation that helped secure the initial financing. In 2007, Feige was named studio chief. To preserve its artistic integrity, Marvel Studios formed a creative committee of six people familiar with its comic book lore: Feige, Marvel Studios co-president Louis D'Esposito , Marvel Comics' president of publishing Dan Buckley , Marvel Entertainment's chief creative officer Joe Quesada , comic book writer Brian Michael Bendis , and Marvel Entertainment president Alan Fine , who oversaw
744-489: A "hands-on role" in each series' development. Feige said these series would "tell stories... that we wouldn't be able to tell in a theatrical experience—a longer-form narrative". He added that being asked by Disney to create these series "energized everyone creatively" within Marvel Studios, since they "could play in a new medium and throw the rules out the window in terms of structure and format". Television specials from
930-414: A 2018 agreement between Alonso and Disney to not work for a competing studio. The decision was made by a group that included Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman and Disney's human resources and legal departments. Alonso reportedly did not seek permission to work on the film and was asked by Disney to stop working on it or promoting it. The situation was deemed serious enough that Disney requested
1116-618: A 30-page document to define the series before any writers or directors were hired. The document included the main elements of the series, such as the Time Variance Authority , He Who Remains , and Victor Timely . Michael Waldron was hired as head writer and executive producer of the series in February 2019, and was set to write the first episode. In August 2019, Kate Herron was announced as director and executive producer. In addition to Waldron and Herron, executive producers for
1302-451: A Christmas celebration for Quill with the help of the other Guardians and residents of Knowhere. In 2026, Quill frequently gets drunk due to grieving Gamora, while the team has successfully built their headquarters. One night, they are attacked by Adam Warlock , who seriously injures Rocket, and is defeated by Nebula. The team leave in their new ship, tasking Cosmo and Kraglin to keep watch over Knowhere. They head to Orgocorp and are stopped by
1488-496: A Marvel film if asked. When developing the crossover miniseries The Defenders , showrunner Marco Ramirez consulted with the creators of all the individual Marvel Netflix series, having them read each of the scripts for The Defenders and provide insight into individual characters' worlds. In December 2021, Feige confirmed that Cox would reprise the role of Daredevil in Marvel Studios MCU productions, with Cox first reprising
1674-472: A Roxxon-branded gas station on his way to Albuquerque , New Mexico . In Iron Man 3 , Norco , a Roxxon tanker caused an oil spill , leading to Roxxon accountant Thomas Richards (portrayed by Tom Virtue ) being held captive by Trevor Slattery and seemingly executed on a live broadcast before later parting ways. The aforementioned tanker is later impounded in a shipping yard where Aldrich Killian planned to execute President Matthew Ellis . Simon Krieger
1860-679: A big idea they would like to explore or build to in a project, such as Hydra infiltrating S.H.I.E.L.D. in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), but they leave it up to the filmmakers to interpret and "improv a little bit" to get that point. After these ideas have been developed, the creative team then begins exploring ideas from other future projects to see how to make any larger universe connections. In August 2012, Marvel signed The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) director Joss Whedon to an exclusive contract through June 2015 for film and television. With
2046-576: A big, giant visual-effects movie to do a big, giant visual-effects movie for us. You just have to have done something singularly sort of awesome." The studio ensures directors are open to the idea of the shared universe and are willing to include connective material, such as Kenneth Branagh and Joe Johnston needing to include scenes that set-up The Avengers (2012) in their respective Phase One films Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger (both 2011). Marvel Studios usually has
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#17330845808242232-416: A bureaucratic organization that exists outside of time and space and monitors the timeline. They give Loki a choice: face being erased from existence due to being a "time-variant", or help fix the timeline and stop a greater threat. Loki ends up in his own crime thriller, traveling through time, hunting a female version of himself named Sylvie . After the first season ends with the timeline breaking and
2418-619: A duel with Arnim Zola over the Infinity Stones . Strange Supreme then casts a spell which imprisons the two inside a pocket dimension before the team is disbanded, returning to their universes by the Watcher. However, Romanoff is transported to another universe , as her own universe was destroyed by Ultron. They appeared in the animated series What If...? . The Howling Commandos are an elite combat unit that had been led by Captain America (portrayed by Chris Evans ) during World War II. At
2604-478: A father and Avenger. Quantumania writer Jeff Loveness wrote the material from the memoir that was featured in the film. Various composers have created the film and television scores of the MCU films, television series, One-Shots, Special Presentations, and other related projects of the MCU, primarily released by Marvel Studios's record label Marvel Music . Original songs have also been created specifically for use in
2790-613: A flashback in the live-action television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode " Shadows ", with McDonough and Choi reprising their respective roles. They assist Peggy Carter ( Hayley Atwell ) in capturing Hydra agents following the events of The First Avenger . The Howling Commandos appear in the live-action television series Agent Carter episode " The Iron Ceiling ", consisting of Dugan (reprised by McDonough) and new members Happy Sam Sawyer ( Leonard Roberts ), Junior Juniper (James Austin Kerr), and Pinky Pinkerton ( Richard Short ). While
2976-726: A mission on Krylor. They appeared in the films Guardians of the Galaxy , Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 , Avengers: Infinity War , Avengers: Endgame , Thor: Love and Thunder , and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ; as well the Disney+ television special The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and the animated series What If...? . The Guardians of the Multiverse is a group consisted of superheroes and supervillains from across
3162-622: A multi-million dollar compensation settlement in April. Disney CEO Bob Iger said in July 2023 that the company would be reducing the amount of Marvel content created moving forward, admitting that Marvel Studios' expansion into Disney+ series and more films had "diluted focus and attention" after several underachieving films at the box office. He clarified their plans in May 2024, saying Disney would now release two, or at most three, Marvel films and two Marvel series
3348-400: A new agreement be signed. The company consistently reminded her of this while she continued to promote the film following its September 2022 premiere, ultimately leading to her firing. Alonso's lawyers refuted these claims, saying Disney was aware of, and agreed to, Alonso's work on Argentina, 1985 and Alonso had been "silenced [and] was terminated when she refused to do something she believed
3534-607: A new team roster led by Rogers. In Captain America: Civil War , the Avengers break apart into two teams, one led by Rogers and one led by Stark. In Avengers: Infinity War , the Avengers battle Thanos , and Stark officially makes Peter Parker / Spider-Man a member of the team. In Avengers: Endgame , five years after the events of Infinity War , Nebula , Rocket , Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel , and Scott Lang / Ant-Man join
3720-430: A pair of Wakandan warriors consisting of Okoye and Aneka , both equipped with advanced armor built by Shuri . They appeared in the film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever . The Revengers is a team of ex- Sakaar prisoners assembled by Thor to escape the planet and defeat Hela . The team consists of Thor, Loki , Hulk , Valkyrie , Korg , and Miek . With the exception of Loki, who is choked to death by Thanos ,
3906-624: A series of direct-to-video short films that are included as special features in the MCU films' Blu-ray and digital distribution releases. The films included The Consultant (2011), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer (2011), Item 47 (2012), Agent Carter (2013), and All Hail the King (2014). Following the One-Shots becoming available on Disney+ in January 2022, Marvel classified
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#17330845808244092-433: A series of photorealistic animated shorts starring Baby Groot for Disney+. In November 2016, Feige explained that the studio would often put together a "lookbook" of influences from the comics and art by Marvel's visual development department, to create a visual template for a project. These are put together at company retreats, which the studio holds approximately every 18 months to plan out future projects and develop
4278-498: A series of direct-to-video short films called Marvel One-Shots from 2011 to 2014, and viral marketing campaigns for some films featuring the faux news programs WHIH Newsfront (2015–16) and The Daily Bugle (2019–2022). The franchise has been commercially successful, becoming one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time, and it has received generally positive reviews from critics. The studio attributed several Multiverse Saga projects performing below expectations to
4464-423: A series of in-universe YouTube videos serving as the center of a viral marketing campaign to promote the films and universe. In December 2016, a six-part web series, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Slingshot , debuted on ABC.com . It follows Elena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez on a secret mission, shortly before the start of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 's fourth season , with Natalia Cordova-Buckley reprising her role from
4650-477: A year. This was a decrease from up to four films and around four series being released in some recent years. The company was reducing output and focusing on quality across all its divisions, but Iger felt the change was especially needed for Marvel. Feige and D'Esposito said 2023 had been a particularly difficult year and a "rough time" for the studio but they had learned their lesson on trying to make too much content at once. They added that no longer being "on top" of
4836-653: Is Ayo . Florence Kasumba portrays Ayo , a member of the Dora Milaje, in Captain America: Civil War , as a guard of T'Challa. They next appear in Black Panther . Florence Kasumba reprises her role, Danai Gurira portrays Okoye, and Sydelle Noel portrays Xoliswa while the unnamed Dora Milaje are portrayed by Marija Abney, Janeshia Adams-Ginyard , Maria Hippolyte, Marie Mouroum, Jénel Stevens, Zola Williams, Christine Hollingsworth, and Shaunette Renée Wilson . After Killmonger takes over Wakanda and seemingly kills T'Challa ,
5022-619: Is also placed here in The Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline . The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z , Vol. 5, published in 2008, originally designated the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Earth-199999 within the continuity of Marvel's comic multiverse , a collection of fictional alternate universes, although, this designation was rarely used officially outside of
5208-504: Is an American law firm operating in New York City and Los Angeles. Holden Holliway is a character in the series, played by Steve Coulter. The names of the other unseen partners are a reference to Martin Goodman (born Moe Goodman), Stan Lee (born Stanley Lieber), and Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg). It appeared in the Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law . Hammer Industries
5394-597: Is an American weapons manufacturing company formerly led by Justin Hammer , until his arrest at the Stark Expo . Following Tony Stark 's unprecedented announcement that his company would no longer manufacture weapons, Hammer Industries received the weapons contract for the United States Armed Forces . However, despite its claims, most of the weapons produced by Hammer Industries are defective or weak. It appeared in
5580-524: Is first seen going to the planet Torfa to rescue a Kree scout named Soh-Larr. Vers is captured in a Skrull ambush led by Talos, but escapes to Earth and makes contact with Yon-Rogg. Following a parley with Talos and the discovery of the Skrull refugees hidden by Mar-Vell, Starforce arrives on Earth and takes prisoner the Skrulls , Nick Fury , Maria Rambeau , and Goose . Vers, in her regained identity of Carol Danvers,
5766-473: Is holding Zeller's wife hostage, she frees her while the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D. team defeat Garrett's forces. As of the episode " Principia ", Cybertek was shut down following Garrett's defeat while ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy student Tony Caine helped fake the Cybertek scientists' deaths to help them find new work, with one of them later providing information to Agent Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie . Roxxon features in
Teams and organizations of the Marvel Cinematic Universe - Misplaced Pages Continue
5952-533: Is placed in a transmission with the Supreme Intelligence. After breaking free and overheating the implant that limited her abilities, Carol Danvers fights Starforce and Kree soldiers to rescue Nick Fury, Maria Rambeau, and the Skrulls; most of the antagonizing Kree are killed or incapacitated. They appeared in the film Captain Marvel . The Strategic Operations Command Center , also known by its acronym SOCC ,
6138-629: Is the first mutant (a term related to the X-Men) in the MCU. Namor is also revealed to be a mutant in the film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), as he is in the comics. Kelsey Grammer appears as Dr. Hank McCoy / Beast in The Marvels (2023), reprising the role from the X-Men films series, which also introduces the mutant Binary , an alternate version of Maria Rambeau , portrayed by Lashana Lynch . Feige called Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
6324-724: Is the grandson of one of the Howling Commandos. Alternate timeline versions of the Howling Commandos appear in the Disney+ animated series What If...? episode " What If... Captain Carter Were the First Avenger? ". They appeared in the films Captain America: The First Avenger and Agent Carter , as well as the TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter as well as the Disney+ animated series What If...? . The Midnight Angels are
6510-658: The Team Thor mockumentary shorts as One-Shots. Team Thor is a series of direct-to-video mockumentary short films that were released from 2016 to 2018, consisting of Team Thor , Team Thor: Part 2 , and Team Darryl , all written and directed by Taika Waititi . I Am Groot is a series of photorealistic animated short films for Disney+ starring Baby Groot going on adventures with new and unusual characters. Vin Diesel reprises his role, with five shorts releasing on August 10, 2022. A second season with five additional shorts
6696-603: The Abomination in Harlem . It appeared in the film The Incredible Hulk . The Valkyrie were a group of female Asgardian warriors who served under Odin . Described by Thor as a "legend", the Valkyrie were sworn to protect the throne and fly on winged horses . During one of their missions, they were sent by Odin to Hel in order to prevent his daughter, Hela , from escaping. However, Hela single-handedly murdered all but one of
6882-757: The Atlanta metropolitan area . Production on the first season was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic . Filming for the second season occurred at Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom, and on location in London, with Isaac Bauman and Oliver Loncraine serving as cinematographers. Visual effects for the series were provided by Cantina Creative , FuseFX , Industrial Light & Magic , and Trixter , with Crafty Apes , Digital Domain , Luma Pictures , Method Studios , Rise FX , and Rodeo FX also providing visual effects in
7068-473: The Fantastic Four to Marvel Studios, although Feige explained that despite the acquisition finalizing in 2019, access and integration of these characters and concepts were unavailable "for a very long time" because of corporate acquisition laws. Some of the first elements to be integrated into the MCU following the acquisition were the organization S.W.O.R.D. in the Disney+ series WandaVision (2021) and
7254-465: The Iron Man films. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Slingshot (2016) is one of several Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. web series created for ABC.com and produced by Marvel Television that is a supplement to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , with the main cast reprising their roles. The first two seasons of The Daily Bugle (2019–2022) are an in-universe current affairs show serving as a viral marketing campaign for
7440-539: The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films who had not starred in their own films, such as Loki ; the actors who portrayed the characters in the films were expected to reprise their roles for the limited series. These series were expected to be six to eight episodes each and have a "hefty [budget] rivaling those of a major studio production". The series would be produced by Marvel Studios, rather than Marvel Television which produced previous television series in
7626-583: The Multiverse . The group was assembled by the Watcher with the goal of stopping an alternate version of Ultron from destroying the Multiverse. The group's members are Peggy Carter / Captain Carter , T'Challa / Star-Lord , Thor , Erik "Killmonger" Stevens , Gamora , Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow , and Stephen Strange / Doctor Strange Supreme . After a lengthy battle, the team defeats Ultron, but Killmonger enters into
Teams and organizations of the Marvel Cinematic Universe - Misplaced Pages Continue
7812-546: The Russo brothers and written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely . This was to ensure their storytelling aligned for the Infinity Saga's culmination. Marvel Studios began contracting their actors for multiple films, including signing actor Samuel L. Jackson to a then-unprecedented nine-film contract. Feige said the studio had all actors sign contracts for multiple films, with the normal number being for three or more while
7998-475: The Spider-Man films. Multiple limited series or one-shot comic books that tie into the MCU films and television series have been published by Marvel Comics. They are intended to tell additional stories about existing characters or to make connections between MCU projects, without necessarily expanding the universe or introducing new concepts or characters. The Wakanda Files: A Technological Exploration of
8184-648: The X-Men which were respectively licensed to Sony, New Line, and Fox, Marvel owned the rights to the Avengers team. Feige, a self-described "fanboy", envisioned combining these characters in a shared universe similar to the one created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for Marvel Comics in the 1960s. "It's never been done before and that's kind of the spirit everybody's taking it in. The other filmmakers aren't used to getting actors from other movies that other filmmakers have cast, certain plot lines that are connected or certain locations that are connected, but I think... everyone
8370-555: The Yellowjacket suit, hoping to sell it to the military or terrorist organizations and planning to rename the company Cross Technologies . He is ultimately stopped by Pym, Van Dyne, and Scott Lang , and the company's headquarters is destroyed. Sometime after the Sokovia Accords were repealed, Van Dyne bought back her father's company and renamed it the Pym van Dyne Foundation , to utilize
8556-472: The crossover film The Avengers (2012). Phase Two comprises Iron Man 3 (2013), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), and Ant-Man (2015). Captain America: Civil War (2016) is the first film of Phase Three , and is followed by Doctor Strange (2016), Guardians of
8742-586: The untitled fourth Spider-Man film (2026), and will conclude with Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). The planned film Blade is also intended to be part of the phase but does not have a release date. Marvel Television produced multiple television series set in the MCU across broadcast, streaming, and cable. Its ABC series included Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013–2020), Agent Carter (2015–2016), and Inhumans (2017); its Netflix series included Daredevil (2015–2018), Jessica Jones (2015–2019), Luke Cage (2016–2018), Iron Fist (2017–2018),
8928-461: The 1940s. In the episode " Now is Not the End ", Roxxon employee Miles Van Ert (portrayed by James Urbaniak ) collaborates with Leviathan agents to create more of Howard Stark 's destructive Nitramene chemical in a Roxxon refinery. Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) operative Peggy Carter infiltrates the facility, but Leviathan operative Leet Brannis uses a Nitramene bomb to implode the refinery. In
9114-469: The 2012 crossover film The Avengers . Phase Two began with Iron Man 3 (2013) and concluded with Ant-Man (2015), while Phase Three began with Captain America: Civil War (2016) and concluded with Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019). Black Widow (2021) is the first film in Phase Four , which concluded with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), while Phase Five began with Ant-Man and
9300-504: The Avengers and Beyond is "a collection of papers, articles, blueprints, and notes amassed throughout history by Wakanda's War Dogs" at the request of Shuri . It is organized by areas of study and covers the technological advancements throughout the MCU. The book, which exists within the universe, was written by Troy Benjamin and published by Epic Ink and Quarto Publishing Group. The Wakanda Files has content printed with UV ink that can be viewed with Kimoyo bead–shaped UV lights included with
9486-453: The Avengers as well. The Avengers appear in the films The Avengers , Avengers: Age of Ultron , Captain America: Civil War , Avengers: Infinity War , Captain Marvel (mid-credits scene), and Avengers: Endgame ; as well as the Disney+ series Loki (archival footage). Alternate versions of the team also appear in the animated Disney+ series What If...? . Individual members of the Avengers are central characters in almost all films of
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#17330845808249672-520: The Conqueror variant Victor Timely, who was introduced at the end of Quantumania . Joining them for the season are Rafael Casal as Hunter X-5 / Brad Wolfe , Kate Dickie as General Dox, Liz Carr as Judge Gamble, Ke Huy Quan as Ouroboros "O.B." , and Richard Dixon as Robber Baron. Filming for the first season occurred at Pinewood Atlanta Studios , with Autumn Durald Arkapaw serving as cinematographer. Location shooting took place in
9858-539: The Department of Damage Control taking over their contracts, leading to Toomes choosing a life of crime to support his family. It appeared in the film Spider-Man: Homecoming . Food, Emergency Aid, Shelter & Training , better known by its acronym F.E.A.S.T , is an American non-profit charitable organization. In 2024, May Parker worked for F.E.A.S.T. to feed the poor and the hungry in New York. During one of her shifts,
10044-409: The Dora Milaje reluctantly stand by him as they must remain loyal to the throne. After T'Challa returns, the Dora Milaje fight Killmonger, though Xoliswa is killed in the process. In 2018, the Dora Milaje join the Avengers in defending Wakanda from Thanos 's forces., whilst they fight Thanos's forces again in 2023. In 2024, after Bucky Barnes breaks Helmut Zemo out of prison, the Dora Milaje pursue
10230-596: The Galaxy Holiday Special (2022) are also included in the phase. Phase Five includes Secret Invasion (2023), the second season of Loki (2023), the second season of What If...? (2023), Echo (2024), Agatha All Along (2024), the third season of What If...? (2024), the first season of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025), the first season of Daredevil: Born Again (2025), and Ironheart (2025). Phase Six will include Eyes of Wakanda (2025), Marvel Zombies (2025), Wonder Man (2025), and Vision Quest (2026). Marvel One-Shots are
10416-512: The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Black Panther (2018), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), Captain Marvel (2019), Avengers: Endgame (2019), and Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019). The second three phases are collectively known as "The Multiverse Saga", and include television series on Disney+ . Phase Four includes Black Widow (2021), Shang-Chi and
10602-541: The Guardians in search for answers upon learning of gods being murdered across the universe. In 2025, as depicted in "The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special", the team has gained a large amount of money and resources by saving the universe and buy the former home of Knowhere from "The Collector", to be used as their base of operations. Cosmo the Spacedog then joins the team and helps them rebuild Knowhere. Mantis and Drax hold
10788-420: The Guardians, quipping that they are now the " Asgardians of the Galaxy ", and jokingly argues with Quill over command of the team. In 2024, the team help Thor get back into his fit and are joined by Kraglin, now sporting (though still adjusting) the late Yondu's "fin & yaka arrow". They go on several adventures throughout the galaxy. On the planet Indigarr, they are met by Korg . There, Thor decides to leave
10974-747: The Infinity Stones to snap his fingers. An alternate version shown in What If...? shows how Thanos lost the team to the Collector when he became good. They appeared in the films Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame ; as well as the Disney+ animated series What If...? , in which they are referred to as the Black Order . The Dora Milaje , also known simply as the Dora , are an elite organization of female bodyguards and Wakanda's special forces. The current general
11160-861: The Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), Eternals (2021), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022). Phase Five begins with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), followed by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), The Marvels (2023), Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), and Captain America: Brave New World (2025), and will conclude with Thunderbolts* (2025). Phase Six begins with The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025), followed by Avengers: Doomsday (2026) and
11346-506: The MCU . Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige was believed to be taking a "hands-on role" in each series' development, focusing on "continuity of story" with the films and "handling" the actors who would be reprising their roles from the films. Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed in November that a series centered on Loki was in development and that Tom Hiddleston was expected to reprise his role from
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#173308458082411532-682: The MCU as we know it, Loki successfully sees star Tom Hiddleston leap from beloved villain to endearing antihero—with a little help from Owen Wilson—in a series that's as off-kilter, charming, and vaguely dangerous as the demigod himself." Metacritic , which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 74 out of 100 based on 32 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. For the second season, Rotten Tomatoes reports an 81% approval rating with an average rating of 7.3/10, based on 161 reviews. The critical consensus reads, " Loki ' s dizzying, dazzling second season may rely on sleight of hand to distract from its slightly less satisfying storyline, but
11718-410: The MCU films for the following 10 years. That July, Feige announced some of the films and series for Phase Five and Phase Six at San Diego Comic-Con, revealing that the second three Phases were collectively known as " The Multiverse Saga ". After the "creative experience" of ending Phase Three and "The Infinity Saga" with Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame , and the expansion in
11904-637: The MCU's primary reality as Earth-199999. 20th Century Fox 's X-Men film series is designated as Earth-10005 in Deadpool & Wolverine . That film features several actors reprising their roles from the X-Men film series along with characters from Fox's films Daredevil and its spin-off Elektra , Fantastic Four (2005) and its sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), and New Line Cinema 's Blade film trilogy . Phases Four, Five, and Six comprise " The Multiverse Saga ". With
12090-409: The MCU. The Children of Thanos were an elite team of powerful individuals who used their abilities to serve their adoptive father Thanos . As Thanos's vicious generals, they assisted him in his mission to find and harness the power of the Infinity Stones . Thanos adopted six known children: Ebony Maw , Proxima Midnight , Corvus Glaive , Cull Obsidian , Gamora , and Nebula , and trained them in
12276-419: The MCU. Each short was designed to be a self-contained story that provided more backstory for characters or events introduced in the films. In March 2015, Marvel's Vice President of Animation Development and Production, Cort Lane , said animated tie-ins to the MCU were "in the works". That July, Marvel Studios partnered with Google to produce the faux news program WHIH Newsfront with Christine Everhart ,
12462-472: The Multiverse Saga after Thanos in the Infinity Saga, because Kang was a different villain in part because he has multiple variants from different timelines within the multiverse. The studio did not initially plan to build the next saga around Kang, and made that decision after seeing actor Jonathan Majors 's performance in the first season of the Disney+ series Loki (2021), as well as dailies from
12648-457: The Multiverse Saga's new antagonist Victor von Doom / Doctor Doom (after previously portraying the superhero Tony Stark / Iron Man in the MCU from 2008 to 2019) for both Doomsday and Secret Wars . In December 2017, Disney agreed to acquire assets from 21st Century Fox . The transaction officially closed on March 19, 2019. This saw the return of the film rights for Deadpool , the X-Men, and
12834-400: The Multiverse of Madness , but in May 2021 he would not reconfirm this or whether the series would tie in with any other MCU projects, though he did say the series would "lay the groundwork" for the future of the MCU. Waldron noted that, as with all MCU properties, the aim was for Loki to have "wide-reaching ramifications" across the franchise. In the first-season finale , the "man behind
13020-553: The Netflix series by Marvel Television. Loki and What If...? are excluded from the diagram because they occur outside of the main timeline. Werewolf by Night is also excluded given the special explicitly does not indicate where it takes place in the MCU. Disney+'s timeline order places the first seasons of Loki and What If...? between Avengers: Endgame and WandaVision , their second seasons after The Marvels , and Werewolf by Night after Thor: Love and Thunder ; Werewolf by Night
13206-579: The Phases in addition to their feature films. Each series is released on Disney+. Phase Four includes the series WandaVision (2021), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021), the first season of Loki (2021), the first season of the animated series What If...? (2021), Hawkeye (2021), Moon Knight (2022), Ms. Marvel (2022), and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022). The television specials Werewolf by Night (2022) and The Guardians of
13392-507: The Pym Particles in new and innovative ways to help advance humanitarian efforts. It appeared in the films Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . Roxxon Corporation is a large industrial conglomerate that frequently comes into conflict with S.H.I.E.L.D. and other superheroes due to its willingness to use unethical methods. The Roxxon Oil Corporation features in the television series Agent Carter , which takes place in
13578-686: The Ravagers, where the alternate version of Gamora is tasked to help them. They retrieve Rocket's file and depart for Counter-Earth . Quill and Groot leave to meet with the High Evolutionary , while Nebula is forced to stay outside. Quill and Groot make their escape with one of the High Evolutionary's men and retrieve the code to save Rocket. Nebula, joined by Mantis and Drax, enter the ship to save Quill and Groot, but get captured instead. Gamora protects Rocket and picks up Quill and Groot. Quill provides
13764-506: The Stones and is executed by Thor, Rocket and Nebula become members of the Avengers. In 2023, they use the Quantum Realm to travel to alternate universes to retrieve Infinity Stones. They are successful, but an alternate 2014 Thanos variant becomes aware of the presence of this other Nebula, and has her captured, sending his Nebula to the present in the former's place. The alternate Nebula brings
13950-514: The Tesseract during the 2012 events of The Avengers (2012), creating an alternate timeline from the main MCU films. The first season sees the Loki time variant traveling through time and altering human history, with a "man-on-the-run" and an "unexpected" science fiction quality to it; the season also explores Loki's identity. Loki falls in love with his female variant, Sylvie , in the season, which
14136-540: The Tesseract when he filmed the scene in 2017, and did not learn about plans for Loki until around six weeks before Infinity War was released. He kept plans for the series a secret until the official announcement later in 2018 and later expressed excitement about being able to develop Loki differently by taking an earlier version of the character and bringing him into contact with new, more "formidable" opponents. Hiddleston worked with Marvel Studios executive and eventual series' executive producer Kevin R. Wright to create
14322-787: The Valkyrie before Odin arrived and stopped her. Deeply traumatized by the experience, the sole surviving Valkyrie leaves Asgard and becomes a bounty hunter , serving the Grandmaster on Sakaar as "Scrapper 142". They appeared in the film Thor: Ragnarok . The Warriors Three are a group of Asgardian warriors/adventurers, made up of Hogun , Fandral , and Volstagg , with Fandral initially portrayed by Joshua Dallas , Hogun portrayed by Tadanobu Asano , and Volstagg portrayed by Ray Stevenson . They often fight alongside Thor and Lady Sif . Zachary Levi later replaces Joshua Dallas as Fandral. Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg are ultimately killed by Hela during her takeover of Asgard . They appeared in
14508-605: The Walt Disney Company purchased Marvel Entertainment for $ 4 billion. Disney said future Marvel Studios films would be distributed by its own studio once the prior deal with Paramount expired. The films of Phase Three were announced at a special press event in October 2014. By September 2015, Marvel Studios was integrated into Walt Disney Studios . Feige was reporting to Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan F. Horn instead of Marvel Entertainment CEO Isaac Perlmutter , and
14694-494: The Wasp: Quantumania (2023) and will conclude with Thunderbolts* (2025). Phase Six will begin with The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) and it will conclude with Avengers: Doomsday (2026) and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). Marvel Television expanded the universe to network television with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on ABC in 2013 before further expanding to streaming television on Netflix and Hulu and to cable television on Freeform . They also produced
14880-690: The Watchers was something that I thought was fun for the MCU." Feige added that Lee "clearly exists, you know, above and apart from the reality of all the films. So the notion that he could be sitting there on a cosmic pit stop during the jump gate sequence in Guardians ...really says, so wait a minute, he's this same character who's popped up in all these films?" Following Lee's death, Marvel Studios chose not to create any new Lee cameos in future projects. NY1 news anchor Pat Kiernan has also appeared in multiple MCU films and television series as himself. Early on,
15066-405: The Winter Soldier and What If...? . The Guardians of the Galaxy are a band of outlaws who joined to protect the galaxy from threats. The group's founding members are Star-Lord , Gamora , Drax , Rocket , and Groot . The team's membership is later expanded with the addition of Yondu Udonta and Mantis while temporarily aided by Nebula in their fight against Ego . Kraglin also assists
15252-527: The alternate Thanos and his army to the main universe, where he destroys the Avengers Compound in order to acquire the Stones to kill the entire universe. Nebula successfully convinces an alternate Gamora to join her in opposing Thanos, and kills her alternate counterpart. The combined forces of the Avengers, the Guardians and all of their allies succeed in repelling his forces, and eliminating the alternate Thanos and his army. Afterwards, Nebula and Thor joins
15438-582: The book. It was released on October 20, 2020. Look Out for the Little Guy , the fictional memoir written by Scott Lang as seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania , was released by Hyperion Avenue on September 5, 2023. It was created alongside Marvel Studios and the Quantumania filmmakers, and was written by Rob Kutner , featuring "over 20 short pieces exploring different aspects of Scott's experiences" as
15624-594: The box office allowed them to be underdogs again, as they had been when starting work on Phase One, and they would be "coming back strong" with the hope of surprising audiences and exceeding expectations. Feige expected the studio to begin releasing two films and three series per year after 2025, when they were planning to release three films and six series that had been in development for a long time and were ready to be released. In 2024, Marvel Studios introduced their "Marvel Animation" and "Marvel Television" banners for their animated and live-action series, respectively. This
15810-454: The code, but Rocket flatlines, however he is resuscitated by Quill. After learning that the others are captured, Quill asks Kraglin to bring Knowhere to the High Evolutionary's ship. The team defeats the High Evolutionary and Cosmo uses her powers to stop the ship from crashing into Knowhere and provide a safe escape for the captured animals and children. Quill almost dies but is rescued by Warlock. Afterwards, Quill says goodbye to Gamora and tells
15996-407: The committee. Feige initially referred to the shared narrative continuity of the films as the "Marvel Cinema Universe", but later used the term "Marvel Cinematic Universe". Since the franchise expanded to other media, some have used this phrase to only refer to the feature films. The MCU films are released in groups called "Phases", beginning with Phase One and Phase Two . In December 2009,
16182-530: The company is associated with the Hand . Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe ( MCU ) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios . The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by Marvel Comics . The franchise also includes several television series , short films, digital series, and literature. The shared universe, much like
16368-551: The company who help to elevate each other's projects where possible. In November 2017, Feige said Avengers: Endgame (2019) would provide a definitive conclusion to the films thus far and begin a new period for the franchise. He later said Phase Three would conclude " The Infinity Saga ". Disney was reportedly developing a Marvel-based television series for their new streaming service Disney+ by November 2017. In July 2018, Feige said discussions had begun with Disney regarding any potential involvement Marvel Studios could have with
16554-472: The course of the films and related media (such as Disney+ miniseries ), several teams and organizations have been formed, each with different aims and purposes. The Avengers are the central team of protagonist superheroes of "The Infinity Saga" within the Marvel Cinematic Universe . Created by Nick Fury and led primarily by Steve Rogers / Captain America , the team is a United States–based organization composed mainly of enhanced individuals committed to
16740-505: The creation of a multiverse , the second season shows Loki teaming up with Mobius M. Mobius , Hunter B-15 , and other TVA agents "in a battle for the soul" of the TVA. This includes a search through the multiverse for Sylvie, Ravonna Renslayer , and Miss Minutes . By September 2018, Marvel Studios was developing several limited series for its parent company Disney 's streaming service, Disney+ , to be centered on supporting characters from
16926-477: The creative committee began having only "nominal" input on the films. They continued to consult on Marvel Television productions, which remained under Perlmutter's control. All key film decisions moving forward were to be made by Feige, D'Esposito, and executive vice president Victoria Alonso . The studio went on to establish the Marvel Studios Parliament , a "brain trust" of long-time executives at
17112-670: The creator or co-creator of many of the characters adapted in the MCU, made cameo appearances in all of the feature films and television series except Inhumans . In Iron Fist , it is revealed his on-set photograph cameo in the Marvel Netflix series is as NYPD Captain Irving Forbush . His cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 sees Lee appearing as an informant to the Watchers , discussing previous adventures that include Lee's cameos in other MCU films; he specifically mentions his time as
17298-554: The crossover miniseries The Defenders (2017), and The Punisher (2017–2019); its young adult series included Runaways (2017–2019) streaming on Hulu and Cloak & Dagger (2018–2019) airing on Freeform ; and the Hulu series Helstrom (2020) was originally intended to be the start of a planned "Adventure into Fear" franchise, but was ultimately "not tied to the MCU", according to showrunner Paul Zbyszewski . Beginning with Phase Four, television series were included as part of
17484-766: The crossover miniseries The Defenders . In April 2016, Netflix ordered The Punisher , a spin-off of Daredevil . By February 2019, Netflix had canceled all of its Marvel series. In April 2016, the Disney-owned cable network Freeform announced Cloak & Dagger . In May 2017, Marvel announced that Runaways had received a series order from Hulu . In May 2019, Marvel announced that Helstrom had been greenlit for Hulu. In October 2019, further corporate restructuring saw Feige named Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment, with Marvel Television becoming part of Marvel Studios and executives of Marvel Television reporting to Feige. In December 2019, Marvel Television
17670-633: The curtain" of the TVA is revealed to be He Who Remains, a variant of the Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) character Kang the Conqueror . Jonathan Majors portrays both roles, and Waldron felt it made "so much sense" to introduce Majors in the series, since Kang is "a time-traveling, multiversal adversary" and thought to be "the next big cross-movie villain". Marvel Studios was not initially planning to have " The Multiverse Saga ", which comprises Phase Four , Phase Five , and Phase Six , revolve around Kang, but decided to after seeing Majors' performance in
17856-463: The deal, Whedon contributed creatively to all of the Phase Two films and also developed Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , the first television series set in the MCU. In April 2017, Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) writer and director James Gunn revealed that he would be working with Marvel to help plan future stories for the Guardians of the Galaxy characters and
18042-445: The digital series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Slingshot (2016). Marvel Studios began producing their own television series for streaming on Disney+ , starting with WandaVision in 2021 as the beginning of Phase Four. That phase also saw the studio expand to television specials, known as Marvel Studios Special Presentations , starting with Werewolf by Night (2022). The MCU includes various tie-in comics published by Marvel Comics,
18228-472: The directing duo Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead were hired to direct a majority of the episodes for the second season, while Eric Martin , a first-season writer who took over some of Waldron's duties during production on that season, was set to write the six-episode second season. Benson and Moorhead previously directed two episodes of Moon Knight (2022), which went "so smoothly" that Marvel Studios wanted
18414-463: The duo to work on other projects, and they were quickly chosen for the second season of Loki . Hiddleston and Waldron were set to return as executive producers at that time. Dan DeLeeuw , a visual effects supervisor and second unit director on several MCU films, and series' production designer Kasra Farahani were revealed as directors for the second season in June. Wright was upped to executive producer for
18600-508: The emotional end of his character arc , though he knew when he filmed the death scene that he would make a cameo appearance in Avengers: Endgame (2019). That Endgame scene sees a 2012 version of Loki escape with the Tesseract , which was not intended by the writers to set up a future television series as Loki was not planned then. Hiddleston was unaware of where Loki had gone with
18786-628: The end of the war and after Captain America's apparent demise, their unit continued to be active and was led by Dum Dum Dugan (portrayed by Neal McDonough ). They are first introduced in Captain America: The First Avenger . They were made up of men freed from a Hydra prisoner camp by Rogers. Their number also included Bucky Barnes , Gabe Jones , James Montgomery Falsworth , Jim Morita , and Jacques Dernier (portrayed by Sebastian Stan , Derek Luke , JJ Feild , Kenneth Choi , and Bruno Ricci respectively). Dugan and Morita appear in
18972-615: The end result still contains enough of that old Marvel magic to entertain." Metacritic assigned a score of 65 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Loki was nominated for nine Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards , nine Critics' Choice Super Awards (winning one), one Harvey Award , one Hugo Award , three MTV Movie & TV Awards (winning two), four People's Choice Awards (winning two), one Screen Actors Guild Award , seven Visual Effects Society Awards (winning one), and two Writers Guild of America Awards , among others. In February 2021,
19158-560: The episode " Bridge and Tunnel ", Roxxon's president Hugh Jones meets with SSR Deputy Director Roger Dooley and Agent Jack Thompson regarding the implosion, concluding that the culprit would be emitting Vita-Rays and later has Van Ert arrested. In the episode " A View in the Dark ", Jones and the Council of Nine convince Calvin Chadwick to focus on a senatorial campaign instead of Isodyne Energy. In
19344-522: The episode " The Atomic Job ", Peggy infiltrates Roxxon's Los Angeles branch in search of atomic bombs they are holding. Once she discovers the location, she, her partner Edwin Jarvis , and SSR agents infiltrate the facility and disable the bombs before Whitney Frost 's group can get the devices. In the Marvel One-Shot , A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer , Agent Phil Coulson stops at
19530-400: The episode and the dailies while filming Quantumania . The first-season finale also sets up the events of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness , and elements of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). The second season helps connect the entire Multiverse Saga. Wright stated that the creatives wanted to push the weirdness of the series further in the second season, while still keeping
19716-404: The event a film had to debut on Disney+ instead of in theaters. TheWrap reported that the new contracts would likely only apply to films about to enter production. It was unclear if any adjustments would be made to contracts for films already completed but not yet released. For Marvel Television, Loeb said he and his executives were involved in all aspects of production: "whether it's being in
19902-555: The fictional country Madripoor in the series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021). Additionally, Patrick Stewart appeared as Professor Charles Xavier in the film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), portraying a different version of the character that he previously played in Fox's X-Men film series , while Kamala Khan was revealed to have a genetic mutation in Ms. Marvel , with star Iman Vellani confirming that she
20088-465: The film Iron Man 2 . Pym Technologies was a multinational technology and scientific research company founded by Hank Pym and later taken over by his protégé, Darren Cross . Following his departure from S.H.I.E.L.D. , Pym founded the company to study quantum mechanics , but was later voted out of his own company by Cross and his daughter, Hope van Dyne . Obsessed with recreating the fabled Pym Particles , Cross eventually succeeded and created
20274-413: The film series, starring alongside Gugu Mbatha-Raw , Wunmi Mosaku , Eugene Cordero , Tara Strong , Owen Wilson , Sophia Di Martino , Jonathan Majors , and Neil Ellice . Sasha Lane , Jack Veal , DeObia Oparei , and Richard E. Grant also star in the first season, with Rafael Casal , Kate Dickie , Liz Carr , Ke Huy Quan and Richard Dixon joining for the second. By September 2018, Marvel Studios
20460-401: The film series. The series was expected to follow Loki as he "pops up throughout human history as an unlikely influencer on historical events". Marvel Studios chose to make a series about Loki because of his story potential, and because he had lived for thousands of years in the MCU and a series could fill in the blanks of his various unseen adventures. The series also provided Marvel Studios
20646-489: The film's screenwriters sometimes as well. Marvel Comics worked with Brad Winderbaum , Jeremy Latcham , and Will Corona Pilgrim at Marvel Studios to decide which concepts would be carried over from the Marvel Comics Universe to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, what to show in the tie-in comics, and what to leave for the films. Marvel later clarified which of the tie-in comics are considered canonical MCU stories, with
20832-602: The filming of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023). After Majors was found guilty of assault and harassment amidst legal issues in December 2023, he was fired by Disney and Marvel Studios. At that time, Marvel was internally referring to The Kang Dynasty as Avengers 5 . Alonso was fired from her role at Marvel Studios in March 2023 for serving as a producer on the Amazon Studios film Argentina, 1985 (2022), in breach of
21018-488: The films Spider-Man: Far From Home and Spider-Man: No Way Home , with the videos released on YouTube and TikTok . It is based on the fictional sensationalist news outlet of the same name that appears in the MCU—itself based on the fictional newspaper agency of the same name appearing in several Marvel Comics publications. J. K. Simmons and Angourie Rice reprise their roles as J. Jonah Jameson and Betty Brant from
21204-400: The films Thor , Thor: The Dark World , and Thor: Ragnarok ; as well as the Disney+ animated series What If...? . Advanced Idea Mechanics , better known by its acronym A.I.M. , was a scientific research and development company that was founded by Aldrich Killian . In 1999, Killian attempted to recruit Tony Stark , but failed and was instead approached by Maya Hansen , who agreed to join
21390-460: The films of the franchise . The series takes place after the events of the film Avengers: Endgame (2019), in which an alternate version of Loki created a new timeline. Waldron served as head writer and Kate Herron directed the first season , with Eric Martin and the duo Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead serving as head writer and leading the directing team for the second season , respectively. Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki from
21576-480: The films, however, it was noted all of these outside projects were part of the larger Marvel canon. In early 2024, Marvel Studios formally integrated Marvel Television's group of Netflix series into their Disney+ timeline. As of the Phase Five television series Secret Invasion and the film The Marvels , the "present day" in the MCU is 2026. The following covers and discusses MCU media released by Marvel Studios and
21762-412: The first animated series from Marvel Studios, and by July 2021 the studio was creating an "animation branch and mini studio", known as Marvel Studios Animation , to focus on more animated content beyond What If...? . Alonso said Marvel had around 31 projects in various stages of development by September 2021. In April 2022, Feige said he and Marvel Studios were on a creative retreat to plan and discuss
21948-448: The first season, and Framestore and Rising Sun Pictures also providing visual effects in the second. Natalie Holt serves as composer of the series. The score for the first season was released digitally by Marvel Music and Hollywood Records in two volumes: music from the first three episodes was released on July 2, 2021, and music from the last three episodes was released on July 23. The first episode's end credits track "TVA"
22134-518: The first season. The starring cast for the first season includes Hiddleston as Loki, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer , Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Eugene Cordero as Casey and later Hunter K-5E, Tara Strong voicing Miss Minutes, Owen Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius, Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, Sasha Lane as Hunter C-20, Jack Veal as Kid Loki , DeObia Oparei as Boastful Loki , Richard E. Grant as Classic Loki , and Jonathan Majors as He Who Remains. Neil Ellice recurs in
22320-424: The franchise, while Brian Tyler and Michael Giacchino have both scored fanfares for the Marvel Studios production logo . The fictional timeline of the MCU includes the feature films, television series, television specials, short films, and the I Am Groot shorts from Marvel Studios and Marvel Television's Netflix series. While the early films of Phase One and Phase Two of the franchise followed each other in
22506-422: The increase in the amount of content being produced after the 2019 film Avengers: Endgame , and began decreasing its content output from 2024. The MCU has inspired other film and television studios to attempt similar shared universes and has also inspired several themed attractions, an art exhibit, television specials, literary material, multiple tie-in video games, and commercials. By 2005, Marvel Entertainment
22692-527: The latter from Vision, but they are each killed by members of the Avengers. Five years later, alternate versions of the Children of Thanos from 2014 time-travel to 2023 and participate in the battle between Thanos's forces and the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy , Masters of the Mystic Arts , and Ravagers . Obsidian and Glaive are killed during the battle, while Maw and Midnight both disintegrate after Stark uses
22878-463: The latter, and eventually capture him before sending him to the Raft . Ayo advises Barnes not to return to Wakanda for some time, though he is able to ask them to create a suit for Sam Wilson. They appeared in the films Captain America: Civil War , Black Panther , Avengers: Infinity War , Avengers: Endgame , and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever ; as well as the Disney+ television series The Falcon and
23064-435: The longer, character-driven moments, notably the friendship between Loki and Mobius. Much of the season was about each character becoming the best versions of themselves. According to Martin, the themes of the second season were order versus chaos and "what happens in a power vacuum", likening the season's overarching concept to the phrase "you break it, you buy it", while still continuing the ideas of free will and destiny from
23250-611: The main universe of the MCU as well. In Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness , the main universe of MCU events was designated as Earth-616 (a designation first referenced in Spider-Man: Far From Home ), sharing the name of the main Marvel Comics universe , while another universe was designated as Earth-838 . Sony's animated film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse references the events of No Way Home , citing
23436-426: The majority of the season's episodes; Dan DeLeeuw and Kasra Farahani also direct in the second season. Filming occurred in Atlanta, Georgia for the first season, with the second season being filmed in the United Kingdom. Loki premiered on June 9, 2021. Its first season, consisting of six episodes, concluded on July 14 and is part of Phase Four of the MCU. It received positive reviews from critics, especially for
23622-402: The nine or twelve film deals were rare. The actors' contracts also feature clauses that allow Marvel to use up to three minutes of an actor's performance from one film in another, which Marvel describes as "bridging material". By the start of Phase Four, Marvel Studios was no longer contracting actors for a large number of projects, with deal lengths varying for each actor and project. Feige said
23808-423: The number of projects being produced by the studio in a short amount of time, Marvel Studios decided to move away from having an Avengers crossover film at the end of each Phase and instead decided to have a crossover culmination at the end of "The Multiverse Saga" with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). The studio was excited to explore Kang the Conqueror as an overarching villain of
23994-478: The opportunity to work with Hiddleston more, explore the character beyond his supporting role in the films, and show him build new relationships rather than just developing his relationship with Thor . This allowed Loki's previous film appearances to retain their integrity, so the series did not have to retread those storylines. Hiddleston considered Loki's death in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) to be
24180-514: The organization and develop the Extremis genetic manipulation technology. Over the years, A.I.M. gathered an army of Extremis soldiers, but many of them became unstable and exploded. To cover the accidents up, Killian hired failed actor Trevor Slattery to pose as the Mandarin and claim responsibility for the "attacks". The Mandarin's actions eventually caught the attention of Tony Stark , whose mansion
24366-404: The original Marvel Universe in comic books, was established by crossing over common plot elements, settings, cast, and characters. Marvel Studios releases its films in groups called "Phases", with the first three phases collectively known as "The Infinity Saga" and the following three phases as "The Multiverse Saga". The first MCU film, Iron Man (2008), began Phase One which culminated in
24552-417: The performances. A second season, also consisting of six episodes, ran from October 5 to November 9, 2023, as part of Phase Five . It also received positive reviews, with praise for its conclusion, musical score, and Loki's character arc. After stealing the Tesseract during the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019), an alternate version of Loki is brought to the mysterious Time Variance Authority (TVA),
24738-451: The phases of the MCU. However, these lookbooks are not always shown to directors, with Marvel sometimes preferring to let the director offer their own ideas first. When choosing a director for a project, Marvel Studios looks for filmmakers to hire who can guide a film. Some of their choices for directors have been considered "out-of-left-field based on those director's previous work. On this, Feige remarked that "you don't have to have directed
24924-435: The plot detours to S.H.I.E.L.D. or lead-ups to The Avengers dragged down the films' narratives. Loki (TV series) Loki is an American television series created by Michael Waldron for the streaming service Disney+ , based on Marvel Comics featuring the character of the same name . It is the third television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios , sharing continuity with
25110-597: The post and killed Evanora before taking the brooch off her mother's corpse and flew away. It appeared in the Disney+ series WandaVision . The Starforce is an elite military task force of skilled Kree warriors in the service of the Kree Empire . Led by Yon-Rogg (portrayed by Jude Law in the 2019 film Captain Marvel ), the group also includes Vers , Korath , Minn-Erva , Att-Lass , and Bron-Char (portrayed by Brie Larson , Djimon Hounsou , Gemma Chan , Algenis Perez Soto , and Rune Temte , respectively). The group
25296-505: The projects and distribution. Avi Arad , head of Marvel Entertainment's film division known as Marvel Films , was pleased with director Sam Raimi 's Spider-Man film trilogy (2002–2007) at Sony Pictures and Columbia but was less enthused with some of the other films. Arad decided to form Marvel Studios , Hollywood's first major independent film studio since DreamWorks Pictures was founded in 1994. Kevin Feige , Arad's second-in-command, realized that unlike Spider-Man , Blade , and
25482-463: The reason that all the filmmakers are on board is that their movies need to stand on their own. They need to have a fresh vision, a unique tone, and the fact that they can interconnect if you want to follow those breadcrumbs is a bonus." To raise capital, the studio secured funding from a seven-year, $ 525 million revolving credit facility with Merrill Lynch . Marvel planned to release individual films for their main characters and then merge them in
25668-471: The recently displaced Norman Osborn seeks shelter at the F.E.A.S.T. Community Center, and is tended to by May until her nephew Peter Parker arrives to escort him to the New York Sanctum , housing all the other displaced individuals from across the multiverse . It appeared in the film Spider-Man: No Way Home . Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway , better known by its initialism GLK&H ,
25854-533: The release of The Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline in October 2023, Feige wrote in its foreword that Marvel Studios only considered, at that time, projects developed by them in their first four phases as part of their " Sacred Timeline ", but acknowledged the history of other Marvel films and television series that would exist in the larger multiverse and said they were "canonical to Marvel". In January 2024, Winderbaum acknowledged that Marvel Studios had previously been "a little bit cagey" about what
26040-429: The rest being merely inspired by the MCU "where we get to show off all the characters from the film in costume and in comic form". In August 2011, Marvel announced a series of direct-to-video short films called Marvel One-Shots . The name was derived from the label used by Marvel Comics for their one-shot comics . Winderbaum said the shorts were "a fun way to experiment with new characters and ideas" and to expand
26226-526: The role in the film Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). Additionally, Vincent D'Onofrio first reprised his role as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin from Daredevil in the Disney+ series Hawkeye (2021). Marvel Studios releases its films in groups called "Phases". The first three phases are collectively known as "The Infinity Saga". Phase One consists of Iron Man (2008), The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), and concludes with
26412-421: The season as Hunter D-90. Hiddleston, Di Martino, Mbatha-Raw, Mosaku, Cordero, Strong, Ellice, and Wilson return as Loki, Sylvie, Renslayer, Hunter B-15, Casey / Hunter K-5E, Miss Minutes, Hunter D-90, and Mobius, respectively, for the second season. Cordero and Ellice were made series regulars for the second season. Majors also returns in the season as He Who Remains, while also portraying an additional Kang
26598-403: The season one episode " Lamentis " regarding "how this world could build out" to "dive deeper into it". Development on a second season had begun by November 2020. In January 2021, Waldron signed an overall deal with Disney and part of that deal included his involvement in the second season of Loki "in some capacity". Marvel Studios producer Nate Moore , who served as an executive producer on
26784-411: The second season will be released on Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-Ray on December 3, 2024. In May 2022, Feige announced that Loki was the most-watched Marvel Studios Disney+ series to date. For the first season, the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 92% approval rating with an average rating of 7.9/10, based on 338 reviews. The critical consensus reads, "A delightful diversion from
26970-412: The second season, and joined the season one executive producers with fellow Marvel Studios executive Brad Winderbaum , as well as Benson, Moorhead, and Martin. Regarding future seasons, Wright called the series "open-ended", with no third season planned by the release of the second in October 2023. However, he thought there were still more stories to tell with the character in the world they created for
27156-466: The series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier , believed Loki had "really irreverent and clever and cool" storylines that lent to the series having multiple seasons rather than being a one-off event. A second season was confirmed through a mid-credits scene in the first-season finale . Herron said she would not return as director for the second season, and in July 2021, Waldron said it "remain[ed] to be seen" if he would be involved. In February 2022,
27342-461: The series include Feige, Louis D'Esposito , Victoria Alonso , Stephen Broussard , and Hiddleston, with Wright as a co-executive producer. The first season consists of six, 40–50-minute episodes. Loki was originally planned as a single season, but during production of the first season it was realized that there was "so much to explore with Loki" and the story could continue; Hiddleston and Wright began having conversations during production of
27528-482: The series, as well as the larger MCU, and was hopeful by the end of the second season, Loki would be in "a certain place emotionally" to have him rejoin the larger MCU, specifically meeting Thor. Wright also hoped that other MCU properties would use the TVA, feeling they could "be this exciting connective tool for all of this storytelling"; the TVA is featured in the film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024). The series begins after Avengers: Endgame , which saw Loki steal
27714-543: The series. In September 2019, Sony created a real version of the fictional The Daily Bugle website as part of a viral marketing campaign to promote the home media release of Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019). Inspired by real-world "conspiracy-pushing" websites such as Alex Jones 's InfoWars , the website features J. K. Simmons reprising his role as J. Jonah Jameson in a video where he speaks out against Spider-Man before asking viewers to "like and subscribe". In December 2020, Marvel Studios announced I Am Groot ,
27900-431: The shared universe element of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was criticized by some journalists. Around the release of The Avengers in 2012, Jim Vorel of Herald & Review called the Marvel Cinematic Universe "complicated" and "impressive", but said, "As more and more heroes get their own film adaptations, the overall universe becomes increasingly confusing." Kofi Outlaw of Screen Rant stated that while The Avengers
28086-470: The source material. The television series Loki and What If...? were the first to explore the concept of the multiverse within the MCU, as well as the film Spider-Man: No Way Home , which connected the MCU to other Spider-Man film franchises by featuring characters from Sam Raimi 's Spider-Man trilogy , Marc Webb 's The Amazing Spider-Man films , and Sony's Spider-Man Universe (SSU). The SSU film Venom: Let There Be Carnage briefly featured
28272-418: The streaming service, which he felt was important for the wider company. In September 2018, Marvel Studios was reported to be developing several limited series centered on "second-tier" characters from the MCU films who had not and were unlikely to headline their own films. Each series was expected to be six to eight episodes and would be produced by Marvel Studios rather than Marvel Television, with Feige taking
28458-426: The studio are marketed as " Marvel Studios Special Presentations ". The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (2022), a Special Presentation, was the first project Marvel Studios began planning for Disney+. In July 2019, Feige announced the Phase Four slate at San Diego Comic-Con , consisting of films and, for the first time, television event series on Disney+. The Phase Four slate includes What If...? ,
28644-501: The studio was looking for actors who were excited to join the franchise and appear in multiple projects without being locked into contractual obligations. He also noted that they were starting to include theme park attractions in actors' deals. By December 2020, because of the impact COVID-19 had on theaters and film studios shifting away from theatrical releases, Marvel Studios began exploring updated contracts for actors, writers, directors, and producers to receive adjusted compensation in
28830-433: The team assists Carter on a mission to Russia, Juniper reveals he was the one who came up with the name "Howling Commandos" before he is later killed in action. In the 2014 film Captain America: The Winter Soldier , the team is specifically identified as the Howling Commandos as part of a Smithsonian exhibit. In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , the team uses old Howling Commandos' equipment provided by Agent Antoine Triplett who
29016-399: The team he is leaving for Earth. Mantis announces she is leaving for self discovery, and Nebula asks Drax to help her raise the children on Knowhere. Quill then gives Rocket the title of Captain and lets him keep his Zune. Sometime later, Rocket, leading a new team consisting of a massively grown Groot, Cosmo, Kraglin, Warlock, Warlock's pet Blurp, and Phyla, one of the rescued children, go on
29202-418: The team in the final confrontation. Four years later, they aid Thor and the Avengers in confronting Thanos in his attempt to collect the six Infinity Stones . Thanos succeeds in collecting all of Stones, murdering Gamora in the process, and disintegrates half of all life in the universe, with Star-Lord, Drax, Mantis, and Groot among his victims, with only Rocket and Nebula spared. After Thanos has destroyed
29388-563: The team survives Ragnarok and the attack on the Statesman . They appeared in the film Thor: Ragnarok and the Disney+ series Loki (archival footage). The Salem Coven was a witch coven based in Salem, Massachusetts . In 1693, during the Salem witch trials , the coven brought one of its members, Agatha Harkness , to the woods. She begged to be spared but was tied to a wooden post with magic bonds. Evanora Harkness, her mother, inquired if she
29574-402: The television series Daredevil . In the episode " Nelson v. Murdock ", a flashback depicts Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson interning at the law firm Landman & Zack, who sued a man who developed cancer while working at a Roxxon plant and claiming the man revealed proprietary secrets. In the episode " Kinbaku ", Elektra Natchios breaks into Roxxon's systems to gain information, discovering
29760-465: The timeline similar to their release order, Phase Three saw many of the films overlapping with each other in the timeline, while also introducing the first prequel property, Captain Marvel . The Phase Three film Avengers: Endgame featured characters traveling into the past and introduced a five-year time jump, with many subsequent releases in Phase Four and Phase Five set after Endgame ' s events in
29946-627: The timeline. The television series Loki and What If...? were the first properties to occur outside of the main timeline and explore alternative timelines and universes. There have been numerous attempts by Marvel Studios and others to codify the events of the MCU, which have been subject to perceived continuity errors , resulting in Marvel Studios releasing an official timeline book in 2023 for their first four phases that were designated as part of their " Sacred Timeline ". This book did not feature projects produced by other companies, such as Marvel Television's series which all had been loosely connected to
30132-408: The true start to Marvel Studios' exploration and use of the Fox characters, and said every project after it would be part of the MCU's "Mutant era". Some of the films between Deadpool & Wolverine and Secret Wars featured additional X-Men characters, with Feige saying the story of Secret Wars would lead into a "new age of mutants" and the X-Men being introduced to the MCU. Marvel Television
30318-515: The ways of combat, turning each of them into a deadly warrior. Over the years, Gamora and Nebula would both turn on Thanos, while the rest of his children continued to serve him faithfully. In 2018, once Thanos initiated his crusade to acquire the six Infinity Stones, he sends them to Earth in order to retrieve the Time and Mind Stones. Maw and Obsidian attempt to remove the former from Doctor Strange's Eye of Agamotto while Glaive and Midnight attempt to steal
30504-412: The wider "Marvel Cosmic Universe", although Gunn became the co-CEO of DC Studios in November 2022 and signed a four-year deal to work exclusively on DC Comics -based projects. For Phase Three, there was a large amount of collaboration between the filmmakers of the individual character films and the filmmakers of the crossover films Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame , which were directed by
30690-867: The world's protection from threats. The Avengers operate in New York State ; beginning at Avengers Tower in Midtown Manhattan , and subsequently, from the Avengers Compound in Upstate New York . They were foreshadowed in the 2008 film, Iron Man , in which the " Avengers Initiative " was referenced by Nick Fury in a post-credit scene . The team first appear in The Avengers (2012), consisting of Tony Stark / Iron Man , Steve Rogers / Captain America, Bruce Banner / Hulk , Thor , Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow , and Clint Barton / Hawkeye . The lineup that
30876-731: The writers' room, editing, on set, casting—every step of the production goes through the Marvel team to tell the best story that we can". He said the studio was able to work on so many series across different networks and platforms because all they needed was one person working on each series to help "guide the process". Actors appearing in Marvel Television series, such as Charlie Cox (who portrayed Matt Murdock / Daredevil in Daredevil ) and Adrianne Palicki ( Bobbi Morse / Mockingbird in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ), were contractually obliged to appear in
31062-430: Was a large part of Waldron's pitch for the series. He noted they were uncertain if portraying Loki falling in love with another version of himself was "too crazy". He continued by saying Loki was "ultimately about self-love, self-reflection, and forgiving yourself" and it "felt right" for the series be the character's first "real love story". Feige stated in November 2019 that the series would tie-into Doctor Strange in
31248-651: Was a special task force led by Thaddeus Ross in order to hunt down the Hulk . Part of the United States Army , the SOCC tracked Banner down in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil and attempted to arrest him, but Banner transforms into the Hulk and manages to escape. The SOCC then confront the Hulk at Grayburn College and arrest Banner, but are forced to become temporary allies with him during his fight with
31434-663: Was a success, "Marvel Studios still has room to improve their approach to building a shared movie universe". Some reviewers criticized the fact that the desire to create a shared universe led to films that did not hold as well on their own. In his review of Thor: The Dark World , Forbes critic Scott Mendelson likened the MCU to "a glorified television series", with The Dark World being a "'stand-alone' episode that contains little long-range mythology". Collider's Matt Goldberg considered that while Iron Man 2 , Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger were quality productions, "they have never really been their own movies", feeling that
31620-425: Was a witch, which Agatha admitted to. Evanora responded by saying she had betrayed her coven and stole knowledge above her place and that she practiced the darkest of magic, which Agatha denied. The witches tried to kill Agatha with energy beams as Agatha pleaded with Evanora. Agatha continued to cry until her powers took over and she reversed the effect of the beams onto the witches and killed them. Agatha broke free of
31806-415: Was announced in July as Daredevil: Born Again . In 2008, the first comic book to tie-into the MCU was released. Quesada explained that these comics would be set within the continuity of the films, but were not intended to be direct adaptions. Rather, they would explore "something that happened off screen" or flesh out something briefly mentioned. Feige was involved with the creation of the comics, with
31992-545: Was depicted by Joss Whedon is primarily based on the Ultimates of Ultimate Marvel , with the exception of two classic founders, Hank Pym / Ant-Man and the Janet van Dyne / The Wasp . In Avengers: Age of Ultron , Pietro Maximoff and Wanda Maximoff join the Avengers before the Battle of Sokovia while Vision , James Rhodes / War Machine , and Sam Wilson / Falcon also join them in
32178-419: Was developing a number of limited series for Disney+, centered on supporting characters from the MCU films. A series featuring Hiddleston as Loki was confirmed in November 2018. Waldron was hired in February 2019, and Herron joined by that August. Martin, who served as a writer on the first season, was revealed to be writing the entire second season in February 2022, along with Benson and Moorhead joining to direct
32364-410: Was done, along with the previously established Marvel Spotlight banner, to help indicate to audiences that they did not have to watch all of the studio's projects to understand the overall story and could choose which storylines and characters under these banners to follow. At San Diego Comic-Con 2024, the fifth Avengers film was retitled Avengers: Doomsday (2026), with Robert Downey Jr. cast as
32550-433: Was folded into Marvel Studios, with Marvel Studios taking over production of the remaining series and no further series expected to be developed by Marvel Television. In January 2021, Feige said "never say never" to potentially reviving the Netflix series, but noted that Marvel Studios was focused on their new Disney+ series. In May 2022, Marvel Studios was revealed to be developing a new Daredevil series for Disney+, which
32736-406: Was its first test subject in the process. In the episode " Beginning of the End ", the Cybertek manufacturing facility's director Kyle Zeller prepares a team of Deathloks to combat Coulson's team. Following their defeat however, Garrett and Hydra push ahead with their plans while Coulson's team storm Cybertek and take Zeller hostage, believing he was working for Hydra. When Agent Skye discovers Hydra
32922-432: Was later destroyed by A.I.M., while Killian kidnapped U.S. President Matthew Ellis . Killian is ultimately stopped by Stark and James Rhodes , and is then killed by Pepper Potts . It appeared in the film Iron Man 3 . Bestman Salvage was a company based in New York owned and run by Adrian Toomes. Other employees included Phineas Mason, Herman Schultz, Jackson Brice, and Randy Vale. This company went defunct following
33108-463: Was launched in June 2010 with Jeph Loeb as head, and had entered into discussions with ABC to create a show set in the MCU by July 2012; the network went on to release Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , Agent Carter , and Inhumans . The latter was a co-production with IMAX Corporation . In November 2013, Disney was set to provide Netflix with the live-action series Daredevil , Jessica Jones , Luke Cage , and Iron Fist , building up to
33294-452: Was on board for it and thinks that it's fun. Primarily because we've always remained consistent saying that the movie that we are making comes first. All of the connective tissue, all of that stuff is fun and is going to be very important if you want it to be. If the fans want to look further and find connections, then they're there. There are a few big ones obviously, that hopefully the mainstream audience will [be] able to follow as well. But...
33480-481: Was originally slated to appear in early drafts, but was replaced by Killian. Roxxon's Cybertek division features in the television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. In the episode " T.R.A.C.K.S. ", they supply Ian Quinn with Project Deathlok technology to convert Mike Peterson into a cyborg. In the episode " Ragtag ", Coulson leads a S.H.I.E.L.D. team in infiltrating Cybertek to steal files on Project Deathlok, discovering S.H.I.E.L.D.-turned- Hydra agent John Garrett
33666-634: Was part of their Sacred Timeline, noting how there had been the corporate divide between what Marvel Studios created and what Marvel Television created. He continued that as time had passed, Marvel Studios began to see "how well integrated the [Marvel Television] stories are" and personally felt confident in saying Marvel Television's Daredevil was part of the Sacred Timeline. This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in at least three MCU films/series and received main billing credit in at least two franchises. Additionally, Paul Bettany
33852-416: Was planning to produce its own films independently and distribute them through Paramount Pictures . Previously, Marvel had co-produced several superhero films based on Marvel Comics with Columbia Pictures , New Line Cinema , 20th Century Fox , and others. Marvel made relatively little profit from these licensing deals and wanted to get more money out of its films while maintaining artistic control of
34038-496: Was released as a single on June 11. Loki debuted on Disney+ on June 9, 2021, with the first season consisting of six episodes, concluding on July 14. It is part of Phase Four of the MCU. The second season also consisted of six episodes, and premiered on October 5, 2023, concluding on November 9, as part of Phase Five of the MCU. The first season of Loki was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on September 26, 2023, while
34224-447: Was released on September 6, 2023. WHIH Newsfront (2015–16) is an in-universe current affairs show that serves as a viral marketing campaign for some of the MCU films, created in partnership with Google for YouTube . The campaign is an extension of the fictional news network WHIH World News, which is seen reporting on major events in many MCU films and television series. Leslie Bibb reprises her role as Christine Everhart from
34410-486: Was reprehensible"; this was reported to be a disagreement with a Disney executive over the censoring of gay pride elements in Quantumania so the film could be released in Kuwait in compliance with the country's restrictive anti-LGBTQ laws . A Disney spokesperson reiterated that Alonso was fired due to "an indisputable breach of contract and a direct violation of company policy" among other factors. Disney and Alonso reached
34596-471: Was the first actor to portray two main characters within the universe, voicing Tony Stark's artificial intelligence J.A.R.V.I.S. and portraying Vision. J. K. Simmons became the first actor to reprise a non-MCU role in the MCU when he appeared as J. Jonah Jameson (a role he played in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy from 2002 to 2007) in Spider-Man: Far From Home . Prior to his death in 2018, Stan Lee,
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