Reportedly, Marvel is preparing to begin production on four new projects from Phase 4 of the MCU in 2023, including a ‘Thunderbolts’ movie. Phase 4 has presented some difficulties for Marvel, starting with the kickoff film ‘Black Widow’ being delayed by over a year due to theater closures during the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, 2020 was the first year since 2007 that didn't see a single project from the MCU. Even now that Phase 4 has fully kicked into gear in 2021 with two films and 3 Disney+ live-action shows that have already premiered, and ‘Eternals’, ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’, and ‘Hawkeye’ still on the horizon,
Despite this, the company is still experiencing setbacks. Because of the interlocking nature of their productions, additional pandemic delays have caused Marvel to push back the dates of nearly every Phase 4 movie set to debut after ‘Spider-Man’, by a couple of months each. They even had to remove two previously set dates from the slate to the chagrin of many eager fans.
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Even though the timeline has been pushed back, it seems that the same conversations that led to this new restructuring of Phase 4 have included the greenlight on several new projects. According to The GWW, in 2023, Marvel will begin production on a Thunderbolts film adaptation along with the previously announced ‘Fantastic Four’ movie. They are also reportedly moving forward on a ‘Shang-Chi 2’ (no surprise after ‘Shang-Chi’ obliterated pandemic box office records) and a ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ spinoff series featuring Danai Gurira as Okoye.
The only project on this rumored slate that has been previously announced is ‘Fantastic Four’, which has ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ director Jon Watts attached. While the Okoye series and Shang-Chi 2 are natural continuations of established characters who have proven their box office mettle, the ‘Thunderbolts’ would be a brand new addition to Phase 4. The team, essentially the ‘Suicide Squad’ of Marvel, was rumored to be included in the Disney+ series ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’, though that never came to fruition. -Screen Rant
