Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is currently scheduled for May 2^nd, 2025. Avengers: Secret Wars is scheduled for May 1^st ,2026. I read an article awhile back that had asked the question about pushing Avengers 5 back a year. They had some valid points and it made me think about it. I am a huge Marvel fan and I look forward to all the movies, shows, and special presentations. I personally don’t think it would be a bad idea to push Avengers: The Kang Dynasty back a year. The article I read awhile back mentioned they thought it would be rushing things a bit when it comes to assembling the Avengers. A point that was made was that at this current time there is not an Avengers team and there are not any teams. That is going to be changing. The Thunderbolts movie will be coming out in 2024 and that will have its own team. It sounds like Captain America will be assembling a team for his movie. The Marvels coming out later this year will have Captain Marvel team up with Monic Rambeau and Ms. Marvel. The Fantastic Four are coming in 2025. They are the last movie before The Kang Dynasty comes out. Fantastic Four is currently scheduled for February 14^th, 2025. Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars are supposed to be massive and I am betting the goal is to make it even bigger than Infinity War and Endgame. Phase 5 has officially kicked off with Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania. Phase 4 introduced a lot of new characters. Currently most of the new characters have not met each other. I think in time that will change but that is the key point the article was referring to. Time. The article felt if Kang Dynasty keeps its current release date, it would be rushing a lot of things before the big event. The Fantastic Four are supposed to have a pivotal role in the MCU going forward. If Marvel follows the comic books at all, Kang has a deep connection with the Fantastic Four. Given the Fantastic Four movie comes out a few months before The Kang Dynasty, it sounds like it may rush a pivotal storyline.

Unless the Fantastic Four happen to appear in Quantumania, which I highly doubt, (as of this writing I have not seen Quantumania yet) the audience will have to develop a quick bond with the characters to feel something impactful for when they face Kang. There is the possibility of the Fantastic Four appearing in other projects before their movie. They could show up in Guardians 3 or The Marvels which I also highly doubt. There currently is not really a viable option for them to show up in other things out of the current list of projects before Avengers 5. Deadpool 3 is a possibility, but I don’t think it would be wise to have them show up in that given Deadpool 3 has a lot to do to introduce Deadpool into the MCU not to mention it could possibly be very cameo heavy with FOX Marvel properties just as much as MCU characters. Back when Avengers: Endgame came out, Captain Marvel had a small role in the film. Part of it was due to the fact it was filming at the same time as the Captain Marvel movie. The movie came out right before Endgame. It came out in March 2019 and Endgame came out the end of April 2019.  Captain Marvel is a bit of a polarizing character. Not everyone liked the movie and there are some fans who really don’t like her. I am hoping in time those opinions will change the more we get to see her. By the time Endgame came out, the audience did not know her on the same level as they knew Iron Man or Captain America or Black Widow and dozens of other characters. Whereas Captain Marvel could get away with not having a huge role in Endgame, I do not think the same thing can be said for the Fantastic Four. I also think if they don’t have a big role in Avengers 5 and 6 it would be a disservice to the characters and a missed opportunity if they remove the Kang connection to them.

Besides the Fantastic Four, given the threat that Kang poses to the entire Multiverse, this is an all hands on deck situation. One would think this would have every character from all MCU movies and shows. Currently as mentioned earlier, most of the new characters have not met or interacted with others not in the respective projects they are in. The Fantastic Four do not know any of the Marvel heroes. Deadpool does not know anyone either. Presumably Deadpool would be meeting everyone for the first time in the Kang Dynasty. We also don’t know how many of Marvel alum will appear in Deadpool 3 if any. I do think some would be in Deadpool 3 given this is the first time Deadpool is in the MCU. The Eternals know of the other characters, but the audience have not seen them interact with any of them. We also have not seen the Eternals since their movie or heard about them. Ms. Marvel will be in The Marvels along with Monica Rambeau. Presumably Ms. Marvel will meet Nick Fury as well. Moon Knight and She-Hulk have not met anyone either. There are futures for both characters but we also don’t know when we will see them again. Second seasons for either of their shows have not been announced. The list can go on and on. It seems unless there are a lot of crossovers over the next few movies and shows most of this will have to wait until Avengers 5 which would kind of be cramming a lot in.

Here is my suggestion. In my personal opinion I think Avengers: The Kang Dynasty should be pushed back a year to May 1^st, 2026, which in turn would push back Avengers: Secret Wars to May 2027. To keep it the first week in May the first weekend would fall on May 7^th. There is nothing wrong with delaying things if it means to do them correctly. Marvel even recently said they were going to space out their content a little more. It seemed they were more referring to the shows than the movies. Blade was supposed to come out this year and will now be coming out in 2024. They had some setbacks. Instead of rushing it, they took their time to get those setbacks taken care of and they are gearing up to start filming soon. I think by delaying Avengers: The Kang Dynasty it would also allow some more time to set everything up before the Avengers movie, plot wise. It would not have to feel forced to cram a lot of things in.

Here is what I think the schedule should be. This is my own opinion. This is not an official schedule.

Fantastic Four February 14^th, 2025

Doctor Strange 3 May 2^nd, 2025 taking Avengers: The Kang Dynasty’s slot

Spider-Man 4 July 2025

Shang-Chi 2 September 2025

Eternals 2 November 2025

Thor 5 February 2026

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty May 1^st, 2026

Avengers: Secret Wars May 7^th, 2027

There would be movies in between The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars. They could be used for solo movies or sequels. I don’t know what characters Marvel is planning on giving movies to.

This schedule would allow room for some of these sequels to happen before Avengers. It has already been stated there are plans for Spider-Man 4, Doctor Strange 3, Shang-Chi 2, and Eternals 2. This schedule would actually give a slot to Eternals 2 so we can have another opportunity to see them before they join the fight against Kang. Spider-Man 4 could function after Kang Dynasty. By having Spider-Man 4 come out before it would establish where Peter Parker is in his life now especially since No Way Home changed a lot for him. He could appear in Avengers 5 and 6 and just not deal with that plot point until his own movie. This would allow time to explore that beforehand. It also would make more sense when it comes to how Spider-Man fits in with the Avengers. Doctor Strange 3 technically could function in between Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness had mentioned incursions which is a heavy plot point in the Secret Wars storyline in the comics. If Doctor Strange 3 is going to heavily deal with incursions, I think it would be better if that happens before Kang Dynasty. I don’t know how much of the source material they are planning on sticking to for either Avengers film. Incursions could be a big part of both Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars. It would make more sense to allow time to properly explain and set up the concept of incursions in Doctor Strange 3 ahead of Avengers. With the current schedule we probably won’t see Shang-Chi again until Kang Dynasty. I think there is a lot Shang-Chi 2 can cover that should happen before Kang Dynasty. It also would allow the audience more time to get to know Shang-Chi which in turn would build a deeper connection to the character by the time he fights Kang, which also in turn would raise the stakes even more. I don’t know how much longer Thor will be in the MCU. That relies on Chris Hemsworth who has started to express seeing an end to Thor. I think there is a good chance Thor 5 will happen. Chris Hemsworth seemed to express wanting to do one final Thor movie. It would be fitting to have Thor 5 happen before Thor joins the fight against Kang. Avengers 5 and 6 could be used as Thor’s swansong. In fact, Thor 5 could be the start of a farewell tour for Thor. With these additional projects it would allow an opportunity to have other MCU characters be involved in these ahead of Avengers 5 and 6. By the time The Kang Dynasty would come out it relationships would be established with the heroes.

Just for fun, here are my fantasy cast lists for these projects.

Fantastic Four– Not touching it. If the movie is set in the present, I could see Samuel L. Jackson show up as Nick Fury. If the movie is set in the past as in the 60s which is a rumor, I could also see Samuel L. Jackson as a young Nick Fury. The only one I could see be in this regardless of time period is Jonathon Majors as Kang even if its at the end of the movie or a credit scene.

Doctor Strange 3– My fantasy cast is Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Benedict Wong as Wong, Charlize Theron as Clea, Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Mordo, Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One, Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Cobie Smulders as Agent Hill, Benjamin Bratt as Jonathan Pangborn, Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, Awkwafina as Katy, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, Owen Wilson as Mobius, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer, Tara Strong as Miss Minutes, & Jonathon Majors as Kang.

Spider-Man 4– My fantasy cast is Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Zendaya as MJ Jones, Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds, Tony Revolori as Flash Thompson, Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio, J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, Michael Keaton as Vulture, Donald Glover as Aaron Davis, Michael Mando as Scorpion, Bokeem Woodbine as Shocker II, Michael Chernus as the Tinkerer, Remi Hii as Brad, Martin Starr as Mr. Harrington, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Dominique Thorne as Ironheart, Ming-Na Wen as Agent May, Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson, Antony Mackie as Captain America, Benedict Wong as Wong, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Cobie Smulders as Agent Hill, Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel, Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina De Fontaine, & Jonathon Majors as Kang.

Shang-Chi 2– My fantasy cast is Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, Awkwafina as Katy, Tony Leung as Xu Wenwu, Meng’er Zhang as Xialing, Michelle Yeoh as Ying Nan, Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Benedict Wong as Wong, Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer, Charlize Theron as Clea, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, Gemma Chan as Sersi, Angelina Jolie as Thena, Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo, Brian Tyree Henry as Phastos, Lauren Ridloff as Makkari, Barry Keoghan as Druig, Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Evangeline Lily as the Wasp, Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet Van Dyne, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, Laurence Fishburne as Bill Foster, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Harry Styles as Eros, Patton Oswalt as Pip the Troll, Stellan Skarsgard as Dr. Selvig, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina De Fontaine,& Jonathon Majors as Kang.

Eternals 2– My fantasy cast is Gemma Chan as Sersi, Richard Madden as Ikaris, Salma Hayek as Ajak, Kit Harrington as Dane Whitman, Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo, Lia McHugh as Sprite, Brian Tyree Henry as Phastos, Lauren Ridloff as Makkari, Barry Keoghan as Druig, Don Lee as Gilgamesh, Angelina Jolie as Thena, Harry Styles as Eros, Patton Oswalt as Pip the Troll, Will Poulter as Adam Warlock, Oscar Isaac as Moon Knight, Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel, Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, Lashana Lynch as Maria Rambeau, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Chris Evans as Steve Rodgers/Captain America, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Zendaya as MJ Jones, Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Rene Russo as Frigga, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet Van Dyne, Laurence Fishburne as Bill Foster, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Evangeline Lily as The Wasp, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Cobie Smulders as Agent Hill, Ming-Na Wen as Agent May, Haley Atwell as Agent Carter, Emily VanCamp as Sharon Carter, Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America, Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier, Josh Brolin as Thanos, Peter Dinklage as Eitri, Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster, Benicio Del Toro as The Collector, Seth Green as Howard the Duck, Mahershala Ali as Blade, Tatiana Maslany as She-Hulk, Stellan Skarsgard as Dr. Selvig, Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, & Jonathon Majors as Kang.

Thor 5– My fantasy cast is Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Jaime Alexander as Lady Sif, Taika Waititi as Korg, Randall Park as Agent Woo, Kat Dennings as Darcy, Stellan Skarsgard as Dr. Selvig, Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Oscar Isaac as Moon Knight, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Tatiana Maslany as She-Hulk, Harrison Ford as Thunderbolt Ross, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Charlize Theron as Clea, Benedict Wong as Wong, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Seth Green as Howard the Duck, Russel Crowe as Zeus, Brett Goldstein as Hercules, Owen Wilson as Mobius, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer, Sophia De Martino as Sylvie, Tara Strong as Miss Minutes, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Harry Styles as Eros, Patton Oswalt as Pip the Troll, Will Poulter as Adam Warlock, Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Rene Russo as Frigga, Idris Elba as Heimdall, & Jonathon Majors as Kang.

Avengers: The Kang Dynasty– I’ll make this one simple. Everyone.

Avengers: Secret Wars– Same as The Kang Dynasty.

I am a huge Marvel fan and a big dreamer. For Eternals 2, my thinking was mostly if the film was going to be another history lesson. This time around we could see the Eternals point of view of different situations that happened with the Marvel characters. I think it would make sense if Kang were to appear in all the projects in some capacity. He could be other variants or just appear in a scene or two. Marvel will do what they do best. Will Avengers: The Kang Dynasty get delayed? I honestly don’t think so. I trust Marvel and they are the only ones who know the big plan.