Marvel Studios currently finds itself at what it hopes is the end of a strange transitional period, an inauspicious metamorphosis that has seen its one fruitful cinematic universe devolve from an all-encompassing cultural phenomenon into a tired punchline. Seemingly gone is the era in which a Marvel film turning a gargantuan profit was the cinematic equivalent of the sun rising each morning, the days when people weren’t necessarily shocked to see Avengers: Endgame earn an unfathomable $1.2 billion in its opening weekend alone. Public sentiment towards the expansive franchise, today, feels comparatively sour and skeptical; the recent box office reflects this idea, as all three of Marvel’s 2025 releases — Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps — rank among the 37-film saga’s 12 lowest-grossing worldwide features of all time. If one omits the COVID-impacted 2020 box office, 2025 was the first year since 2011 in which the studio did not see at least one of its films finish among the world’s top-10 highest-grossing pictures.
Marvel seems to have realized that its grip on the zeitgeist has loosened, and its current slate of imminent projects seems quite ambitious as it looks to forge a new narrative path while recapturing lost fanfare. The company’s three dated films all figure to be of immense public interest, with these projects leading directly into a much-anticipated X-Men relaunch; Marvel is currently developing some interesting projects on the television side, as well, making for an overall exciting slate after what has been a generally aimless period for the company.
With that, here’s a list of every project Marvel Studios is currently confirmed to be developing.
Films
Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Release Date: July 31, 2026
Contrary to the current narrative state of the universe, Marvel will be hoping that the general public hasn’t forgotten who Peter Parker is when Spider-Man: Brand New Day swings into theaters this July. Tom Holland is set to return as the eponymous web-slinger, with Zendaya and Jacob Batalon also coming back as MJ and Ned Leeds, respectively. Stranger Things star Sadie Sink is slated to make her MCU debut in an undisclosed role that’s been the subject of endless fan speculation, with her already confirmed attachment to 2027’s Avengers: Secret Wars implying that her character won’t be a throwaway. Scribes Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers return to pen Brand New Day after writing the first three Marvel Studios-produced Spider-Man films, with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton replacing Jon Watts behind the camera.
Plot details have been kept under wraps to this point, though several beloved MCU stalwarts are confirmed to appear. Mark Ruffalo is set to return as Bruce Banner/The Hulk, marking his first in-universe appearance since 2022’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Jon Bernthal will make his cinematic debut as Frank Castle/The Punisher after previously portraying the character across various streaming series, with Michael Mando also confirmed to appear as Mac Gargan/Scorpion (he first played the character in 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming). Hip-hop artist Krondon (Marvin Jones III) is another notable addition to the cast; he’ll play Lonnie Lincoln/Tombstone, a character he first voiced in 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
Though one of just two cinematic projects on Marvel’s 2026 slate (and its sole summer release), Brand New Day is auspiciously positioned to usher in what should be a financially fruitful year for the studio. It’s currently situated as the last major release in what is an uber-crowded summer movie season, with presumed heavy box office hitters like Toy Story 5, Supergirl, Minions & Monsters, Moana, and The Odyssey bowing several weeks ahead of Spidey’s scheduled July 31 debut; this leaves Brand New Day with little significant new competition throughout the entire month of August. Spider-Man is also a property that has demonstrated mainstream appeal, with the last live-action film featuring the character — 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home — earning $1.9 billion worldwide to become Marvel’s highest-grossing non-Avengers-branded release of all time. Brand New Day, however, will be the first Spidey film since 2002’s Spider-Man to bypass an IMAX release; this may not ultimately impact the film’s box office in any significant capacity, but it’s a point worth raising nonetheless.
Avengers: Doomsday
Release Date: December 18, 2026
Marvel is no stranger to convoluted development cycles (we’ll get into some of them soon), but the circumstances leading up to Avengers: Doomsday‘s scheduled December 18, 2026, release have been particularly intricate. The tentpole began development as Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and was announced alongside Avengers: Secret Wars at 2022’s San Diego Comic-Con; (explicitly) set to feature Jonathan Majors’ Kang in a significant role, Marvel ultimately tapped Destin Daniel Cretton and Jeff Loveness to direct and write the project, respectively. Development veered as mixed fan reaction to the ‘Multiverse Saga’ coincided with Majors’ real-world legal troubles, with the proverbial death knell sounding in late 2023 when Marvel dropped the actor from all future projects after he was “found guilty of reckless assault and harassment.” Cretton had already left the film by that point, with studio head Kevin Feige later telling The Hollywood Reporter that the studio had already started to pivot from the Kang character creatively “even before what had happened to the actor happened.“
Marvel veterans Joe and Anthony Russo were ultimately brought back to spearhead both forthcoming Avengers releases, marking their return to the studio following their post-Avengers: Endgame departure. Their addition was confirmed in front of a raucous San Diego Comic-Con crowd in July of 2024, with Avengers: Doomsday also revealed as The Kang Dynasty‘s new title. Tony Stark actor Robert Downey Jr. also appeared on stage donning a Doctor Doom mask, confirming his return to the franchise in a new role that, to this day, has sparked a deluge of questions and fan speculation.
Like Brand New Day, specific plot details are scant at this point, though the confirmed cast suggests that it’s going to be a multiversal extravaganza. Most major contemporary MCU characters are already confirmed to appear, with former series linchpin Chris Evans also slated to return as Steve Rogers; several characters from the original 20th Century Fox-produced X-Men trilogy are also set to appear, with the inclusion of Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellan, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn, Alan Cumming, and Kelsey Grammer in the cast confirmed in a March, 2025 livestream that generated over 275 million social media views. Marvel generally expects significant financial returns from its Avengers releases (four of its top-five highest-grossing films of all time are Avengers titles), and Doomsday figures to be no different; it is currently scheduled to release on the same day as Warner Bro.’s highly-anticipated Dune: Part Three, however, so it will be interesting to see if one of the films (likely Dune, if any) shifts dates.
Avengers: Secret Wars
Release Date: December 17, 2027
Though initially announced alongside The Kang Dynasty in 2022, Avengers: Secret Wars—in its current iteration—likely bears little resemblance to its original form. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness scribe Michael Waldron was originally tapped as writer, with studio veteran Stephen McFeely later taking the reins when the Russo Brothers boarded the project in 2024. Many of the core Marvel characters set to appear in Doomsday are expected to reprise their roles in Secret Wars, with the aforementioned Sink also joining the cast.
Secret Wars, per Feige, will serve as a soft “reset” for the broader cinematic universe, setting the stage for what should be a more streamlined singular timeline moving forward. The Russo Brothers told TechRadar in early 2025 that Secret Wars is taking “loose inspiration” from both Jim Shooter’s mid-1980s and Jonathan Hickman’s mid-2010s comic runs of the same name, also communicating that they want to “create [their] own version of the story.”
Black Panther 3
Release Date: 2028 (speculated)
Director Ryan Coogler has already confirmed that a third Black Panther film will be his next theatrical project, with a 2028 release the current speculated target. Coogler and Feige first discussed a third film prior to the release of 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, with multi-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington stating in 2024 that Coogler was writing a role for him in the upcoming project. Coogler later confirmed this, insinuating that Washington will be part of the ultimate cast; additional personnel or story decisions have not yet been confirmed, though one can assume that Letitia Wright will reprise her role as Shuri when production commences.
Untitled X-Men Film
Release Date: 2028 (speculated)
Much of the MCU’s long-term stability—and viability—rests squarely on the shoulders of a successful X-Men relaunch.
Pre-existing rights agreements prevented the iconic team—and mutants, in general—from appearing across the franchise’s initial phases, with these hurdles ultimately cleared thanks to The Walt Disney Company’s 2019 acquisition of 21st Century Fox. Marvel has since produced a few main timeline-adjacent X-Men projects (such as Deadpool & Wolverine and the animated X-Men ’97), but its upcoming X-Men film will be its first ‘sacred timeline’ effort with the group at the forefront, and the sub-brand is expected to serve as one of the broader franchise’s pillars moving forward.
Feige has already confirmed that the universe’s next ‘saga’ will be the “Mutant era,” reportedly telling colleagues that he has a 10-year plan for the group. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes writer Michael Lesslie was tapped to pen the first MCU X-Men film’s script in 2024, with Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier circled to helm the project the next year. Specific team members—and their respective actors—have not yet been confirmed, though Feige stated in mid-2025 that it would be a “very youth-oriented, focused, and cast movie.” Marvel has not yet set a release date, though a 2028 bow is expected.
Blade
Release Date: Unknown
Oh boy.
Blade‘s development could itself be the subject of a dissertation, so in summary: the project was first announced at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019, with Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali introduced as the iconic titular vampire hunter. Stacy Osei-Kuffour was hired to write the script in early 2021, with Bassam Tariq brought on as director later that year; Delroy Lindo and Aaron Pierre soon joined this iteration of the project. Tariq departed in mid-2022, with Ali choosing ’71 director Yann Demange as his replacement later that year; Beau DeMayo, Michael Starrbury, and Nic Pizzolatto took passes at the script throughout this prolonged process, with scream queen Mia Goth joining the cast in April of 2023. Lindo and Pierre departed the project in late 2023, with Demange following suit early the next year.
There’s no word on who is currently attached to the project as director or writer, or even if it’s still in active development. Some rumors have suggested that the film has evolved from a Blade solo film into a Midnight Sons project, but this hasn’t been confirmed; the latest tangible update came in October of 2025 when Goth confirmed to Elle magazine that she was still attached to the feature.
Untitled Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Sequel
Release Date: Unknown
Destin Daniel Cretton has been rather busy at Marvel since the success of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, but significant motion on a direct follow-up to the 2021 feature has not yet commenced. The filmmaker inked an overall deal with the studio in late 2021, with a Shang-Chi sequel confirmed as part of this arrangement; Cretton boarded Avengers: The Kang Dynasty as director in July of 2022, inherently pushing the Shang-Chi sequel to the back burner. The director departed that project in late 2023 before joining Spider-Man: Brand New Day the next year, still keeping the next Shang-Chi film several years out; with the latest Spidey film set to release this summer and Cretton’s critically-lauded Wonder Man Disney+ series now behind him, the director seems free to return his focus to Shang-Chi, with lead actor Simu Liu confirming that a sequel is still in development earlier this year. One can assume that Liu will return for the follow-up, and fans can next see him in December’s Avengers: Doomsday.
Armor Wars
Release Date: Unknown
Armor Wars, an adaptation of David Michelinie and Bob Layton’s 1980s Iron Man run of the same name, was announced as a Disney+ series in 2020; Yassir Lester was tapped to pen the program centered around Don Cheadle as James Rhodes/War Machine. The project was repurposed into a feature in 2022, with Cheadle and Lester still attached. There haven’t been any significant developments since this pivot, with Lester, in 2024, confirming that it was still in development while expressing hesitancy regarding its ultimate materialization. The project hasn’t been formally shelved as of 2026, but it’s difficult to imagine it getting off the ground as the studio embarks on a new era.
TV Shows
Daredevil: Born Again (Seasons 2 + 3)
Release Date: March 24, 2026 (Season 2), 2027 (Season 3)
Disney relaunched the fan-favorite Daredevil Netflix series last year in the form of Daredevil: Born Again, a Disney+ program that will return for its second season on March 24. Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio are slated to return as Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Wilson Fisk/Kingpin, respectively, with Krysten Ritter also joining the cast as Jessica Jones (a role she first portrayed in the Jessica Jones and The Defenders Netflix series). Much of season one’s writing team returns for the second season, with Solvan Naim, Angela Barnes, Iain B. MacDonald, and the duo of Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson confirmed as this season’s episode directors.
The show’s second season is set to include eight episodes, a one-episode decrease from the first season’s nine. A release schedule has not yet been confirmed, though it’s expected to release new episodes weekly à la season one. A third season has already been greenlit, with filming set to occur this year; Marvel anticipates the show will be an annual title moving forward, implying that season three is targeting a 2027 drop.
X-Men ’97 (Seasons 2 + 3)
Release Date: 2026 (Season 2)
The first season of X-Men ’97 took audiences by storm (no pun intended), successfully serving as both a faithful continuation of the beloved X-Men: The Animated Series and as an entry point for new fans into the expansive world of mutants. It will return later this year for the second of what Marvel hopes to be several seasons, with a third season already in active development and targeting a 2027 release. Season two figures to feature the core surviving team members from the first season, with several characters from the comics who have made only cursory appearances in the show thus far confirmed to have expanded roles. The team is confirmed to don suits inspired by Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly’s early-2000s run on New X-Men at some point in the second season.
A firm release date has not yet been set, nor have individual episode writers/directors been revealed; that said, original showrunner Beau DeMayo was said to have finished writing the show’s second season prior to his March 2024 firing, meaning that his fingerprints should still be visible despite not having direct involvement over the past two years. Matthew Chauncey takes over as head writer from season three onwards, with production already well underway.
VisionQuest
Release Date: Late 2026
The second show to be birthed from the success of WandaVision, VisionQuest began development in 2022, initially with WandaVision and Agatha All Along creator Jac Schaeffer attached as showrunner. She later departed the project and was replaced by Star Trek: Picard scribe Terry Matalas, with the show now targeting a late 2026 release. The miniseries will consist of eight episodes, with Matalas, Christopher J. Byrne, Gandja Monteiro, and Vincenzo Natali attached as directors.
The show will center around Paul Bettany’s Vision, with Matalas describing the program as “very much a show about Marvel AIs.” James Spader will return as Ultron, marking his first MCU appearance since 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. Todd Stashwick is set to play bounty hunter Paladin, while T’Nia Miller will play Jocasta; Ruaridh Mollica will play Tommy Maximoff/Thomas Shepherd, the son of Vision and Wanda Maximoff who first appeared in WandaVision (then portrayed by Jett Klyne).
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (Seasons 2 + 3)
Release Date: Late 2026
The second season of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is set to be released on Disney+ later this year, with a third already in development (with a 2027 drop penciled in). Jeff Trammell returns as showrunner and head writer for both seasons two and three. The primary cast is set to return in season two, with Gwen Stacy also slated to make her MCU (adjacent) debut.
Special Presentations
Untitled Punisher Special
Release Date: 2026
Marvel’s “Special Presentations” imprint hasn’t been overly active since its 2022 launch, with the company largely placing the label on the back burner following the release of Werewolf by Night and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. The studio is set to revisit the initiative later this year with an, as of now, untitled Punisher project, a Jon Bernthal vehicle that will again see the actor reprise his role as Frank Castle. The special is the brainchild of Bernthal himself, as he conceived the idea while filming the first season of Daredevil: Born Again; he co-wrote the one-shot alongside King Richard director Reinaldo Marcus Green, who will also helm the project. Marvel Television head Brad Winderbaum has publicly stated that the special will “connect into the time and place that Daredevil: Born Again season two takes place.” A release date has not yet been announced.
