This past September, a group of Marvel creatives, including studio chief Kevin Feige, assembled in Palm Springs for the studio’s annual retreat. Most years, the vibe would have been confident — even cocky — given how the premier superhero brand, owned by Disney since 2009, has remade the entertainment business in its image.
https://variety.com/2023/film/features/marvel-jonathan-majors-problem-the-marvels-reshoots-kang-1235774940/
But this occasion was angst-ridden — everyone at Marvel was reeling from a series of disappointments on-screen, a legal scandal involving one of its biggest stars and questions about the viability of the studio’s ambitious strategy to extend the brand beyond movies into streaming.
Speaks volumes to how influential this entire franchise has been that this can become such big news. Marvel movies have dominated the box-office and the summer movie schedule for so many years that it feels odd not having anything good to look forward to in recent years.
I watched ‘Shang Chi’, ‘Eternals’ and felt like they were passable at best, like if they had been made by an independent studio in some other country they’d be much more well received. However, since they were Marvel movies, it was hard to get excited. Clearly these are B or C grade superheroes at best, characters that don’t quite have the level of fandom as Iron man or Spiderman.
Antman Quantumania was a mess. It didn’t have to get so heavy and complicated. Make it more character centered and revolving around the every day, that’s what Antman is about. Also it lacked Michael Peña!
I’m glad to see that Marvel is aware of their recent shortcomings. Also I agree with the sentiment of the article, there’s just too much Marvel right now. Take a break, re-evaluate and come back with something better is what I think.