The Marvel Cinematic Universe is at a crossroads. With “Avengers: Infinity War” changing the status quo of the MCU with a simple snap of the fingers, the future of the franchise is as much of a mystery now as ever before. Now, with 2019 ushering in the end of an era with “Avengers: Endgame” and the finalization of the Disney/Fox merger, it appears that the MCU has plenty of changes afoot. But according to studio boss Kevin Feige, don’t go expecting all these changes at once.
In a new interview on the Playback podcast, Feige was asked about a variety of topics relating to Marvel Studios and the behemoth known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But perhaps the most interesting question came when the boss was asked about the impending Disney/Fox merger and whether or not he’s already planned out how to integrate the various “X-Men” and “Fantastic Four”-related heroes into the current MCU.
Feige explains:
“We’ve been told it’s looking very, very good and could happen in the first six months of next year. The notion of the characters coming back is great. It’s nice when a company that created all these characters can have access to all those characters. It’s unusual not to. But in terms of actually thinking about it and actually planning things, we haven’t started that yet.”
Feige also talked about the recent passing of Stan Lee and explained what everyone pretty much already knows – Stan Lee was a goddamn American treasure.
“I was there not for every one but for almost every cameo he’s ever shot going back to ‘X-Men,’” Feige says. “He was very special. I’ve never heard one story of somebody meeting Stan and not being overwhelmed with excitement. He never disappointed. In some ways I never thought this day would come. Kirk Douglas just turned 102. I thought Stan was going to be there. And in the same way it doesn’t seem like he’s gone. His influence will never go away.”
“Avengers: Endgame” (and thus the new MCU) begins April 26, 2019.