It’s June and finally, we have another round of “Ask Alex” on The Cosmic Circus Discord. Our server members have come up with some great questions about plans for various Marvel Studios productions and characters. Not everything can be answered, but Alex Perez shared what he could. After reading, we hope you’ll consider joining the Discord and becoming a part of the community to take part in a future Q&A.
Part one of Alex Perez’s answers to the June Discord Q&A are below, with part two coming very soon! Be sure to follow The Cosmic Circus on social media to keep up with the latest articles, interviews, and reviews!
Avengers, Secret Wars & the Marvel Studios Multiverse Saga
Kosta: Hi Alex, how are you? I love you. Do you think Secret Wars will become 2 films and, therefore, 3 Avengers films in this saga?
Alex: Hey! Love ya too. I suspect that Secret Wars may be heading into a two-parter territory for a number of reasons. The main reason is that there are too many stories happening plot-wise that really can’t be condensed into the average 2-hour runtime. One thing I even heard through the grapevine was the idea of having more than one central antagonist. So yes, I think the films will be split.
Bird Sister: What is the probable new name for Avengers 5?
Alex: What I can say is that I’m hearing that Avengers 5 will be a multiversal film with a particularly grounded story involving multiversal elements. In all likelihood, the safest route would be to split Avengers: Secret Wars into two parts. However, I will take the opportunity to mention a rumor about a possible adaptation of elements from the Avengers Assemble/Avengers: Forever event, which is a storyline involving a Multiversal Council of Mephisto variants known as the Council of Red, Multiversal Masters of Evil, and an Avengers team up to save the day before all of existence is destroyed. I might have to look into that storyline given Mephisto’s coming introduction into the MCU, but it might be an interesting story to adapt heading into Avengers: Secret Wars.
Vin: What comic would you recommend to anyone interested in the future of the MCU?
Alex: Obviously, the Secret Wars comics would be a good start. Time Runs Out as well is a good run to get into. I have heard through the grapevine that elements from the Avengers Assemble/Avengers: Forever event might be interesting to look into. However, if people really want to look ahead, beyond Secret Wars and beyond the soft reboot, they should look to the stars—specifically, Eternals Vol. 3.
CamCam: Hey, Alex! Hoping you’re doing well! What’s the likelihood of Marvel greenlighting [more seasons of] shows like Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, Hawkeye, and Echo for production before the Multiverse Saga ends?
Alex: It might be a while before any of these shows get a second season, since some of them are scheduled to pop up in other projects before getting a second season. It’s also too early to tell which shows will go into production before the Saga ends.
Elyse✨ – Shoalsandsuch: Hi Alex! Welcome back! Have you heard any names in the mix/front-runners for Avengers 5 director? Any idea what size role Loki and Sylvie may have in A5/SW?
Alex: Hi! Recent reporting indicates Shawn Levy is in the mix for the potential directors for Avengers 5. But directors have never been my forté, so I can’t give you a list of answers for that.
Loki and Sylvie are certainly going to play a role in the upcoming Avengers films, that’s an idea that’s definitely going to come to fruition. As for how big their roles might be, it wouldn’t be wise for me to say how big their roles are since these things always vary in pre-production, production, and then post-production.
Folkito1hunnid: ALEX! With the rumors of Marvel finally re-casting Kang(s) could we see a combination of World War Hulk and Avengers Forever elements… using both grounded and multiversal elements in Avengers 5? What do you expect to be on the slate projects wise for the rest phase 5 +6 and maybe possible phase 7 to finish up the saga …and Secret Wars split into 2 movies?
Alex: Hi. For your first question: My personal opinion? Combining both of these stories together would be a very bad idea. A movie that’s coming out later will be doing something similar to what you’re suggesting, and it sounds like a terrible mess already.
My expectations for the slate are definitely Wonder Man, Spider-Man 4, Shang-Chi 2, Vision, Blade, and Young Avengers/Champions.
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Blade and Brother Voodoo
Din Djarin: Sup Alex, Thoughts on what’s up with Blade, if there’s anything at all? Do you think someone like Jericho Drumm will show up in the future?
Alex: Be patient with Blade and let them cook. I have faith in Mahershala Ali and his vision for the movie. I think it’s possible for Brother Voodoo to show up. His brother exists after all.
Captain America: Brave New World and World War Hulk
Lukeb4577: Hey Alex, hope time doing well. Any idea who Giancarlo Esposito may be playing in the MCU?
Alex: Nope.
ReyD: After the comment of [Bob] Iger and Marvel slowing things down. Are we still confident that a follow-up to Cap 4’s Hulks story is still planned?
Alex: There are a lot of side stories currently running at the same time in the MCU. And we know that the endgame for the Multiverse Saga is going to be Secret Wars, there is no doubt about it. However, there is a story that has been built up by multiple projects in the MCU, which I call “The World War Storyline”. This storyline has been set up by projects in:
- Spider-Man: Far From Home
- WandaVision
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
- Black Widow
- Eternals
- Spider-Man: No Way Home
- Ms. Marvel
- She-Hulk: Attorney At Law
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Secret Invasion
This storyline, which has been cooking from the sidelines, essentially has the countries of the world in fear of the unprecedented number of heroes that have started to pop up in recent years, and the number of incidents that have occurred recently in the MCU since the events of Endgame. And with no Avengers currently active, the nations of the world are in a race with each other to try and develop their own superhuman soldiers or teams to defend themselves from all enemies foreign and domestic.
It’s why France was suspiciously trying to obtain vibranium from Wakanda in a covert operation at the beginning of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The same reason applies to the United States trying to obtain Vibranium without Wakanda’s knowledge in the middle of the ocean before being intervened by Namor and the Talokans. It’s also why the United States has the Department of Damage Control (DODC) handle any superhuman incidents such as in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Ms. Marvel, and She-Hulk: Attorney At Law.
This storyline is about to reach its peak point in the MCU in stories like Captain America: Brave New World, where we’ll see some countries trying to harvest materials to develop their own superhuman teams, while others are already so advanced that they’re already experimenting and creating their own version of superhumans such as The Leader, Red Hulk and don’t get me started on the ones we’ll see in Thunderbolts*.
Where am I getting at with this? Marvel Studios is setting up a World War Hulk project, albeit not in the way that people would expect. The idea is for Bruce Banner, who teased the dangers of Hulk’s blood back in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, to finally see his worst nightmare come to life; the United States government and the governments of the world creating their own Hulks.
This might be the breaking point for Banner and could potentially see the return of the Savage Hulk people have been wanting to see for so long as he goes toe to toe with President Ross as the Red Hulk, which I’m being told will happen sooner rather than later.
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Captain Marvel and King Valkyrie
DisappointinglyLethargic: Hey Alex, do you know what Marvel plans for Captain Marvel now that The Marvels severely underperformed? And do those plans involve Valkyrie?
Alex: Carol Danvers’ role in the Multiverse Saga moving forward has not been diminished, nor will it be toned down due to The Marvels underperforming. Carol’s role in this saga is going to be very personal as she is currently dedicating all of her time to investigating the nature of the Quantum Bangles, where they actually came from, and using their power to find a way to bring back Monica Rambeau into the MCU following the events of The Marvels.
As for King Valkyrie, I haven’t heard much about what role she will have to play in the Multiverse Saga as of yet, but there is something I heard through the grapevine about Thor 5 and her connections to Valhalla. So I’d suspect her story to continue there.
Daredevil: Born Again, fights, Muse and the Kingpin
Vacanus: Hi Alex, thanks again for doing these! I’ve got two DD:BA questions. If you have any information, do you have any teases for Muse and what type of villain he will be, similar to the post you made for Cassandra Nova?
Have you heard whether Daredevil: Born Again will feature a one-take hallway sequence similar to the ones in the OG show?
Alex: What I’ve heard about Muse is that his character will fan the flames of chaos in the show. He’ll be very sinister and deranged and will actually be an antagonist to not only Daredevil but also Kingpin, which will be an interesting dynamic to see play out.
As for whether Born Again will feature a one-take hallway sequence similar to the ones in the OG show, I have heard many wonderful things about how the stunt and fight coordination teams worked on this show and the way it was done. If I had to explain how this show overall was approached, I would compare it to the way Marvel Animation approached X-Men ‘97. They respect the original material, built up on it, and elevated it to a new standard which I’m sure fans will love.
CamCam: How long do you expect Wilson Fisk’s reign as NYC’s mayor will last in the MCU? Will it end in Spider-Man 4 or Daredevil: Born Again season 2, depending on what releases first, or will it extend beyond those projects and have a longer and larger impact on the MCU than we currently expect?
Alex: I expect Fisk’s run as Mayor to last a while since it is a storyline that will continue beyond Daredevil: Born Again.
joshua: Have you heard if DDBA will bring back John Paesano as composer?
Alex: I have not heard anything about the composer for the show.
Daredevil Reading Guide: 1964-1998
Doctor Strange and Clea
Rebel: Is the plan for Doctor Strange 3 still to happen before SW, and can you share any details/tidbits about plans for that movie?
Alex: What I’ve heard about Stephen Strange’s story leading into Secret Wars requires a minimum of a third Doctor Strange movie for it to be explored properly, or at the very least three Avengers films. Anything less, and I’m afraid that both Stephen and Clea’s characters might fall short of fans’ expectations.
Fantastic Four cast
mothman9583: Hey Alex, I hope you’re doing well. Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us. Do you know who any of the actors in F4 are portraying that haven’t been revealed?
azuredreamer: Hello there Alex, hope you are in good spirits. Who do you think John Malkovich and Paul Walter Houser are playing in The Fantastic Four, are they allies or antagonistic to the First Family?
Alex: I cannot comment on those castings at this time.
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Ghost Rider
Vin: How do you expect them to handle Ghost Rider?
Alex: I’d expect them to make Ghost Rider an antihero who is loyal to Mephisto but also looking for a way out.
Hawkeye season 2
Rebel: Can you confirm that Hawkeye S2 is happening. If so, can you share any details/tidbits about the season?
Alex: I have no information on that, given that I expect Kate Bishop to be teamed up with Kamala and Cassie, as well as appear in Avengers 5 before we even get a Hawkeye S2.
Hulk/Bruce Banner
BraveFire: Hi Alex, When, how and why (if you can tell us) Smart Hulk will become Savage Hulk again? (related to Skaar, Betty Ross, his wife Caiera?) Was Avengers 5 transformed into WWH (or the opposite, it doesn’t matter) or will WWH be a separate film? (will its future be promising?)
Alex: Read what I had to say above under Captain America: Brave New World
ShadowBeard: Hey Alex! What will be the next appearance of Hulk/Bruce Banner? Who will direct the World War Hulk film? Do you have more information on the project?
Alex: I have no other info on either of those things at this time.
That’s it for now! Part two coming very soon (will be linked below when it’s up). You can read some of Alex Perez’s past articles and reports here!
Discord Q&A with Alex Perez Talking Marvel Studios (March 2024)
