Marvel Studios could be hinting at the conclusion of its campaign to aggressively grow the MCU on Disney+, and surprisingly, it has nothing to do with ‘Avengers: Doomsday’. The larger narrative is what Marvel isn’t telling.
Following years of pouring new live-action shows into the streaming service, the studio seems to be becoming a bit more selective, as fewer original shows are making it onto Disney+.
Marvel’s Disney+ Strategy Is Clearly Changing
The signs were there at San Diego Comic-Con. ‘Wonder Man’ earned Yahya Abdul-Mateen II an Emmy nomination, yet Marvel reportedly didn’t include the series in its Hall H presentation shortly before its cancellation. Instead, Kevin Feige’s presentation emphasized a lot of the big theatrical projects.
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That included ‘Doomsday’, ‘Ghost Rider’ and ‘Black Panther 3’. The TV slate was barely introduced into the discussion. That transition is even more intriguing when examining the things that have survived. ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ had a large fan base to begin with, as did ‘X-Men ’97’, which had the massive nostalgia appeal of the 90s animated series.
So, both are naturally continuing. ‘Wonder Man’, on the other hand, was a new idea in the MCU with no fan base to wait for it. The series was released all at once, reportedly got off to a slow start, and Marvel apparently decided not to keep waiting for momentum to build. It doesn’t mean that Disney+ is not part of Marvel’s plans, though. It implies that the studio is getting much more discerning about what it approves.
Marvel May Be Putting The Movies First Again
The cool thing is that Marvel’s supposed solution is not to continue to tweak every streaming project until it’s successful. It is to reduce their number. This is a significant departure from the ‘Endgame’ era, when Disney+ was one of the main ways for Marvel to grow its universe and populate it with new characters.
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Now, it seems the emphasis is once again on theatrical releases. ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ is reportedly on course to achieve the rare $2 billion mark. But this is just a best guess until the box-office numbers come out.
Disney+ is not going away from the MCU. However, it might not be the location where Marvel will get the bulk of its growth anymore. Marvel has been pushing audiences to attend more and more shows for years, but perhaps they’re beginning to see that sometimes, less is more.
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