Kevin Feige talks Black Widow, Black Panther 2 and Disney streaming plans

Is Black Widow coming to Disney+? How goes work on Black Panther 2? Does WandaVision usher in a new age for the MCU? Kevin Feige answers all.

Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige is a man with his eye on the future, and with how many things Marvel has in production for both the big and small screen, he’d have to be. Speaking to Deadline, Feige gave updates about Black Panther 2, Black Widow and Disney’s long-term streaming plans.

Back to Wakanda

Work continues on a script for director Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther 2, which continues after the death of star Chadwick Boseman. Feige said that Coogler “is working very hard right now on the script with all the respect and love and genius that he has, which gives us great solace, so it was always about furthering the mythology and the inspiration of Wakanda.”

Wakanda will play a central role in the sequel, which makes perfect sense given that the mysterious country plays such a huge role in the Marvel Universe. Though the technology exists to use a CGI version of the late Chadwick Boseman, Feige stressed that there are no plans to do that or to recast T’Challa, though the film will honor his legacy and teachings.

Black Widow on Disney+?

2020 was the first year without a Marvel movie in over a decade. Originally, we were going to get the Scarlett Johansson solo vehicle Black Widow, but its release date was pushed back to May 7, 2021. And if conditions don’t improve, people have wondered if we’ll see it released straight to Disney+.

Feige didn’t commit to anything solid, but said that the infrastructure is there if the need arises. “All I can tell you is that for the past three years since Bob Iger brought me into his office and talked about a streaming platform that would become Disney+ and asked us to start working on programs for it,” he said. “Our long lead plan was to have the MCU and the storytelling woven between weekly episodic big swings on Disney+ and into the feature big swings in theaters.”

"And it’s my hope that the world gets back on track and we all get back into theaters, and that people will see and experience week by week for the low monthly fee of Disney+ of what we’re bringing there, and then be excited to get together with people again in real life and sit with strangers and share an experience on the big screen."

If it’s not safe to go back to theaters by May, Marvel has the flexibility to either delay Black Widow further or release it into theaters and on Disney+ at the same time, like what WarnerMedia did with Wonder Woman 1984, which worked out well for them.

WandaVision: Get ready for something new and different

More immediately, Marvel fans can look forward to WandaVision, the first of many Marvel TV shows to debut on Disney+. This one, which revolves around Wanda (Elizabeth Olson) and Vision (Paul Bettany) living in some kind of sideways fantasy land inspired by classic American sitcoms, comes out Friday, and it looks strange, to say the least.

“From the start of Marvel Studios, we always said we don’t want to make one kind of movie,” Feige said about the boldness of this new show. “When Iron Man worked, the first thing we announced was a WWII movie (Captain America) and a Norse God alien movie (Thor), and then a team-up movie (Avengers). So we always look to take the success or the goodwill that comes to us, and utilize that to expand to grow into Guardians of the Galaxy, and into Black Panther and Captain Marvel. And WandaVision was just an extreme version of that and doing it in a way that will have answers and will take the confusion, or the oddity or avant-garde nature of it and begin to put into the piece, as each episode is unveiled week by week. But we’ve always been rewarded for taking big swings and not for repeating ourselves necessarily. And we had great confidence in those two actors playing those two characters and that they could absolutely pull it off.”

As for what exactly WandaVision is about, Feige is keeping tight-lipped, but we know it’ll be weird and we know it’ll connect to other parts of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which will soon include TV. One clear connection is the presence of Monica Rambeau, who was played by Azari Akbar in Captain Marvel and by Teyonah Parris in WandaVision…and beyond. “We will get to see Monica join Carol Danvers, Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel in Captain Marvel 2!” Parris said during a panel this past Sunday.

We’ll all certainly be paying attention, to WandaVision and what comes after. “Get ready for the new and the different,” Feige said of the upcoming Phase 4. “Certainly, with the Disney+ opportunities it has allowed us to expand creatively what we do. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was gonna debut first last year, followed very soon behind by WandaVision. Creatively, it didn’t reshuffle. This required no shuffling whatsoever…[T]he unexpected has often served Marvel Studios well and it is served us well in this case because this show, being our first one, I love how bold it is…We have things that you will only be able to see initially in theaters…this is very much made to be seen week after week on television which is very different for us.”

The biggest takeaway from the interview is that Marvel is moving full steam ahead in 2021, and the studio is ready to take on the challenges as they come.

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