Avengers: Infinity War marked the beginning of the culmination of the MCU and Avengers 4 will be the very end and a new beginning of the MCU. Avengers 4 will be the 22nd movie in the MCU and it will officially end Phase 3 and from there on, Marvel is going to be very different. Spider-Man: Far From Home will lead us into the next Phase (if there is any). There is so much that is going to happen in Avengers 4 that we don’t know, but we do know some things about the ending of Phase 3 and the future of the MCU post that. Here’s everything we know till now:
1. The Big Guns of MCU will retire
We all know by now that contracts of Evans, Downey, Hemsworth, Ruffalo and even Renner are coming to an end right after Avengers 4. Downey and Evans have confirmed that they won’t be returning to the MCU from here on and are already looking at their futures beyond Marvel. Chris Hemsworth is open to returning as Thor and getting a renewed contract, so we could be seeing Thor beyond Phase 3, but Iron Man and Cap would be out for sure, and the likes of Hawkeye are likely to die in Avengers 4.
The Hulk is currently under a 3 movie arc and it is unclear whether Marvel would continue to use him the way they do, or would they retire him for good. But one thing is clear, which is that the Baton will be passed on to the likes on Captain Marvel, Black Panther, Spider-Man & Doctor Strange. Phase 2 heroes like Guardians and Ant-Man would stick around for 1 or 2 movies.
2. Avengers 4 may/will be the final ‘Avengers’ movie
We can obviously never get enough of the Avengers but it is safe to presume that Avengers 4 will end the title of the Avengers! A new team will surely come up in the next Phase, but it might not go with the title ‘Avengers’. People are thinking that the ‘New Avengers’ may become a thing in the future but it is highly likely that Disney and Marvel will decide to launch an entirely new team-up title despite knowing the fact that how profitable the ‘Avengers’ title has been.
With the inevitability of A-Force coming in and the new team of Avengers 4 survivors being formed, we may see the Avengers title being put to rest temporarily or rather permanently. It is 50-50 about this but let’s see!
3. The Cosmos will be completely explored!
While most of the MCU movies have been earth centric based on Earth’s mightiest heroes, and the new ones to make their way in Phase 2 & 3, the cosmic side of the MCU has not been fully explored. But with the coming of Captain Marvel and the likes of Guardians & Thor having set up the cosmos really well, we would see the major focus getting shifted towards the cosmic MCU as well.
While we will get sequels for Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, Black Panther, Captain Marvel, and even Ant-Man, there will obviously be more cosmic movies with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 setting up Adam Warlock and even the likes of Nova would get movies. With the entry of the Fantastic Four, we will get even more cosmic characters like the Silver Surfer and Galactus. The new big bads like Krang could be introduced and the idea of an Eternals movie is already floating around. So a big focus will be put upon the cosmos.
4. Infinity Stones will lose major focus
The MCU has been largely focused upon the Infinity Stones till now but the purpose of those may have been fulfilled by Avengers: Infinity War. Avengers 4 will probably disperse them throughout the galaxy once again, and other Marvel relics and things of importance with the likes of Ultimate Nullifier, the M’Kraan Crystal and “nexus of all realities” gems may be picked up as McGuffins. Or this pattern may be completely disbanded and other collective story points may be focused.
5. There won’t be any more Phases
While we still refer to the MCU beyond Avengers 4 as Phase 4, it is a major possibility that we won’t be seeing these Phases reoccur anymore. Marvel has been defined by its 3 Phases with each Phase having its own significance in showing how the MCU built up to Avengers 4, but this world building would take place at a much rapid rate after Avengers 4 with Marvel having 3 movies coming out every year and reach the inevitability of releasing 4 movies per year.
Things would be connected but it won’t happen through Phases. It will rather be a more continuous storyline from here on which will build up sequentially to the next big bad of the MCU. Marvel is known for its innovation and moving forward, we will be seeing that put to great effect. The Marvel Cinematic Universe after Phase 4 is going to be totally different and Avenger 4 will end the MCU as we know it!
