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Marvel's MCU Phase 4 plans revealed: Black Widow, Shang-Chi, Thor: Love and Thunder, new Doctor Strange and more

Thor 4, a Doctor Strange sequel and a new Blade are in the works. Marvel went huge at Comic-Con this year.

Headshot of Caitlin Petrakovitz
Headshot of Caitlin Petrakovitz
Caitlin Petrakovitz Director of audience
Caitlin Petrakovitz studies the Marvel Cinematic Universe like it's a course in school, with an emphasis on the Infinity Saga years. As an audience expert, she rarely writes but when she does it's most certainly about Star Trek, Marvel, DC, Westworld, San Diego Comic-Con and great streaming properties. Or soccer, that's a thing she loves, too.
Headshot of Mark Serrels
Headshot of Mark Serrels
Mark Serrels Editorial Director
Mark Serrels is an award-winning Senior Editorial Director focused on all things culture. He covers TV, movies, anime, video games and whatever weird things are happening on the internet. He especially likes to write about the hardships of being a parent in the age of memes, Minecraft and Fortnite. Definitely don't follow him on Twitter.
Headshot of Jennifer Bisset
Headshot of Jennifer Bisset
Jennifer Bisset Former Senior Editor / Culture
Jennifer Bisset was a senior editor for CNET. She covered film and TV news and reviews. The movie that inspired her to want a career in film is Lost in Translation. She won Best New Journalist in 2019 at the Australian IT Journalism Awards.
Expertise Film and TV Credentials
  • Best New Journalist 2019 Australian IT Journalism Awards
Caitlin Petrakovitz
Mark Serrels
Jennifer Bisset
3 min read
Marvel Studios' "Avengers: Endgame" Global Junket Press Conference

Marvel's San Diego Comic-Con panel dropped some massive news.

 Caitlin Petrakovitz/CNET

Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, late Saturday unveiled the Phase 4 slate of the Marvel Cinematic Universe at Comic-Con. He hit the stage at Marvel's panel in Hall H, announcing a tantalizing suite of new superhero movies, set for release over the next two years. The list includes Black Widow, The Eternals, Thor 4: Love and Thunder, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

He also teased the answer to the biggest lingering question since the merger of Disney and Fox: How long until we see some X-Men or other Marvel superheroes join our faves?

Plans are apparently in the works.

Oh, and surprise! Blade is back.

Let's catch our breath for a second!

Watch this: Marvel's Phase 4 plan explained

Here is Marvel's Phase 4 schedule:

  • May 1, 2020: Black Widow
  • Fall 2020: The Falcon and Winter Soldier
  • Nov. 6, 2020: The Eternals movie
  • Feb. 12, 2021: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  • Spring 2021: WandaVision Disney Plus series
  • May 7, 2021: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
  • Spring 2021: Loki Disney Plus series
  • Summer 2021: What If...?
  • Fall 2021: Hawkeye
  • Nov. 5, 2021: Thor 4: Love and Thunder

The long-rumored Black Widow is definitely happening and will star Scarlett Johansson, David Harbour, Florence Pugh, O-T Fagbenle and Rachel Weisz. Cate Shortland will direct the movie, which is set to hit theaters May 1, 2020. The movie will take place shortly after Captain America: Civil War, Harbour told IGN, making it a prequel to the more recent Avengers films.

We even got a bit of footage. 

Meanwhile, Thor: Love and Thunder is coming Nov. 5, 2021. It's the fourth in the series, starring Chris Hemsworth, with Taika Waititi on for writing and directing. Perhaps the biggest news: Waititi announced that Natalie Portman will be Lady Thor in Thor 4. 

Marvel also confirmed that The Falcon and Winter Soldier original TV series will arrive on Disney Plus in fall 2020. According to some tweeters on the floor, it's part of Phase 4, so would fill that fall 2020 slot.

WandaVision, a Marvel original TV series starring Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch, wasthe next big news: Marvel confirmed it will arrive in spring 2021.

And we have confirmation that Loki, the Marvel TV series starring Tom Hiddleston as the titular antihero, is coming to Disney Plus in spring 2021.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was also announced. We know very little about that one, though the title does tease the kind of multiverse madness that reared its head in Spider-Man: Far From Home. The Doctor Strange sequel arrives May 7, 2021.

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Marvel's The Eternals movie, starring Angelina Jolie, will arrive Nov. 6, 2020. We also have Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, starring Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, arriving February 2021.

And surprise... You thought that was all? Marvel Studios also announced Blade, starring Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali. 

Here's what we and others have been tweeting from the panel floor.

And here's news on Falcon and Winter Soldier, set to star Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan and Daniel Brühl.

Also, amazingly, Jeremy Renner tweeted out this footage of the upcoming Hawkeye TV series. 

Don't know if you were supposed to tweet that out, my dude, but we appreciate it nonetheless.

Originally published July 20.
Update July 21: Adds details. 

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