Marvel Unveils Phase IV Roster [Release Dates and Plots] for 2020-21
Following the monumental success of the Avengers Saga, Marvel will launch the fourth phase of its highly anticipated Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The studio has now revealed its 2020-21 listing of releases.
In 2020, the studio has two releases – Scarlett Johansson-starring Black Widow and The Eternals – which are helmed by female directors.
Table of Contents
2020
Black Widow
Release date: 1 May
Director: Cate Shortland
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, and Rachel Weisz
Plot: Kickstarting the fourth stage of MCU, Black Widow Johansson reprises her role as a red-haired ruthless assassin, first introduced in Iron Man in 2010. While plot details are scarce, the film captures the life of a black widow, Natasha Romanoff.
The Eternals
Release date: 6 Nov 2020
Director: Chloe Zhao
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, Gemma Chan, and Kumail Nanjiani
Plot: Based on the comic book series created by Jack Kirby, The Eternals in 1976, which is MCU’s next quirky asset after the Avengers saga. The project will feature super-powered and near-immortal beings called Eternals, and more gigantic offshoots called Deviants created by cosmic creatures called Celestials.
2021
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Release date: 12 February 2021
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
Cast: Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, alongside Tony Leung and Awkwafina
Plot: The film centers on Shang-Chi, a half-Chinese, half-American superhero created by writer Steve Englehart and penciled in by Jim Starlin in 1973. Often referred to as the “Master of Kung Fu,” Shang-Chi is well-acquainted with numerous unarmed and weaponry-based wushu styles, including the use of the gun, nunchaku, and Jian. He was trained to be martial artist assassin by his father, the infamous pulp villain Fu Manchu. Later, he joined the Avengers and gained the power of making multiple duplicates of himself.
Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness
Release Date: 7 May 2021
Director: The project currently doesn’t have a director after filmmaker Scott Derrickson stepped down from the film citing “creative differences.” Derrickson had helmed the first installment of the Doctor Strange franchise, released in 2016.
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, and Benedict Wong
Plot: We do not know much about the film, except for that Benedict Cumberbatch will return as the Sorcerer Supreme.
Thor: Love and Thunder
Release Date: 6 November 2021
Director: Taika Waititi
Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, and Taika Waititi
Plot: There is not much information about the fourth Thor film. However, Waititi has revealed that Academy Award-winning Natalie Portman, who played Jane Foster in the franchise, will take on Mjolnir as the first female Thor.
