The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an ever-expanding film franchise that includes both movies and television series based on characters from Marvel comic books. At 27 movies and counting, the MCU shows no signs of slowing down. With six new movies scheduled to release between 2022 and 2023, and a whole slew of new TV shows in the works, it can be hard for even the most devoted fans to keep track of everything.

If you've watched a few Marvel movies, you may know that the MCU is divided into phases. Each phase includes a collection of loosely linked movies, generally with a few overarching plot points that connect them. Phase Three wrapped up in 2019, and we're currently in Marvel’s Phase Four, which kicked off in early 2021 with the TV series, WandaVision. In addition to sequels featuring familiar superheroes such as Spider-Man and Thor, Phase Four introduces several new characters and a new overall story arc.

If you're feeling a little lost, never fear! This guide includes everything you need to know about Phase Four. Read on to learn about Marvel Phase Four release dates, upcoming shows and films in development, and more.


 

Marvel Phase Four Timeline & Lineup

Phase Four represents a new beginning for the MCU. It's the first phase to officially include TV series, starting in early 2021 with WandaVision. Phase Four will include all the feature films and television shows released between 2021 and 2023.

Who are the core characters of Marvel’s Phase Four?

Though a few of the major characters from Phase One, Phase Two, and Phase Three—namely Iron Man and Captain America—will not feature in the Phase Four films, the phase does include many familiar faces. The films of Phase Four kicked off with Black Widow, the first solo film starring Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow. Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Thor, Black Panther, Captain Marvel, and Ant-Man will all get feature films as well. There will also be another Guardians of the Galaxy film. 

New characters include Shang-Chi, a man forced to reckon with his own past when he gets caught up in the activities of a mysterious organization he thought he'd left behind. Phase Four will also introduce a whole new group of superheroes: a secret alien race known as the Eternals, who have been living in secret on Earth for thousands of years.

What is the central plot of Phase Four?

We're still in the early stages of Phase Four, so it's impossible to say exactly what the overarching themes and major plot will be. However, one concept of importance has already become clear: the multiverse. The multiverse was first introduced in the TV series Loki. After the events of Avengers: Endgame, a version of the character Loki created a whole new timeline. The multiverse, and its various timelines, will feature prominently in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and, of course, future seasons of Loki. Phase Four will also include more intergalactic adventures, with a third Thor film as well as another installment in the Guardians of the Galaxy saga. Whatever epic conclusion Marvel Phase Four is building toward, the multiverse will likely be involved.

Who is the “Big Bad” of Phase Four?

It's unclear whether Phase Four will include a Big Bad—a daunting adversarial supervillain like Thanos from the earlier Marvel phases. Several familiar villains are confirmed to appear in Phase Four movies and shows—the Mandarin, Doctor Octopus, Electro, and Yellowjacket among them—but it is unlikely that any of these will rise to Big Bad status. Marvel fans will have to wait and see if a new supervillain emerges out of the multiverse.


 

Marvel Phase Four: Movies

Black Widow (2021)

  • Phase Four opened with Black Widow, which takes a look at the life of Natasha Romanoff before she became an Avenger. While investigating a conspiracy, Black Widow is forced to confront her past relationships and revisit old mistakes.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

  • This film introduces new storylines and a new character. Shang-Chi thought he had left his past behind, but when he gets caught up in the machinations of the mysterious Ten Rings organization, it comes back to haunt him.

Eternals (2021)

  • Set eight months after Avengers: Endgame, The Eternals concerns the fallout of the final battle between the Avengers and Thanos. When they realize that Earth faces yet another dire threat, the Eternals, an immortal alien race, come out of hiding to defend humanity.

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

  • The newest Spider-Man film sees Peter Parker wrestling with the challenges of his identity as a superhero becoming public. He seeks advice from Doctor Stephen Strange—but soon, both superheroes find themselves in even more danger, as foes from other universes find their way into their world. 

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (Scheduled Release: May 6, 2022)

  • Set to premiere in the spring of 2022, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will tie in with several Phase Four television programs, including WandaVision and Loki. While conducting research into the powerful Time Stones, Dr. Stephen Strange unknowingly releases an evil force into the universe and then must work to contain it.

Thor: Love and Thunder (Scheduled Release: July 8, 2022)

  • The fourth Thor film is scheduled to release during the summer of 2022, with Ragnarok’s Taika Watiti again at the helm. Chris Hemsworth will return to play Thor. Other familiar characters in the film will include Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord, and Jane Foster, later known as Mighty Thor.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Scheduled Release: November 11, 2022)

  • A sequel to Black Panther is slated to release in the fall of 2022. After the death of star Chadwick Boseman in August 2020, Marvel chose not to recast his role of T'Challa. The film will explore the world of Wakanda through the eyes of the many other characters, as a way to honor Boseman's legacy.

The Marvels (Scheduled Release: February 17, 2023)

  • The Marvels, the first of the Phase Four 2023 releases, will be a continuation of the TV series Ms. Marvel and a sequel to the Phase Three movie, Captain Marvel.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Scheduled Release: May 5, 2023)

  • The third installment of the Guardians of the Galaxy saga will take place after Thor: Love and Thunder, as well as the upcoming The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. Peter Quill and his team of talented misfits will return for more heart-pounding and hilarious misadventures.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Scheduled Release: July 28, 2023)

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the final Phase Four movie with a known release date, though a new Blade movie and a Fantastic Four movie are both in development.


 

Marvel Phase Four: TV Shows

WandaVision (Miniseries, 2021)

  • WandaVision begins only a few weeks after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Avengers Wanda Maximoff and Vision are living a quiet life in suburban New Jersey, trying to hide their powers from the world. But when their surroundings begin to reflect various decades, and they encounter various television tropes in their daily lives, it becomes clear that something isn’t quite right.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Miniseries, 2021)

  • At the end of Avengers: Endgame, Sam Wilson, the Avenger known as the Falcon, receives the shield of Captain America. The miniseries follows his subsequent adventures with fellow superhero Bucky Barnes, aka Winter Soldier.

Loki (Season 1 aired 2021)

  • Loki is yet another TV series that begins with the fallout of Avengers: Endgame. Like WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, it has received both popular and critical acclaim. The series follows an alternate version of Loki, Thor's brother and the God of Mischief. He's given a choice by the mysterious Time Variance Authority: he can either vanish from existence or work to fix the timeline. Loki ends up traveling through time in a series of dangerous adventures.

What If...? (Season 1 aired 2021)

  • The big reveal at the end of season one of Loki is the existence of the multiverse. What If...? explores the possibilities of the multiverse. The series consists of a collection of alternate timelines, in which pivotal moments from the Marvel Cinematic Universe unfold differently.

Hawkeye (Miniseries, 2021)

  • Hawkeye features Avenger Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye, and his protégée Kate Barton, whom he is training to take up his mantle. Though Hawkeye has appeared in several Avengers movies, this will be the first series focused entirely on him.

Ms. Marvel (Miniseries, Scheduled Premiere 2022)

  • Ms. Marvel is scheduled to air in 2022 and will follow the adventures of Kamala Khan, a 16-year old Pakistani American teenager who becomes the superhero Ms. Marvel. The series will tie in to the upcoming Phase Four film, The Marvels.

Moon Knight (Miniseries, Scheduled Premiere 2022)

  • Another exciting addition to the MCU cannon, Moon Knight will introduce another new character, Marc Spector. Marc is a former Marine with dissociative identity disorder, who gains extraordinary powers when he begins channeling the Egyptian god of the moon.

She-Hulk (Scheduled Premiere 2022)

  • She-Hulk, slated to air in 2022, will focus on Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, a cousin of the Incredible Hulk. A lawyer who works with cases involving superhuman occurrences and clients, Jennifer can turn into a larger and more powerful version of herself.

Secret Invasion (Miniseries, Scheduled Premiere 2022)

  • Building on the Phase Four themes of intergalactic politics and time travel, Secret Invasion will center on a species of shape-shifting aliens, exploring how their presence changes all life on Earth.  

Further Phase Four TV Events

  • 'Tis the season for superheroes too! The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is slated to air in December 2022.

  • Additional Phase Four series in development include Ironheart, centered on the superhero of the same name; Armor Wars, which will explore what happens after Iron Man's technology falls into dangerous hands; and an untitled series set in Wakanda.


 

What’s beyond Phase Four? 

There's no telling exactly where the Marvel Cinematic Universe will go next. Marvel Studios is constantly planning ahead, with potential storylines extending into 2028 that have not been announced yet. Films in various stages of development include a Deadpool-focused film and another Captain America sequel. With Phase Four slated to run through 2023, and plenty of its central storylines and characters still to be revealed, at the moment fans can only guess at what Phase Five might look like.