The Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s (MCU) fourth phase is set to begin imminently. However, there have several changes to the planned schedule due to the impact of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Check out what the MCU Phase 4 now looks like below!

The original schedule for the MCU Phase 4 was unveiled by Kevin Feige at Comic-Con 2019. This involved kicking things off in May last year, which of course didn’t happen.

MCU Phase 4

Original MCU Phase 4 Schedule

  • May 1, 2020 – Black Widow
  • Fall 2020 – The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
  • November 6, 2020 – Eternals
  • February 12, 2021 – Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  • Spring 2021 – WandaVision
  • May 7, 2021 – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
  • Spring 2021 – Loki
  • Summer 2021 – What If…
  • Fall 2021 – Hawkeye
  • November 5, 2021 – Thor: Love and Thunder

Spider-Man 3 (Working Title) was later added to the line-up with a planned release date of 16th July 2021. Black Panther IICaptain Marvel 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 were announced to be coming after this initial line up. As far as has been announced, this remains the case.

Current MCU Phase 4 Schedule

However, here’s what the schedule now looks like:

  • January 15, 2021 – WandaVision
  • March 19, 2021 – The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
  • May 2021 – Loki
  • May 7, 2021 – Black Widow
  • July 9, 2021 – Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  • Mid-2021 – What If…
  • November 5, 2021 – Eternals
  • December 17, 2021 – Spider-Man 3 (Working Title)
  • Late 2021 – Hawkeye
  • Late 2021 – Ms Marvel
  • March 25, 2022 – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
  • May 6, 2022 – Thor: Love and Thunder
  • July 8, 2022 – Black Panther 2
  • November 11, 2022 – Captain Marvel 2

Correct as of 13th January 2021.

How will these changes affect the MCU?

As we can see, the Disney+ show WandaVision is now opening the MCU Phase 4 instead of Black Widow. Marvel has made efforts ensure that the movies were pushed back in order. This is presumably so that any overarching storylines will still make sense. 

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is now making its debut before Eternals. However, it’s unlikely that those movies would connect too much to the current timeline of the wider Marvel Cinematic as they are essentially origin stories.

Do you think the date changes will have any significant impact on your enjoyment of the MCU Phase 4? Let us know in the comments below!

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