These days, we dwell in a world the place Marvel surrounds us. Whether or not it’s upcoming Marvel motion pictures or perhaps upcoming Marvel TV reveals, there’s loads to sit up for within the MCU. However I’ve to confess one thing to you all – I’m slightly involved about the way forward for Marvel after what Kevin Feige simply stated concerning recasting outdated heroes.
I’m the sort of one who actually loves new concepts and tales, so revisiting outdated ones by no means actually sat proper with me. Nonetheless, I wish to get into the why on this article, so let’s dive deep.
It Has Been Exhausting To Regulate, However I’ve Been Liking The New Heroes
In the event you’re questioning what the quote was, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige spoke to Selection in July 2025 and stated that ultimately, they’d “recast” characters like Tony Stark and Captain America. He in contrast it to different main franchises that recast roles as time goes on, like James Bond and Superman.
Recasting characters, in and of itself, is advantageous. I’m not going to be the one that will get up on her soapbox and says that we will’t recast characters in any respect. I understand how the world works, and I’m not about to get cancelled for that.
Nevertheless it’s the messaging behind it in addition to what we’ve already established on this world. I’m not going to lie – it was exhausting to regulate to all the brand new heroes that we got during the last couple of years, ever since Avengers: Endgame. There have been quite a few modifications in construction, in addition to hypothesis about who will develop into the following large villain and who gained’t. I’ve to confess, now that I’m right here, I love the brand new heroes.
Thunderbolts* depicted despair so splendidly and was probably the greatest MCU movies in a very long time, that includes some unbelievable performing and storytelling from a number of new and returning characters who performed a lot bigger roles inside the MCU. I even have liked that older characters have gotten extra probabilities to shine. I’m the largest supporter of Wanda having her time within the solar and all of these kick-butt Scarlet Witch situations.
However relating to recasting these outdated heroes – those that we’ve grown so used to – it doesn’t really feel nice, I’ll inform you that.
Recasting The Previous Heroes Inside This MCU Feels Like A Large Step Again
As I stated within the part above, I’m not against recasting general. I don’t thoughts it if it’s carried out with intention, and it isn’t simply an excuse to earn more money off of a brand new character. We’ve had three totally different recasts of Spider-Man at this level, and everybody nonetheless debates who the most effective Spider-Man is. That is primarily how Hollywood works.
Nonetheless, the difficulty I’ve with this sort of recasting is that it creates a singular universe. Certain, now we have been made conscious that there are hundreds of thousands of variants of the identical character. We noticed that at size, when it got here to Loki. However on the identical time, it seems like a stab within the again to recast a personality when their tales have already come to an finish.
This feels worse than bringing again Robert Downey Jr. as Physician Doom. It feels prefer it someway tarnishes the legacy of Tony Stark. The story of his character was full, and actually, we don’t have to see his character recast once more on this identical universe for us to like him nonetheless. He’s, and can all the time be, Tony Stark.
So, the concept of recasting him – even whether it is a very long time away – seems like a slap within the face to those that not solely love his interpretation of the character but additionally the story of him as a complete, with the films we’ve watched. The identical goes for Steve, Natasha, Thor – everybody.
How Are We Going to Discover New Characters and Tales If We’re Revisiting the Similar Ones?
That is one thing else that worries me. Have you learnt what number of heroes are within the Marvel line-up? There are a ridiculous quantity. Tons of, if not 1000’s. How are we going to discover new heroes if we maintain trying on the ones everybody is aware of? How are we going to construct new fan bases if we proceed to give attention to the characters that Marvel insists we do?
Let me inform you – I knew subsequent to nothing about Ironheart, in any other case often called Riri Williams. I didn’t know who she was or what she stood for. However you wish to know what turned me onto her? The Ironheart TV present was nice. Now, I’ve a brand new favourite character. Would I’ve been in a position to expertise that if the present had been featured round Tony? No, as a result of it will have been the identical character that all of us already know.
Recasting characters takes away the prospect to introduce new ones to the world. And on the planet of Marvel, there are such a lot of we might get into. One other character I ended up loving extra this time round was Yelena, performed by Florence Pugh. She’s develop into one in all my favorites, however she didn’t seem till after Avengers: Endgame. If she had been across the identical time as Natasha, she most likely would have been overshadowed.
I would like these characters to outlive on their very own, to not develop into simply sidekicks to recast characters that all of us already know.
What Does This Imply For The Multiverse? Is It Simply Going To Without end Develop?
And that is the largest factor – if we’re recasting characters inside this MCU, what does that imply for the Marvel Multiverse as a complete? Are we recasting them as in the event that they have been variants from one other planet, and that’s how they’re infused again into the story? Or are we simply not bothering with that anymore and simply throwing them proper again into the ringer as a way to tackle the following large baddie?
I don’t know. To me, it feels like this universe actually is simply by no means going to cease increasing, and now Marvel Studios may simply be utilizing this as an excuse to convey again these characters. That’s the place this actually suffers.
The one technique to really make this work is that if they utterly redo all the universe. Begin from the very starting as a result of then, there shall be that precise distinction of who performs who and what universe we’re in. If not, all of this feels like a complicated mess.
Issues like this actually make me marvel what Marvel will do sooner or later. I’ve been an avid Marvel supporter over the previous couple of years, notably with a few of their releases, from a private favourite of mine, Agatha: All Alongside, to their newest launch, The Implausible 4: First Steps. However recasting these characters may be the place I draw the road.
Solely time will inform. I’m certain we’ll see extra within the subsequent Avengers movie. Till then, I’ll take pleasure in my MCU film marathons and dwell within the good outdated days of easy motion pictures and fewer multiverses.