The Marvel Cinematic Universe is easily the most recognizable fictional superhero universe to have won audiences’ hearts all over the world, or perhaps the entire universe. After the franchise released the first MCU film, Iron Man (2008), it was the beginning of something significant for American filmmaking. The franchise has come a long way since then and the Marvel family is ever-growing, even after fans’ favorite stars officially wrapped up their legendary roles. There are still an array of characters in Marvel Comics eagerly waiting to appear in the MCU and already-introduced ones who have more stories to share. The eagerly anticipated Captain Marvel (2019) sequel, The Marvels, was officially confirmed by Marvel Studios in July 2019, and production on the movie got underway in early 2020. The movie is also a continuation of the Ms. Marvel Disney+ series.
The 33rd film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Marvels, is set to be a part of Phase Five of the MCU after Black Panther: Wakanda Forever closed out Phase Four with a highly successful box office run. More of the fresh talent introduced to the Marvel universe, including Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel, and Monica Rambeau, will appear in the movie, and here’s everything we know about it.
Editor’s Note: This article was updated on October 23.
Does ‘The Marvels’ Have a Release Date?
The movie’s release date was first set to be July 8, 2022, then postponed to November 11, 2022, and then to February 17, 2023, which again got swapped with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s release. The production of both movies was going well, but Ant-Man was further along, so the studio decided to switch the release dates. The Marvels was then scheduled to release in theaters on July 28, 2023, but was pushed back for a fourth time to November 10, 2023, likely due to Kevin Feige’s plan to give more time between each new entry in the MCU. The Marvels is also going to be the shortest film in the MCU yet, with a runtime of just 105 minutes.
While The Marvels would have faced some substantial competition if it kept its July release with films like Barbie and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1, it will now be entering a packed November as it’ll be released the weekend between Dune: Part Two and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Marvel Studios also unveiled a teaser poster for the film on Twitter alongside the new fall release date.
Watch the Trailers for ‘The Marvels’
A select few got their first look at The Marvels at D23 last year, and you can read a description of what was shown here. The rest of the world got to watch a fantastic teaser trailer on April 11th, 2023. Here, we see that Kamala’s powers are making her switch places with Carol Danvers and Monica Rambeau. You can watch the teaser below.
Set to “Intergalactic” by The Beastie Boys, The Marvels teaser offers us a fun look at the film. Somehow when Captain Marvel, Rambeau, and Ms. Marvel use their powers, they switch places, leading to Kamala constantly finding herself in terrifying situations. We see more of Nick Fury, Kamala’s family, and Goose the Flerken! While it was only a glimpse at what’s to come, The Marvels flexed its comedic muscles and charm. The official trailer for The Marvels was released on July 20, 2023. The video puts a spotlight on the film’s villain, and it also looks like Kamala’s bracelet has a central part to play in the events of the movie. See the trailer right here:
On August 31, a journey to The Marvels video was revealed, showcasing the road Monica, Carol, and Kamala took to get to this point. Check out the video down below.
On September 12, we got a new 30-second teaser for The Marvels encouraging audiences to see the film in IMAX. See it in the player below:
Marvel Studios released a behind-the-scenes featurette for the film on October 10. We get a chance to hear from Brie Larson and director Nia DaCosta on the filming process and their excitement for audiences to see The Marvels.
Ten days later, on October 20, we got yet another teaser for The Marvels via the Marvel Studios X (Twitter) account. It’s a high-energy, 30-second video that shows our heroes preparing to take on their mysterious new enemy. Watch it below and stay tuned for more.
Who’s In the Cast of ‘The Marvels’?
The Marvels will unite an unlikely superhero female trio. Brie Larson will return to the role of Carol Danvers, better known as Captain Marvel, as the half-Kree, half-human interplanetary super strong Avenger. Iman Vellani will also be returning to her role as Kamala Khan or Ms. Marvel. Kamala is a young mutant from Jersey City who idolizes Carol Danvers and has the power to harness cosmic energy and forge structures of hard light. Kamala Khan’s family will also be featured in the film, with Saagar Shaikh, Zenobia Shroff, and Mohan Kapur set to reprise their respective parts from Ms. Marvel (2022) as Khan’s older brother Aamir, mother Muneeba, and father Yusuf.
In her role as Monica Rambeau, a S.W.O.R.D. agent with the ability to absorb energy, Teyonah Parris will also be starring in the movie. Monica is the daughter of Maria Rambeau, a friend and fellow United States Air Force pilot who served with Danvers. The Marvels is expected to go beyond what was established in WandaVision (2021) to explore Rambeau’s character further. While the character has used the names Captain Marvel and Spectrum in the comics, The Marvels will see Monica going by the codename Photon. Monica certainly has the most emotional connection to Carol among the three leads as Carol was almost a parent figure in her childhood. Director Nia DaCosta has previously talked about how Monica is in a rather “wounded” headspace when the story of the film kicks off. Here’s what DaCosta said:
“For a child to lose their aunt, and then to lose their mother – although she wasn’t a child when her mother passed away – [she’s left to] feel like she has no family. But then to see that her aunt has been popping to Earth every now and then, and off in space doing [stuff] for a bunch of other people and also not being able to reconcile any of that because she’s never around — that can really create a wound. Monica definitely has a wound that she finally gets to address in this film.”
At D23, it was also confirmed that Samuel L. Jackson would reprise his role as Nick Fury, the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and as the post-credits scene of Spider-Man: Far From Home revealed, Nick Fury has been secretly working with the Skrulls in outer space, and we saw further development of that storyline in the Disney+ series, Secret Invasion. Park Seo-joon has been cast in an unspecified role, but fans believe he may be portraying Korean-American adolescent hero Amadeus Cho, also known as Brawn. Zawe Ashton has been cast as a villain called Dar-Benn, a Kree with a grudge against Carol.
What Do We Know About the Plot of ‘The Marvels’?
Marvel Studios has released a synopsis for the film that reads:
In Marvel Studios’ ‘The Marvels,’ Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol’s estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. Together, this unlikely trio must team up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as ‘The Marvels.’
The plot of the movie will reveal the connection between the three and bring them together to figure out the mystery. Even though Carol and Monica had known each other since the first movie, when Rambeau was still a child, it is still unclear how they are related to one another. The film will bring together these young superheroes as they defeat the new supervillain. What we do know is that the plot is set off by an item introduced in Ms. Marvel, specifically, a second bangle like the one that activated Kamala’s powers. This bangle is used by the villain Dar-Benn, who is a character from the comics but director Nia DaCosta has made it clear that the MCU version of Dar-Benn is quite different from the comics. All we really know about this version is that Dar-Benn is a Kree imperialist who hates Carol for some reason.
When Is ‘The Marvels’ Set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Timeline?
With how expansive this franchise has gotten, the MCU timeline can be tricky to keep track of. The Marvels will follow the events after Ms. Marvel’s story, developing right from the end scenes of the series. The film will also be serving as a sequel to Captain Marvel but considering the significant time difference between the two movies, it’s probably good as a standalone watch as well.
When and Where Was ‘The Marvels’ Filmed?
By February 2021, pre-production work on the movie had begun. To record aerial footage, establishing shots, and green screen plates, second unit filming under the working title Goat Rodeo started on April 9, 2021, in Jersey City, New Jersey. Principal photography on the movie reportedly commenced around August 10 at Longcross Studios in Longcross, Surrey, and Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England. Beginning on August 27, The Marvels was reported to be filmed in Tropea, Italy, including along the Tyrrhenian Sea coast. May 2022 marked the formal end of the movie’s filming.
Who’s Making ‘The Marvels’?
Candyman director Nia DaCosta was chosen to helm the film in August 2020. It’s worth noting that DaCosta is Marvel’s first Black female director. The film is produced by Kevin Feige, with Matthew Jenkins and Mary Livanos serving as executive producers. Cara Brower serves as the Production designer, Sean Bobbitt as the cinematographer, and Catrin Hedström handles the editing. DaCosta addressed her approach to the film in an interview with Total Film, where she also commented on superhero fatigue:
I think superhero fatigue absolutely exists. The biggest difference from the other MCU movies to date is that it’s really wacky, and silly. The worlds we go to in this movie are worlds unlike others you’ve seen in the MCU. Bright worlds that you haven’t seen before.
After working as a staff writer on Marvel’s WandaVision, Megan McDonnell was hired to pen the screenplay for the film. Laura Karpman, who had previously written the music for the first seasons of the MCU shows What If…? and Ms. Marvel, was hired to compose the soundtrack for the movie in January 2022. Marvel Studios serves as the production company, and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures will distribute the film.
