Earlier this year, The Walt Disney Company Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger shared a plan to reduce Marvel Cinematic Universe content on both the big and small screen. And while the aim was not unwarranted–the studio has struggled to retain audiences in recent years–and, in fact, welcomed by many, it seems that the Mouse House has backtracked, or at least taken longer to get going than some may have thought.
When WandaVision debuted on Disney+ in January 2021 it had been 13 years since the MCU began. Since then, the MCU has grown exponentially on the small screen with multiple new shows dropping year after year. From The Falcon and the Winter Soldier to Loki, What If…? to She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Kevin Feige’s franchise has welcomed many faces and expanded on existing storylines via the small screen.
That said, while new Marvel content is often wanted, it was clear that audiences were beginning to be increasingly turned off by the sheer volume of content coming to Disney+. That, teamed with an apparent lack of quality, caused Bob Iger to step in. In May 2024, the returning Disney CEO revealed a new plan to curb the declining quality of Marvel shows by reducing the quantity.
“We’re slowly going to decrease volume and go to probably about two TV series a year instead of what had become four and reduce our film output from maybe four a year to two, or a maximum of three,” Iger said during the company’s quarterly earnings call earlier this year (via Variety). “And we’re working hard on what that path is.”
The key word here is “slowly,” however, when looking at the movie slate, those changes can already be seen. Up until a few days ago when Spider-Man 4 was added to the 2026 slate in a previously removed July slot, Disney and Marvel Studios had three MCU movie openings locked in across 2025, 2026, 2027, and 2028. Over the four years, Marvel will seemingly release a film in February, May, and November, replicating the schedule from 2023.
Related: She-Hulk Recast for Marvel’s New Avengers Project After Season 2 Canceled
When it comes to Disney+, which, arguably, more people had concerns with, it seems the idea to get to two shows a year is out of the window. Sure, Iger said they were going to “slowly” decrease the volume, but 2026 will spike with six new MCU releases on the streaming service, as per the latest surprise announcement.
To put that into perspective, in 2023, just Secret Invasion, Loki Season 2, and What If…? Season 2 debuted on Disney+, while this year Echo, X-Men ’97, the currently airing Agatha All Along, and What If…? Season 3 (coming on December 22) were and will be added to the service. From three to four and now to six, the Disney+ show volume is actually increasing.
That said, a lot of the projects were in some form of development prior to Iger’s comments being made earlier this year, and it may be that 2025 is the last time fans see such a large volume of shows drop onto the Disney+ streamer. In terms of what audiences can expect next year, Marvel Studios will release three new live-action series as well as three additional Marvel Animation shows.
In January, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (formerly Spider-Man: Freshman Year) will begin airing, followed by Eyes of Wakanda and Marvel Zombies in August and October, respectively. As for live-action, the highly-anticipated return of Charlie Cox’s Daredevil will come with the release of Daredevil: Born Again in March, with Ironheart coming in June, before Andrew Guest’s Wonder Man rounds out the year in December.
The six 2025 shows will complement the three feature films released next year. Captain America: Brave New World opens in February, with Thunderbolts* wrapping up Phase Five in May. Matt Shakman’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps will launch Phase Six in July.
With Blade now officially off the schedule and Dan Trachtenberg’s Predator: Badlands (2025) taking its November slot, Marvel fans will return to the movie theaters for an untitled February 2026 movie before the Russo brothers’ Avengers: Doomsday–the fifth in the box office behemoth Avengers franchise–opens in May. One-half of the filmmaking sibling duo, Joe Russo, said recently that both Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027) will be “really explosive.”
Related: Report: Captain Marvel Will Become “Leading Avenger” in Upcoming ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
As recently announced, Tom Holland will return to the role of Peter Parker in Spider-Man 4. Filming on the project commences next year, and the movie is expected to open on July 24, 2026.
Changes are afoot in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and whether it is clear or not, the superhero studio seems to have a better handle on what films and TV shows are being released, when, and where.
Watch the Marvel Television trailer here:
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