The Coronavirus pandemic has been more devastating than anyone could have possibly imagined, impacting nearly the entire world population for the last few months. Jobs have been lost, all non-essential businesses have been shut down, and orders are in place for people to stay in their homes unless absolutely necessary coming from every major government across the globe.
One of the largest industries affected has been the world of entertainment, with movies and tv shows forced to halt production and networks forced to play mostly old programming for the time being. For Marvel fans, this is especially devastating considering Marvel Studios is in the process of planning its most expansive slate of films and TV shows in its 12-year history. Very little progress on the production side of any of these projects has been made since early 2020, and more news is suggesting it could be quite a long time until these productions go back to their normal daily operations.
NEWS
In news arriving from a report from the Los Angeles TImes via Comicbook.com, Blumhouse founder Jason Blum has suggested that major productions such as those from Marvel Studios won't be able to safely begin or resume filming until 2021. The highly-acclaimed producer gave these quotes regarding the re-opening of Hollywood during this pandemic:
I do think smaller productions will start sooner, but I don’t think we’re going to see Marvel movies shooting, or big expensive movies, until 2021.
WHAT THIS MEANS
These quotes could mean disastrous consequences for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its fans, although there is still nothing definitive on how long quarantines and work stoppages will continue to last. Marvel Studios, along with every other major studio, has already delayed the beginning of Phase 4. Marvel employees are still able to work remotely from home on projects, but nearly every MCU production set for theatrical release and streaming release on Disney+ still has at least a small amount of filming to complete. It will be some time before concrete news comes regarding the go ahead for productions to continue, and all the world can do is stay optimistic and take the necessary precautions to curve the spread of this devastating disease.
Currently, Marvel is well underway with preparations for Phase 4 of the MCU. Black Widow and The Eternals are both in post-production, set for theatrical release in November 2020 and February 2021. Filming has been delayed for 2021's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, as have the complete productions for both Sony and Marvel's untitled Spider-Man 3 along with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
With its theatrical release being pushed to February 2022, Thor: Love and Thunder will have some more time to revise its script under the supervision of Taika Waititi. The new era of Marvel TV on Disney+ has been delayed, with filming incomplete for all three shows currently in production (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, WandaVision, and Loki). No new release dates have been set for any of these mini-series.
