This summer, Marvel fans will finally be able to assemble at Avengers Campus at Disney's California Adventure park at the Disneyland Resort in California.
At this Marvel-themed land, guests can snack on shawarma, sling webs with Spidey at WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure, dine at the Ant-Man-inspired Pym Test Kitchen, explore the multiverse at Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum, and even encounter the Dora Milaje.
While Avengers Campus is sure to be a mecca for Marvel fans, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige is already looking to what the land could offer in the future.
KEVIN FEIGE TALKS THE MCU'S ROLE AT AVENGERS CAMPUS
During the land's official opening ceremony, Kevin Feige touched on how Avengers Campus is the only place on earth where fans can "see a full quinjet without any visual effects."
"Over the past year and a half, we’ve walked through this campus numerous times, but it was always a work-in-progress construction site, which as a fan, is cool to see and be a part of. But just like our movies or any of our shows, it’s meaningless until an audience sees it. So this campus doesn’t truly come alive until the guests are invited inside, and I really can’t wait to see what we have in store for you. For one thing, this is the only place in the entire world where you can see a full quintet without any visual effects whatsoever."
Avengers Campus is the first-ever Marvel-themed land, originally slated to open in July 2020 before the COVID-related closure of the Disneyland Resort.
Understandably, Feige, as well as the Disney Imagineers, are eager to see how fans receive this truly unique Marvel experience.
Feige also discussed how Marvel sets used for films and Disney+ series are temporary.
But in Avengers Campus, they "can be permanent" and fans can finally "experience these places."
"For our films, for our shows, we build these elaborate sets, but they’re temporary, and they only exist on screen. But here in a Disney Theme Park, our sets can be permanent, and now in Avengers Campus, all of our fans can walk around and experience these places, engage with the characters, be a part of these stories in real life."
Feige also indicated that the land will actually change and grow with the MCU, saying fans can "watch one of our shows on Disney+" and "you'll see something from that show right here..."
"And one of the things that is most exciting to me is that Avengers Campus will never be completed. It’s a living, breathing space that will grow and evolve as our cinematic universe grows and evolves with new props and new characters assembling here at Avengers HQ. You can literally watch one of our shows on Disney+, perhaps the next time you come to Avengers Campus, you’ll see something from that show right here in California Adventure in Anaheim. Our studio’s filmmakers, artists, costume designers, and production designers have worked in lock-step with the Imagineers and the Parks team to create so much of what you see here tonight."
A CANVAS FOR THE FUTURE OF THE MCU?
For fans of the MCU, what makes Avengers Campus exciting is that it wasn't strictly created by Disney's Imagineers, but in conjunction with Marvel Studios.
While the references, Easter Eggs, and that Marvel touch are sure to be on point and true to MCU storytelling, Feige's words about how the land "will grow and evolve as our cinematic universe grows and evolves" is particularly intriguing.
It sounds as if Marvel intends for Avengers Campus to be a sort of physical canvas for MCU storytelling and what the studio has coming down the pipeline.
The opening ceremony that featured Feige also included Anthony Mackie introducing his Captain America, along with a quick post-credits appearance from Simu Liu who stars in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings later this year.
While Avengers Campus is a new way to experience the MCU, it sounds as if Marvel intends to keep it fresh and up to date as the studio moves deeper into its Phase 4 story.
