Why Marvel Phase 5 Movies & Shows Keep Getting Delayed (Report)

By Nathan Johnson Updated:
Daredevil, Deadpool, Nick Fury, Marvel Studios logo

The reason that recent films in the MCU’s Phase 5 have suffered delays was reportedly revealed.

Since the announcement of the slate of Phase 5 films and their expected release dates, multiple delays have followed. More of the upcoming delays were recently attached to the Disney+ shows as some that previously had release windows are now said to be "coming soon." Unfortunately, it seems the films will be affected by these delays just as much.

It was reported in the past that Disney and Marvel Studios looked at the release schedule of Phase 5 and began "re-evaluating the future releases" in an attempt to make the quality of the films better. 

Why MCU Projects Are Being Delayed

Marvel Studios Phase 5
Marvel

According to a recent report from The Cosmic Circus, Marvel Studios has a reason for delaying so many projects in Phase 5.

The report detailed that the delays are due to Marvel Studios wanting to maintain a certain quality in its films, and mainly wanting to prioritize making the films and series the right way instead of pushing them out prematurely.

For reference, The Marvels recently suffered a delay (getting pushed from July to November 2023), and it was revealed that the delay likely occurred so that the visual effects could be improved in post-production.

Most recently, What If...? Season 2's premiere got pushed from its Early 2023 window to an unknown date.

It is also important to remember the number of projects Marvel Studios plans to release in the coming years and the time it takes to correctly develop a film from pre-production through post. 

Do Delays Help or Harm Marvel?

With a franchise as successful and popular as the MCU, a certain level of expectations is always present from the fans.

The studio proved with the Infinity Saga that it could tell a huge interconnected story over the course of a decade, so the benchmark was already set extremely high.

Now the MCU is more ambitious than ever, but more releases don't necessarily mean better quality.

Marvel Studios released eight total projects throughout 2022, but more than one of those received fairly harsh criticism and were generally deemed to be lesser than their MCU predecessors.

If the MCU does in fact slow down and use delays to give VFX studios more time to create a better product, then many fans that had issues with Phase 4's visual effects would be pleased to see a project that's more carefully created. 

Marvel may not release four movies per year going forward, but it will likely be worth it in the long run.

- About The Author: Nathan Johnson
Nathan is a writer at The Direct where he covers Star Wars, the MCU, and DC news. He joined The Direct in April 2021 and currently writes news and feature articles about all three brands mentioned above, but his main specialty is his knowledge about anything and everything Star Wars.