Amidst reports of Marvel Studios' offscreen drama, MCU fans are now learning what went wrong with Secret Invasion.
Despite being Marvel's first "crossover event" series, its compelling comic book inspiration, and an all-star cast led by Samuel L. Jackson, Secret Invasion was found to be directionless, confusing, and wasteful with characters, becoming the first MCU project to receive a "Rotten" score from both audiences and critics.
Months after the Disney+ series' frustrating finale, news of what went on behind the scenes is now being revealed.
Secret Invasion's Offscreen Drama Disclosed
Via The Hollywood Reporter, a Marvel insider explained the cause for Secret Invasion's preproduction drama.
Due to the pandemic and the MCU's increasing number of Disney+ shows, Marvel Studios chose to bring in new blood to help with the strain, which directly affected Nick Fury's Phase 5 show.
For instance, writer and producer Kyle Bradstreet was replaced after working on Secret Invasion for a year, making way for writers and directors Brian Tucker, Thomas Bezucha, and Ali Selim.
While the behind the scenes details are unclear, Secret Invasion's troubled preproduction actually crippled production in the summer of 2022 thanks to factions, power struggles, and "weeks of people not getting along, and it erupted."
As a result, Marvel Studios tapped Jonathan Schwartz, a member of its famous "Parliament," to right the ship as Secret Invasion was about to lose some of its stars due to filming delays and scheduling conflicts.
By September 2022, Secret Invasion's team had been overhauled. One of its directors, Thomas Bezucha, left due to prior commitments, and Marvel executive Chris Gary was reassigned and is reportedly out the door when his contract expires.
Can Fans Trust Marvel Studios After Secret Invasion?
While it's true that Marvel Studios released several successful films and Disney+ shows since the start of Phase 4, still, few could deny that Marvel Studios was off its game.
But due to the pandemic and its challenges, coupled with the introduction of MCU streaming series, and Disney CEO woes, Marvel Studios' missteps were excusable, for a while.
However, Secret Invasion's poor quality, atop Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania shock and news of the red brand's rejection of the television model for its television shows, was what proved to audiences that the real problem was internal.
In the same report detailing Secret Invasion's behind-the-scenes drama, Marvel claims to have (finally) recognized these problems.
In addition to scrapping and redoing Daredevil: Born Again, Marvel Studios is hiring actual showrunners and executives solely dedicated to television, as well as allowing writers more creative control.
Yes, Secret Invasion was a huge disappointment and clearly a frustrating experience for its creatives and crew. But if it accomplished anything good for fans and the MCU brand, at least it proved to the powers that be what needs to change.
The real question now is whether these adjustments will come too late and how the MCU will incorporate its subpar series into its new vision.
All episodes of Secret Invasion are available to stream on Disney+.
