Marvel Studios has had plenty of wins and losses since entering the streaming game on Disney+, and one executive has some thoughts.
While the MCU faced criticism for Secret Invasion and She-Hulk, it has also had some major successes on Disney+ such as Loki, Moon Knight, and, based on early reviews, Daredevil: Born Again appears set for success.
Marvel Television Is Making Changes After Disney+ Criticism
During an interview with Radio Times, Marvel Television boss Brad Winderbaum responded to the backlash to previous Disney+ series as Daredevil: Born Again prepares to swing onto the streamer.
Winderbaum noted its goal moving forward will be to "only proceed with things that we think can last for multiple seasons:"
"With Marvel, there's always a little bit more of a spotlight on us because people are paying attention to what we have in development. But the goal is to only proceed with things that we think can last for multiple seasons, a story that can sustain."
The Marvel Studios veteran continued to explain his hopes to "create television for television" that may be "more traditional than [they] thought at first:"
"You have to take risks and see what works and what succeeds. I'll say we learned a lot and my hope is that we can create television for television that's perhaps a little bit more traditional than we thought at first...
He noted how future shows might "come out for a longer period of time, season over season," and could even have "an annual release schedule."
The goal is, according to Winderbaum, to have fans "living with characters for a long period" and make content for television that is "different from big event movies" that are made for the grand theatrical experience:
"Something that feels more comfortable where you're living with characters for a long period of time and more like a television show that makes it different from big event movies you can only see on a giant screen that are worthy of a cinematic experience like that."
How Marvel Studios Changed Its Disney+ Strategy For the Better
In the MCU's early days on Disney+, the focus seemed to be on limited series and not multi-season plans. Shows such as Moon Knight, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Secret Invasion faced criticism for not adapting to television's episodic format, and instead delivering movies chopped up into six episodes.
This direction and the lack of future planning have made it difficult for many of the MCU's Disney+ shows to run for multiple seasons. Up until now, Loki has been the studio's only live-action affair to receive a second season, although Daredevil: Born Again has already been confirmed to return for Season 2 next year.
Reports last year confirmed Marvel Studios was abandoning its original Disney+ plan of developing series in the same way as movies. The original method saw a head writer leading the scripting stage before passing control to directors for production, but now, a showrunner will oversee development the whole way.
Brad Winderbaum explained how this strategy shift will help improve Marvel Studios' TV shows during an interview in January. The Marvel Television boss revealed the studio will develop "a lot of shows now simultaneously" with "multiple pilots and show bibles" before deciding what to actually make.
In an early showcase of this new strategy, Deadline reported last month that Marvel Television had paused development on three Disney+ shows. Much to the disappointment of many, this meant Nova, Strange Academy, and Terror Inc. wouldn't be moving forward, at least for now.
While Daredevil: Born Again will benefit from this strategic pivot, this year's Ironheart and Wonder Man were filmed before such changes were implemented, meaning they could suffer from the same problems as other early Disney+ series.
As both Agatha All Along and Daredevil: Born Again have found success under this new strategy, the future of the MCU on Disney+ looks bright. And with Vision Quest around the corner for next year, one has to wonder if Winderbaum's comments indicate that could run for multiple seasons.
Marvel Studios' next Disney+ series will be Daredevil: Born Again, which premieres on Tuesday, March 4 and will debut new episodes weekly.
