Several MCU movies have already started to come into view for a potential Phase 7 release.
Despite it only feeling like yesterday that the Avengers took on the mad titan Thanos in the epic two-part finale to Marvel Studios' Infinity Saga, the MCU is already rounding the bend on this next chapter of super-powered storytelling.
This will culminate in the upcoming Multiversal Avengers duology, Avengers: Doomsay and Secret Wars. However, what the franchise looks like beyond that and what specifically will occupy its big and small screen slate remain massive questions heading into what will become known as MCU Phase 7.
What MCU Movies Will Be Released After Avengers: Secret Wars
As of writing, the last officially dated MCU movie with a title on the Marvel Studios slate is Avengers: Secret Wars (coming May 7, 2027); however, that does not mean the franchise will come to an end with the upcoming Multiversal mega-blockbuster.
With several projects floating in the ether at Marvel Studios, a few names have started to bubble to the surface as potential Phase 7 titles, coming after Secret Wars' 2027 release date.
See below for a full list of expected MCU Phase 7 movies:
Blade
This one might come as a surprise to fans, but Blade is looking more and more like it is going to be one of Marvel Studios' post-Secret Wars projects. In early March 2025, insider Daniel Richtman shared on his Patreon that he heard as such, positing that Mahershala Ali's vampire-slaying epic is now being eyed for Phase 7:
"I hear 'Blade' is now a post 'Secret Wars' project. Take this as you will."
This comes after years of production hiccups for the MCU film. Originally announced at Comic-Con 2019 with Ali attached to star, the Blade movie has now gone through two different director departures, several bouts of full-scale rewrites, and four release date delays (with the latest taking it off the Marvel Studios slate entirely).
Despite calls that perhaps Marvel should cut its losses and cancel the movie, the studio remains adamant that it is going to happen. The last fans heard from the red brand on Blade, Marvel Studios Head of Streaming Brad Winderbaum told audiences in September 2024 that it was still in the works:
"I think that it goes back to the filmmaker's intent. The horror on screen in 'Agatha' is going to be different than the horror on screen in 'Marvel Zombies,' is going to be different than the horror on screen in 'Blade.' It was different than the horror on screen in 'Moon Knight.' It really depends on the vision of the filmmaker on what horror cues you're pulling from. And that's not just unique to horror. It's unique to any genre we're playing with. Obviously, there's many different ways to tell a story."
After years of work, Ali remains attached to the project despite all the turmoil behind the scenes. Given how long it has been in development, this could be one of the first Phase 7 movies to see the light of day. However, it would also not be all that surprising if even more date-pushing drama were to delay the film further.
Black Panther 3
Black Panther 3 has been one of the worst-kept Marvel Studios secrets of recent times. While the movie remains without an official announcement, it continues to be talked about by just about everyone who would be involved in the Wakandan threequel.
The Black Panther 3 ball really started rolling late last year, as Gladiator 2 star Denzel Washington teased that he has a role in the unannounced MCU movie. He has since apologized for talking about the movie perhaps too early, but since then, Marvel has started to heavily insinuate that a third Black Panther is happening.
Simply because it has not yet been announced and dated is why it would make sense for Black Panther 3 to be one of the first movies out of the gate post-Secret Wars. That, and the fact there have been rumors swirling a new T'Challa may be introduced in Secret Wars who could potentially lead the threequel.
However, there is a chance that it could come sooner. Insider Alex Perez of The Cosmis Circus teased in a March 2025 Q&A that there is a chance "Marvel was eyeing [its empty] November 2026 film to be a sequel," which Black Panther 3 could potentially slot into as a Phase 6 film:
"Currently, we have 'Spider-Man 4,' coming out on July 31st, 2024, and then we have an untitled film coming on November 6th, 2026. When speaking to sources, Marvel was eyeing the November 2026 film to be a sequel; the two options being 'Black Panther 3' and 'Shang-Chi 2,' with 'Black Panther 3' being the more likely of the duo, but that could have changed."
He also noted he believes Washington's character could be "a villain" in the upcoming movie, or potentially play "a Black Panther Variant" like "King T’Chanda, T’Challa’s grandfather, the Black Panther from WWII."
Black Panther 3 hitting Phase 6 is not an impossibility, but it is highly unlikely. If it were pushing ahead for a 2026 release, production would have to get started sometime before the end of the year, and fans would have likely heard about that by now. That is why a Phase 7 release feels a little more likely.
X-Men
While fans have gotten a taste of the mutant experience here and there in the MCU over the last couple of years, there has been a growing hunger for that first full-scale Marvel Studios X-Men movie. And one is coming, it is just a matter of when.
According to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, the X-Men will factor heavily in the MCU post-Secret Wars. Speaking with Omlette and D23 Brazil 2024 (via Game Rant), Feige noted, "Heading into Secret Wars, we already know very well what the story is going to be," and "the X-Men are an important part of that future:"
When we were preparing for 'Avengers: Endgame' years ago, it was a matter of getting to the grand finale of our narrative, and then having to start all over again after that. This time, heading into 'Secret Wars,' we already know very well what the story is going to be up until then and after that. The X-Men are an important part of that future."
Long have fans speculated that the next chapter in the MCU story—starting in Phase 7—could be dubbed the Mutant Saga, and these comments from Feige perhaps indicate that is the plan.
The MCU X-Men project has reportedly been in the works for over four years at Marvel Studios, with the first mention of it coming from Feige in January 2021. While, since then, there has not been a lot of movement on X-Men publicly, the wheels have started to look like they are turning behind the scenes.
Reports from February 2025 indicated that the X-Men reboot is getting set for production, with shooting supposedly taking place "next year," according to insider Jeff Sneider:
"I'm now hearing 'X-Men' will begin shooting next year for a 2027 release. That means official casting news likely coming in the next few months... along with a director announcement."
This came with potential casting reports for the movie, including mention that star of the upcoming Freakier Friday film Julia Butters is being eyed to play Kitty Pryde. If production is, in fact, set to start sometime in 2026, then X-Men could very well be one of the first new movies for Phase 7, starting the post-Secret Wars era in style.
Shang-Chi 2
Ever since Simu Liu's Shang-Chi butterfly kicked his way into fans' hearts with his 2021 MCU debut film, fans have been itching for a sequel. Like Black Panther 3, Shang-Chi 2 has long been an open secret at Marvel Studios.
The film remains off the MCU's official slate, but it is almost certainly happening. There is too much talk about it for it not to be.
Shang-Chi 2 is another movie that was mentioned by The Cosmic Circus' Alex Perez as a sequel Marvel Studios want to make happen as soon as possible, meaning a Phase 7 debut (if not potentially sooner) is likely.
One of the biggest names touting the existence of a sequel basically since the first Shang-Chi movie arrived in theaters has been Shang-Chi himself, Simu Liu. Back in 2023, he told fans online, "[I] was told it would follow [Avengers 5]," but "that keeps pushing back due to circumstances beyond my control:"
Q: "What’s the status of 'Shang Chi 2?'"
Liu: "Was told it would follow 'Avengers' but that keeps pushing back due to circumstances beyond my control :( hope to have more concrete news to share soon."
Of course, that was before several big changes came for the MCU slate, including the revamp of Avengers 5, changing it from The Kang Dynasty into Doomsday, and Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton being tapped to helm the upcoming Spider-Man 4.
More recently, Liu told Screen Rant he "[speaks] to [Cretton] often," and they both have "excitement to make this film:"
"I don't think anything's been impacted. I think we're all... I speak to Destin often and there's nothing coming out of both of us but excitement to make this film."
With Cretton now tied up in making Tom Holland's next MCU web-slinging adventure, it will likely be at least a year before Shang Chi 2 gets in front of cameras, setting it up perfectly for a Phase 7 or 8 release.
The MCU's next movie, Thunderbolts*, comes to theaters worldwide on May 2.
