AVENGERS: SECRET WARS Will “Reset,” Not Reboot, the MCU, Acording to Kevin Feige
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is about to undergo one of its biggest shake-ups yet, and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has made it clear thatAvengers: Secret Wars isn’t wiping the slate clean with a reboot, it’s resetting the board for the future.
If you’re familiar with the 2015 Secret Wars comic by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribić, you know where this could be heading.
That story opened with a chilling line: “The multiverse is dying. Only two universes remain. Today, earths collide.” What followed was a massive incursion event between Earth-616 and Earth-1610 that obliterated both realities, forcing Marvel’s heroes and villains into an entirely new existence.
It ended with an epitaph: “The Marvel Universe 1961 — 2015. The Ultimate Universe 2000 — 2015.” Could a similar moment close out the MCU as we know it?
With The Fantastic Four: First Steps arriving on July 25th to kick off Phase 6, and Avengers: Doomsday (2026) leading into Avengers: Secret Wars (2027), Feige recently spoke to press about what comes next for a franchise that’s already spanned 37 movies and raked in over $32 billion.
“We’re utilizing [Secret Wars] not just to round out the stories we’ve been telling post-Endgame, just as importantly — and you can look at the Secret Wars comics for where that takes you — it very, very much sets us up for the future. Endgame, literally, was about endings. Secret Wars is about is about beginnings.”
That’s a big statement, especially considering what the comics did. In Hickman’s saga, Doctor Doom seizes godlike power, builds Battleworld from the wreckage of countless universes, and rules as God Emperor Doom.
By the end, Reed Richards defeats him and restores the multiverse, ushering in an “All-New, All-Different” Marvel era. That reset allowed characters like Miles Morales, Old Man Logan, and legacy heroes such as Jane Foster’s Thor and Sam Wilson’s Captain America to coexist alongside classic icons.
Feige hinted the MCU is heading down a similar path. But he’s adamant this isn’t a start-over:
“Reboot is a scary word. Reboot can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. Reset, singular timeline — we’re thinking along those lines.”
That “reset” means a fresh chance to integrate other characters like the X-Men into the MCU’s primary timeline, which is something fans have been waiting for since Disney acquired Fox.
Feige confirmed as much, revealing that the X-Men reboot directed by Jake Schreier will launch the post-Secret Wars era, officially recasting Marvel’s mutants after their final appearances in Doomsday and Secret Wars.
He also teased that other icons could eventually be recast, including Iron Man:
“I think it’s hard for anybody to do that when an actor has done such a great role. ‘How are they going to ever replace Sean Connery [as James Bond],’ right?”
So yes, Robert Downey Jr. might someday pass the torch… again.
Phase 6 kicks off with The Fantastic Four: First Steps on July 25, 2025, followed by Spider-Man: Brand New Day (July 31, 2026), Avengers: Doomsday (December 18, 2026), and Avengers: Secret Wars closing it out on December 17, 2027.
After that? A brand-new MCU, built on two decades of storytelling, ready for its next chapter.
Via: CB