After a run of underperforming releases and an overwhelming flood of content, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige has officially confirmed the MCU is pulling back. The future of the franchise will still be big — but not quite as bloated.
Speaking during a recent press roundtable, Feige addressed what many fans and industry watchers have suspected for a while: Marvel overdid it. From aggressive Disney+ expansion to ambitious theatrical slates, the studio’s post-Endgame era has delivered quantity over clarity. Now, it’s time for course correction.
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“Making Less”: Fewer Films, Fewer Shows, Smaller Budgets
Feige described the studio’s new direction as “making less” — a shift that includes scaling back both movies and streaming series.
“Making two or three movies a year, some years it will be one, some years it will be three,” Feige said (as quoted by Deadline), adding that Marvel will also be scaling Disney+ output to “a single live-action show a year.”
Feige acknowledged the studio’s pride in its experimentation — citing WandaVision and Loki as creative wins — but admitted the sheer scale was part of the problem. “It’s the expansion that is certainly what devalued [the output],” he said.
In addition to reducing volume, Marvel is also reining in costs. Projects like Deadpool & Wolverine, Captain America: Brave New World, and Thunderbolts — along with the upcoming Fantastic Four — were all reportedly produced for up to a third less than films made just two years prior.
Feige said Marvel has been exploring new production strategies, even consulting with the team behind The Creator to learn how that film achieved high-end visuals on a tighter budget.
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What Went Wrong Post-Endgame
Looking back at Marvel’s post-Endgame strategy, Feige said the studio leaned into experimentation — but lacked a clear vision for what came next. “Coming out of Avengers: Endgame, the plan was ‘What do you do with this success?’” he explained. “So much of our storytelling had been built for that finale… Thinking about the future was purely about, ‘Well, what do we do with this success now? Do we do more of the same? I guess.’”
“If you take success and don’t experiment with it, and don’t risk with it, then it’s not worth it,” he added. That mentality led to projects like Eternals, which Feige described as a bold move with a lesser-known IP and a unique creative voice in Chloé Zhao.
But the interconnected storytelling between Disney+ series and theatrical films didn’t always land. Feige cited The Marvels as a wake-up call — a sequel to a billion-dollar hit that faltered at the box office. Many potential viewers, he said, were unfamiliar with key characters introduced on streaming: “There was that residual effect of [audiences going], ‘I guess I had to have seen these other shows to understand who this is?’”
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A More Streamlined MCU Ahead
Feige now says the studio is focusing on “jumping-on points,” with upcoming entries like Fantastic Four: First Steps and Avengers: Doomsday designed to stand more on their own. “Anything that is considered a jumping-off point is good,” he said. “That’s how the comics have kept going for 85 years. I hope that’s how this, our 37th movie, keeps going.”
As for the idea of superhero fatigue, Feige doesn’t buy it. He pointed to DC Studios’ Superman — passing USD$406 million worldwide at the time of writing — as proof that audiences still show up when a film resonates. “Look at Superman, it’s clearly not superhero fatigue.”
The message is clear: Marvel isn’t retreating — it’s recalibrating.
