The release date for The Marvels has been delayed by three months. Previously slated to debut in November 2022, the MCU film is being helmed by Candyman director Nia DaCosta and is the sequel to the 2019 hit film Captain Marvel. It will see Brie Larson reprise her role as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel. The actress will be joined by Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau and Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel. The film will also star Zawe Ashton and Park Seo-joon in so-far undisclosed roles.
Captain Marvel first joined the MCU in 2019 in her own solo film, but later teamed up with the Avengers to defeat Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. While not much is known about the specific plot details of the upcoming sequel, Marvel Studios has described the film as a “cosmic adventure with Carol, Monica, and Kamala.” Just last month, Larson confirmed that The Marvels had already begun filming, and the actress has also been taking to social media frequently to share videos of her intense training workouts for her role as the "strongest Avenger."
Now, Disney has confirmed that The Marvels will release on February 17, 2023, marking a three-month delay from the original release date. However, the Captain Marvel sequel is not the only film to receive a significant pushback, since Doctor Strange 2, Thor: Love & Thunder, Black Panther 2, Ant-Man 3 and Indiana Jones 5 have also all been delayed. In addition, Disney has cited an untitled live-action film and three untitled Marvel films as being affected by the re-schedule.
Continuing on in the same vein that Phase 4 has already established, The Marvels is set see a new set of hero characters step into the MCU limelight. Monica Rambeau was first introduced to the universe in WandaVision, cementing her place in Phase 4 in preparation for the The Marvels. While Monica Rambeau is yet to have a big screen debut, she is already closely connected to Captain Marvel as the daughter of the superhero's best friend, Maria (Lashana Lynch) who audiences met in the original film. Meanwhile, newcomer Ms. Marvel was officially confirmed to be receiving her own show on Disney+ in 2019, and Vellani was cast as the lead in 2020. Due to even more delays, viewers are yet to see Ms. Marvel in action just yet, but her character's idolization of Captain Marvel is sure to be a key part of The Marvels' storyline.
It is so far unclear why Disney has chosen to delay so many of its Marvel heavy-hitters across the 2022/2023 slate. More than likely, the decision has partly come down to concerns over box office performance during the ongoing COVID pandemic, with results from the previously released Black Widow and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings coming up short of the studio's expectations. Whatever the case, movie fans the world over have become used to the constant reshuffling of release dates, and there has been no evidence to suggest that the appetite for MCU blockbusters has dissipated. Even with the latest delay to The Marvels, there's no doubt that audiences will flock to see the highly-anticipated sequel whenever it hits theaters.
Source: Disney