The Ultimate Marvel Film Guide: 2023 - 2024
Created | Updated Mar 1, 2024
1944-1990 | 1998-2004 | 2005-2009 | 2010-2014 | 2015-2016 | 2017-2019 | 2020-2022 | 2023-2024
In 2023 Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe began. The first three phases had been classed as the Infinity Saga, with phases Four to Six named the 'Multiverse Saga'. This would involve the characters encountering parallel dimensions filled with alternate copies of established characters and where historical events had played out differently. The Multiverse Saga consists not only of an ever-increasing number of films, but also series shown on streaming service Disney+, intended to boost subscribers to that digital streaming subscription service.
In the 1990s Marvel comics had sold off the film-rights to many of their titles. While most had reverted over the years to Marvel Studios, now owned by Disney, Columbia Pictures still has the rights to Spider-Man and associated characters. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) had shown them struggling to turn their lucrative rights into standalone money-making films, leading them to collaborate with Marvel Studios.
Marvel Films
Marvel also conceived their films as having over-reaching story arcs and grouped their films into 'phases'. All the films made by Marvel in this period were part of Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which had failed to capture the excitement of earlier phases and was largely considered anticlimactic following the Infinity Saga. The Marvel Cinematic Universe consisted of the following films to date - films shown underlined were made by Columbia Pictures:
| Phase 1: | Phase 2: | Phase 3: | Phase 4: |
|---|---|---|---|
1. Iron Man (2008) 2. The Incredible Hulk (2008) 3. Iron Man 2 (2010) 4. Thor (2011) 5. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) 6. Avengers Assemble (2012) | 7. Iron Man 3 (2013) 8. Thor: The Dark World (2013) 9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) 10. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) 11. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) 12. Ant-Man (2015) | 13. Captain America: Civil War (2016) 14. Doctor Strange (2016) 15. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2 (2017) 16. Spider-Man Homecoming (2017) 17. Thor: Ragnarok (2017) 18. Black Panther (2018) 19. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) 20. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) 21. Captain Marvel (2019) 22. Avengers: Endgame (2019) 23. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) | 24. Black Widow (2021) 25. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) 26. Eternals (2021) 27. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) 28. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) 29. Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) 30. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) |
Phase One Complete | Phase Two Complete | Phase Three Complete | Phase Four Complete |
Listed below are all the Marvel film adaptations made in this period, with recurring actors and characters who appear in other films shown in Bold. Also mentioned is whether the films pass the Bechdel Test. This can be summarised as whether the film involves two or more female characters who have a conversation together that does not focus on men in general or specific male characters.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
| Director | Peyton Reed |
|---|---|
| Studio | Marvel Studios |
| Plot | Scott's daughter Cassie has been studying the Quantum Realm and developed her own super-suit like her father's. When Cassie, Scott and his girlfriend Hope visit Hope's parents Hank and Janet, she demonstrates a device to communicate with the Quantum Realm, only for someone inside the Quantum Realm to use it to transport them into it. Trapped, they learn that Janet had previously stopped a multiversal madman named Kang the Conqueror, who had been imprisoned in the Quantum Realm by his alternate selves, from escaping as he planned to destroy whole universes and timelines. He now rules the Quantum Realm but needs the Pym particles that Scott uses in his Ant-Man suit to escape. Unless Scott helps Kang, he will kill his daughter Cassie, but if he helps Kang then the fate of the multiverse is at stake, also if Kang is defeated, a worse fate will befall the galaxy. |
| Length | 124 minutes |
| Setting | 2020s America and Quantum Realm |
| Characters |
|
| Related Films | All Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially Ant-Man (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) |
| Bechdel Test | Pass |
| Cameos |
|
| Post-Credits Scene | Both mid-credits and post-credits tying in with Loki. |
Another successful Marvel film. This had intended to be the big introduction of Jonathan Majors as Kang into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following his teased appearance in the first season Loki. Kang was intended to be the next big villain on the scale of Thanos, with numerous versions of the character from across the multiverse to be encountered in subsequent films. Unfortunately the casting has since been overshadowed by accusations in March 2023 that he assaulted and attempted to strangle his girlfriend, followed by further accusations by other women, leaving his continuing to play the character in doubt.
Kathryn Newton replaces Emma Fuhrmann and Abby Ryder Fortson to be the third actress to play Cassie. This is the fourth Marvel film in a row to have a girl genius as a pivotal character, following America Chavez in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Love in Thor: Love and Thunder and Riri Williams in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 3 (2022)
| Director | James Gunn |
|---|---|
| Studio | Marvel Studios |
| Plot | While Quill is mourning the death of his Gamorra on Knowhere, they are attacked by Adam, Sovereign warrior created by Ayesha to get revenge on Rocket, who had stolen the Sovereign's batteries in the previous film. Rocket is injured before Adam is driven off, and the Guardians learn that they cannot heal him as he has a kill switch embedded in him – any attempt to cure him will result in his death, unless he is treated by Orgocorp, the company that created him and consider him their property. While unconscious, Rocket remembers his past and the experiments done on him and other animals by the High Evolutionary, who was aiming to create an ideal society with anthropomorphised animals on a planet called Counter-Earth. An alternate Gamora helps the Guardians infiltrate Orgocorp but learn that the code to disarm the kill switch was taken, and that this is likely with the High Evolutionary on Counter-Earth. Are the Guardians heading into a trap, or is it really a face off against the High Evolutionary? What experiments has he been running recently? Can they cure Rocket without killing him, and why has Rocket never spoken of his past? |
| Length | 150 minutes |
| Setting | Space, including Knowhere and Counter-Earth |
| Characters |
|
| Other Characters |
|
| Related Films | All Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially:
|
| Bechdel Test | Pass |
| Cameos |
|
| Post-Credits Scene | Mid-credits and post-credits |
A film that successfully tells Rocket's backstory and was considered to be the last film of the current cast of characters. The ending seemed very tacked-on, with one second the main characters hugging and saying how much they love each other and are a close-knit indivisible family, only for the next instant to each announce that they wish to go their separate ways and never see each other again for no readily apparent reason. The character of the High Evolutionary was inspired by film adaptation Island of Lost Souls of The Island of Doctor Moreau by HG Wells.
This film's girl genius superhero in waiting is Phyla, who in the post-credits scene becomes one of the new Guardians of the Galaxy.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
| Directors | Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers & Justin K. Thompson |
|---|---|
| Studio | Columbia Pictures & Sony Pictures Animation |
| Plot | In the prologue Gwen Stacey, the Spider-Gwen of Earth-65, is being hunted by her police captain father as he suspects her of killing her best friend, Peter Parker. When he learns the truth after they both encounter a villain from a different dimension, she is taken through a dimensional portal to the Spider-Society realm led by vampire Spider-Man Miguel O'Hara. 16 months after the events of Into the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales on Earth-1610 struggles balancing his schoolwork with being Spider-Man, feeling alone and unable to discuss his problems with his parents, particularly his father who is about to become police captain. Suddenly he encounters Spot, a former scientist who mutated at the collider during the events of the first film, and blames Miles for this. His mutation has infused his body with transdimensional portals which allow him to travel to different universes, and he swears vengeance on Miles. Spot is being sought by the Spider-Society, which leads Gwen to encounter Miles again, and he secretly follows her to be able to help. After first arriving in Earth 50101's main city Mumbattan - a cross between Mumbai and Manhattan, he learns from Miguel about 'canon events' - unchangeable moments in time that must happen to each Spider-Man to prevent the universe from collapsing. This includes the death of a beloved uncle followed by the death of a police captain. Will Miles risk the entire multi-verse to stop his father's fate, and will his closest friends be forced to fight him to stop him? What of Gwen and her relationship with her police-chief father? |
| Length | 140 minutes |
| Setting | New York City and across the Spider-Verse, different dimensions containing a Spider-Man or equivalent |
| Characters |
|
| Bechdel Test | Pass |
| Related Films | Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) |
| Cameos |
|
This is the second film in the Spider-Verse trilogy, with additional spin-off films also announced. At time of release, this was the longest American animated film with the largest crew of any animated film, 240 characters and set in six different universes. The LEGO Spider-Man scene was made by a 14-year-old Spider-Man fan that had impressed the production team of Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who had previously produced The LEGO Movie, when he recreated the film's trailer in LEGO. It is revealed that the spider that bit Miles was a trans-dimensional traveller originally from Earth-42, with mentions of 42 frequently appearing throughout the film.
At time of release this was Sony Pictures Animation's highest-grossing film and the second-highest grossing animated film of the year, behind only The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and the sixth highest-grossing film of 20231. Widely praised by critics, it was nominated for the Best Animated Film Oscar.
The Marvels (2023)
| Director | Nia DaCosta |
|---|---|
| Studio | Marvel Studios |
| Plot | When Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel tried to free the Kree Empire from its ruling AI known as the Supreme Intelligence, she instead caused a civil war on the Kree's home world that results in it losing air, water and sunlight. When Kree leader Dar-Benn discovers one of the all-powerful Quantum Bands, used to create galactic jump points, she uses it to steal other planets' air and water, and threatens to destroy Earth's sun in a bid to restore her own, seeking revenge against Captain Marvel at the same time. Meanwhile, teenager Kamala Khan, who is wearing the other Quantum Band and gives her power to make solid light and goes by the name Ms Marvel, finds herself swapping locations with Captain Marvel (who has Infinity Stone granted light powers) and Captain Monica Rambeau, who also has Infinity Stone granted light powers. With the three now quantumly entangled, whenever two of them use their powers at the same time they swap locations across the universe, making defeating Dar-Benn and saving the Earth difficult. Meanwhile Monica, daughter of Carol's best friend Maria, feels that Carol abandoned her as a child. |
| Length | 105 minutes |
| Setting | America on Earth, SABER Space Station in Earth's orbit, and across the Universe |
| Characters |
|
| Related Films and Disney+ Series | All Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially:
|
| Bechdel Test | Pass |
| Cameos |
|
| Post-Credits Scene | Both mid-credits and post-credits |
The Marvels was another box office bomb, failing to make back its production budget. Sadly the Marvel Cinematic Universe has killed off most of its most popular characters, male and female alike, and as a character Captain Marvel does not have the charisma of Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Peggy Carter or Gamora. Teaming her up with the least popular character of a Marvel Disney+ show failed to increase the film's appeal. The film also met with controversy with the inclusion of actor Mohan Kapur, who has been accused of sexually harassing a 15-year-old girl. One positive is that the film featured a very enjoyable blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo from X-Men actor Kelsey Grammar as Dr Hank McCoy.
The film ends with Kamala Khan planning on recruiting a team of teenagers who have been in Disney+ shows and recent Marvel films to make her own gang.
After its failure, Disney CEO Bob Iger pronounced that the reason was that the film did not have enough executive oversight, which was interpreted as meaning that he believed that there weren't enough executives, while it is more likely that his meaning was that the executives there were were not doing their job. This has since been criticised as a sexist remark, as the film starred three women and was directed by a black woman. A more realistic reason might be that following a glut of good superhero films raising the bar very high, this film was mediocre and starred characters that audiences do not care about. It failed to trouble the top ten highest grossing films.
Madame Web (2024)
| Director | SJ Clarkson |
|---|---|
| Studio | Columbia Pictures |
| Plot | In 1973 heavily-pregnant scientist Constance Webb seeks a rare spider species she believes to have incredible healing properties that will revolutionise medicine. Her guide, Ezekiel, shoots her to keep the spider for himself. Her daughter Cassandra, or 'Cassie' for short, is born with the help of a secret tribe of spider-people before Constance dies. In 2003 Cassie works as a New York paramedic as Ben Parker's partner and, after a near-death experience, starts getting visions of the future. One vision shows her that Ezekiel - her mother's murderer - plans to kill three teenage girls. He too has premonitions and powers granted by the spider and has seen that in the future these girls will get spider powers too and kill him, so he decides to pre-emptively murder them first. After saving their lives at a train station and stealing a taxi to escape Ezekiel, the media believe that Cassie has kidnapped the girls, printing newspapers showing all their photos within seconds. This means that when the girls pop into a diner for dinner and have a quick dance on the tables they are recognised, leading to their being located again by the baddie. Will Cassie be able to bond with the girls, who all have been abandoned by their parents? Will she be able to pop to Peru to learn the backstory, able to recognise where precisely in the whole country to go aided only by the 30-year-old photograph of a tree? Will Ben become an uncle, and what is the name of his nephew? How will the girls get superpowers? Who is dying for a Pepsi, or possibly just needs a P? |
| Length | 116 minutes |
| Setting | Peruvian jungle and New York, America |
| Characters |
|
| Related Films | Sony's Spider-Man Universe, Spider-Man and Venom |
| Bechdel Test | Pass |
Another heavily criticised film. The basic premise is sound, of a woman forced to protect three teenagers who she knows will gain powers at some point, which presumably would occur in a sequel as it does not take place in this one. The films spends much of its time trying to include references to Spider-Man that are as subtle as a brick. The main problem is that the audience have no way of knowing anything about the villain. He says generic things like 'I won't let them destroy what I have built' but the audience do not know what he actually has built, only that he employs a hacker, but what she does when not trying to find the locations of teenage girls is also unknown.
After Sony received a large fan petition calling on more Spider-Man films starring Toby Maguire or Andrew Garfield, instead of making a film the fans wanted Sony decided to make a vaguely-related one.
Television Spin-offs
Unfortunately in 2023, the number of Disney+ subscriptions worldwide plummeted. Despite headlines being quick to claim this was due to 'Marvel fatigue' or viewers' tastes moving away from superheroes and the perceived reduction in quality since, the truth was simpler; Disney+ in India was outbid for the rights to show cricket2, and promptly lost 4 ½ million subscribers as a result, with predictions that this is likely to rise to as many as 8 million by the end of the year. Additionally they had lost over 300,000 subscribers on the North American continent following the raise in subscription rates to compensate for operating losses. A 2023 Writers' Strike has also impacted production of new content, which may well result in further subscription loses worldwide.
Spin offs shown on Disney+ are:
