Kevin Feige teases how crucial the Disney+ Marvel shows will be, says Hawkeye almost got a movie

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Kevin Feige teases how crucial the Disney+ Marvel shows will be, says Hawkeye almost got a movie
Photo: Jesse Grant

Today, Bloomberg published a lengthy story on the development and future of Disney+, and while there’s some interesting stuff in there for the real streamer-heads who care about how their streaming sausage gets made, there’s also something in it for the rest of us. Specifically, Bloomberg talked to Marvel Studios mastermind Kevin Feige about the Marvel shows that will be coming to Disney+, and he offered a particularly harrowing tease for anyone who really values the time they spend not keeping track of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Apparently, Wandavision and Loki will directly tie in with the Doctor Strange sequel In The Multiverse Of Madness, so Feige says you’ll “probably need a Disney+ subscription” if you want to “understand everything in future Marvel movies.”

WandaVision will be some kind of weirdo romance about Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and Paul Bettany’s android-man Vision, and at the very least it’ll be interesting to see how the show works around the fact that Thanos killed Vision in Avengers: Infinity War. Speaking of, Loki was also killed by Thanos in that movie, but we learned back at Comic-Con that the version of him that will be kicking around in his Disney+ show will be the Loki from the past who snuck away with an Infinity Stone during the chaos the Avengers caused during their Time Heist in Endgame. So, you’ll probably have to have seen those movies to understand those shows, and you’ll have to see the shows in order to understand Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness. Fun!

Feige also gave a little tidbit of information about Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye show, which is apparently going to feature Hailee Steinfeld as fan-favorite comic book character Kate Bishop. In the Bloomberg piece, Feige mentions that Marvel had initially made a deal with Renner for him to star in a solo movie about Hawkeye, but as the Disney+ plans started coming together, Feige decided it would work better as a series. To Feige’s apparent surprise, Renner “totally got it” and was on board with the change, simply saying “let’s do it.” Now, based on Feige’s other comment, it seems like we’ll also probably have to pay attention to the Hawkeye show if we want to understand what’s going on in some future Marvel movie.

83 Comments

  • smittywerbenjagermanjensen22-av says:

    So this is the Hawkeye show starring Hailee Steinfeld that Hailee Steinfeld says is “not necessarily” happening?

    https://www.themarysue.com/hawkeye-should-be-kate-bishop/

    • capeo-av says:

      I believe she means she might not take the role, which hasn’t been made official yet. The rumors are there’s scheduling issues with her current streaming show. Specifically that she’s committed to future seasons of that show if it keeps going and that Marvel Studios is likely wanting an extended contract as the always do. 

      • jacklaughed-av says:

        That’s just a negotiating tactic. Marvel can easily schedule around her current gig and getting in on the Marvel cash cow is well worth her effort, because there’s no guarantee Dickinson lasts more than 2 seasons (Apple will definitely reup it for a second season no matter what because they need the content).

  • h0meric-av says:

    Almost only counts in horse shoes and grenades.

  • boggardlurch-av says:

    I’m borderline on most Marvel movies anyway. This is a good way to make sure I don’t bother with any of them again.Pity, the Strange movie was one of the recent ones I enjoyed and the sequel’s title alone had me interested in seeing it. Not if it requires subscribing to yet another idiot streaming service though.

    • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

      They’d be crazy to continue making movies that general audiences can’t understand without watching the TV shows.

      • capeo-av says:

        Yeah, Marvel Studios serial style of films that constantly reference prior movies sure hasn’t worked for them so far…Snark aside, I really don’t think adding one off TV series into the mix is going to hurt them. They’re basically movies in between the actual movies and Marvel fans are going to eat them up. Particularly given how cheap Disney+ is. 

        • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

          Are you replying to the right post?
          I didn’t mention referencing prior movies or Marvel fans.

          • capeo-av says:

            What? You said “they,” meaning Marvel Studios (as that was what the comment you were replying to was talking about), would be crazy to make movies that one couldn’t understand without watching the TV shows. My response was pretty simple. Marvel Studios has made a killing by serializing movies so adding TV shows in the same universe isn’t going to hurt them.

          • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

            I agree, but your point is separate from mine.
            Lurch of the SoCal‘s concerned about having to subscribe to “yet another idiot streaming service”, ostensibly because the article says “you’ll have to see the shows in order to understand Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness”.

            I implied that you probably won’t have to watch the TV shows to understand the movies. If Marvel required general audiences (i.e. not Marvel fans) to watch the TV shows to understand the movies, they’d be crazy. But it probably won’t happen, so Lurch of the SoCal’s probably doesn’t need to worry.
            I think you and I are agreeing, you just chose to add snark and points that didn’t directly address what I wrote.

      • charleslupula-av says:

        You’d be crazy to think it isn’t going to work and that a great number of the millions of people who watch their movies aren’t going to buy Disney+ just to watch the Marvel shows. I know I certainly am getting a subscription and just about everyone I know is. This is going to be huge for Disney.

        • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

          Ah, the internet.
          Where else can you be ignored and argued with at the same time.

      • brianhogg-av says:

        Not understanding all of the nuances of the films without watching the shows isn’t the same as not understanding the films without watching the shows, I’d think.

    • nilus-av says:

      Has there really been a Marvel movie that absolutely required knowledge of any of the others that much? Outside of Endgame being a direct sequel to Infinity War

      • boggardlurch-av says:

        Well, the guy in charge of the franchise is saying you likely will. So far? Outside the big crossover Avengers movies they’ve mostly stayed discreet units that are fairly self contained. Feige makes it sound like that is about to change.

        • nilus-av says:

          Feige is trying to sell streaming service for his corporate overlords. Marvel has very profitable method already.  I doubt they change that with Disney+.  You won’t be lost if you don’t want the shows there 

      • jsmtab-av says:

        So Disney is now telling us that after how many years of having TV shows on the air since the beginning of the MCU that now they’re finally going to matter?  I’m sure all the TV shows to date were just super happy to hear this.

        • nilus-av says:

          Most have been cancelled and Agents of Shield is just happy no one noticed it was still on. 

          • jsmtab-av says:

            In my own humble opinion I firmly believe they got canceled because Disney wants them all under one roof rather than share their toys with the other children…err streaming services.

      • rogueindy-av says:

        Pretty much all of them, really. Most of the character development takes place over multiple films. Individually, they’re flatter action-comedies.I wonder if that’s where a lot of the “just people punching eachother over a glove” takes come from, now that I think about it.

      • cdog9231-av says:

        No; this is just posturing from people who don’t have long attention spans. 

  • murrychang-av says:

    “says you’ll “probably need a Disney+ subscription” if you want to “understand everything in future Marvel movies.”That’s probably not a great decision…

    • boggardlurch-av says:

      It’s reminding me of Dune and the lack of truly successful adaptations. They all come with “you need to read the books and understand the intricacies of the source material” caveats, they all wind up becoming near incoherent because of it.

    • AnotherTallguy-av says:

      There were people who saw Engame as their first Marvel movie and they seem to be fine.Also, isn’t this exactly what the crowd wanting the Netflix Marvel people to show up in the movies wanted?

      • soylent-gr33n-av says:

        I’m not going to be happy until I see Kristin Ritter’s Jessica Jones throw a whisky bottle at Thanos’ head and kick him in the balls. 

      • rogueindy-av says:

        There’s a difference between “give Daredevil a cameo” and “make Defenders essential to understanding Ant Man 3″

    • enemiesofcarlotta-av says:

      … and yet, do you know any of us who are reading this article that haven’t already signed up?! 

    • westcoastwestcoast-av says:

      The overall movie will be understandable by anyone. There’ll be little easter eggs and tertiary plot points that only the Disney+ viewers will get, but will not impact the overall storyline of the movies.

      The MCU has pretty much always been like this. You could watch and enjoy the last two Avengers movies without having seen anything prior, but having seen the prior movies will bring an extra level of understanding.

    • notthesquirrellyourelookingfor-av says:

      I’m sure all I’ll need is my friends Plex stream.

    • bigal6ft6-av says:

      Bad decision for mainstream audiences but I’m all in in the MCU anyway so I’m fine with it. Although I’m sure he’s overstating it to sell subs. For all of the saying that Infinity War and Endgame is incomprehensible to newbies, they actually do a pretty good job through character reveals and snippets of dialogue what has happened in other instalments. Considering IW and EG made All the MCU money, I think some people who hadn’t seen the other films were fine playing catch up with the movie itself.

    • anthonypirtle-av says:

      I’m sure it means very little. Just a bit of cross promotion.

    • cdog9231-av says:

      I mean, at this point, you’re either fully invested in the MCU and already have plans to watch these, or you don’t care enough to worry about whatever connections these shows will have to the movies. Either way, the MCU is large enough to sustain itself.

  • det-devil-ails-av says:

    “…it’ll be interesting to see how the show works around the fact that Thanos killed Vision in Avengers: Infinity War.”‘Dang. We need to buy a new robot.’

  • moosekungfu-av says:

    I, for one, am happy to watch Disney spend millions upon millions of dollars on media that only I and three other people will fully understand. It’s probably bad business in the long term for them, but I eagerly look forward to how 2025’s Howard the Duck Disney+ miniseries forms a crucial piece of backstory for 2026’s X-Factor vs. Young Avengers movie.

  • yesidrivea240-av says:

    Welp, I refuse to get Disney+. I think this is a shitty way to alienate fans. Guess it’s time to get the torrents ready.

    • murrychang-av says:

      It is but on the other hand: Werner Herzog in The Mandalorian.  That’s worth at least a couple months of the sub cost in my opinion.

      • yesidrivea240-av says:

        I know this is a sacrilegious opinion on AV Club, but I have next to no interest in that show.

        • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

          That’s totally fair, considering there hasn’t been a great Star Wars movie since 1980.
          I’ve enjoyed parts of all the movies and shows that followed, but not enough to get a subscription to watch more.

          • nilus-av says:

            Jedi is amazing 

          • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

            I think it’s very good, even has some great moments, but it’s not great overall.
            But even if it was, then there hasn’t been a great Star Wars movie since 1983, which is fine but it’s also reasonable for people to have “next to no interest” in it now.

        • enemiesofcarlotta-av says:

          Ugh. You’re just Mr. Disney+ party pooper. 

        • peteena66-av says:

          Neither do I. I’ll just continue to write Mr. Lucas a check instead for each Star Wars “entertainment” I skip, as I’m required to do by law.

    • capeo-av says:

      You’re a fan but you refuse to get Disney+ to watch things you’re a fan of? 

      • yesidrivea240-av says:

        I’m not a fan of Disney. I watch Marvel movies because I was a fan before the Disney purchase, same scenario with Star Wars. I’m not going to willingly give them anything else.Also, I don’t need another streaming service.

    • alliterator85-av says:

      Yes, giving fans more content. What a way to alienate them.

      • yesidrivea240-av says:

        You misunderstand. It’s the fact that we have to watch the new shows because they tie into the movies that frustrates me.This line particularly frustrates me. Feige says you’ll “probably need a Disney+ subscription” if you want to “understand everything in future Marvel movies.”New content is great for people that want to pay for it. It shouldn’t be required viewing, thus alienating people that don’t want to pay for a subscription they don’t need.

        • alliterator85-av says:

          Yeah, but this is nothing new. You have to watch Captain America: Civil War to understand everything in Ant-Man and the Wasp. You have to watch many, many films to understand everything in Avengers: Endgame.
          Feige isn’t saying that the movie will be incomprehensible if you don’t watch the Disney+ shows. That would be stupid. You can definitely watch the movie without watching the shows. He’s saying that if you want to understand everything then you should watch the Disney+ shows.Honestly, people are getting worked up over nothing. “Oh no, I have to watch something before I watch this other movie that also a sequel and part of a continuing franchise.” Boo fucking hoo.

          • yesidrivea240-av says:

            *roll eyes*There’s a big difference between watching one movie every few months in theaters for a few hours, and keeping up with a TV show putting out new episodes on a consistent basis. It’s more time consuming, and I don’t want to spend the time doing that.That combined with my lack of interest in anything else Disney, gives me zero reason to want to pay for it. You’re right, it’s not detrimental to the story to see each show, however, there’s still going to be pieces missing that I will be missing out on.

          • alliterator85-av says:

            There’s a big difference between watching one movie every few months in theaters for a few hours, and keeping up with a TV show putting out new episodes on a consistent basis.They aren’t “TV shows putting out new episodes on a consistent basis.” You aren’t going to have to watch 22 episodes on CBS or something like that. They are streaming shows that are probably only going to have one season of six to eight episodes. And you don’t have to watch it if you don’t want to — you’ll just go into the movie with a little less knowledge of Wanda’s backstory or whatever.

    • cdog9231-av says:

      This is the one thing that is going to keep you from having access to a gigantic library of media, some of which are essential classics to the medium? I mean, you’re entitled to your opinions and actions, but that’s a bit silly, isn’t it? Unless you weren’t going to buy the service in the first place? 

      • yesidrivea240-av says:

        Unless you weren’t going to buy the service in the first place?I wasn’t planning to. I already own every Marvel movie I need and every StarWars film. I don’t want to pay for another service.

    • deeeeznutz-av says:

      I have a feeling it’s only going to be relatively minor plot points that explicitly tie into the shows that you’d miss out on if you didn’t watch the shows. It’ll probably be similar to how Iron Man was involved in the first Spiderman movie…it definitely helps if you know up front how the two of them know each other, but it’s not really consequential to the plot of that standalone movie.

  • labbla-av says:

    Good thing those shows I’m not going to watch are going to be important. 

  • BeardCastle-av says:

    I know it’s bad, but I’m excited.

  • captain-splendid-av says:

    “Marvel had initially made a deal with Renner for him to star in a solo movie about Hawkeye, but as the Disney+ plans started coming together, Feige decided it would work better as a series”Wow, he truly is a genius. When he retires or gets fired, the MCU is going to go to shit real fast.

  • brontosaurian-av says:

    A bit of anger at Marvel in these comments over this. Cost of a movie ticket $10-20 and the other stuff you might buy. Cost of Disney+ $6.99 a month. I mean whatever, but it’s not out of reach or something.

    • igotsuped-av says:

      Pay for a month in April 2021, binge watch everything that’s come out, cancel subscription before it renews in May, clap hands together like you’re wiping something away, bingo bango.

  • disgracedformerlifeguard-av says:

    Still guessing the odds of that Hawkeye show actually coming out are 50/50 due to Renner very likely being a complete monster.

  • weirdstalkersareweird-av says:

    Overly anal nerds + wikipedia = nah, I’m good. 

  • igotlickfootagain-av says:

    ‘To Feige’s apparent surprise, Renner “totally got it” and was on board with the change, simply saying “let’s do it.”’Renner went on to say he’d “do anything: webisodes, post-credits sequences, branded video content. Please just don’t forget me. This and car ads are all I have.”

    • little-king-trashmouth-av says:

      Ain’t nothing wrong with knowing where your paycheck is. Fuck, it’s either this or shitty blues records for him.

  • anthonypirtle-av says:

    I’m sure by “everything” he means an extra bit of fan service. Marvel didn’t become the biggest film franchise in the world by ignoring casual viewers.

  • charleslupula-av says:

    And this is exactly why I’m already onboard. I wish they had done this with the Netflix shows.

  • berty2001-av says:

    Easy fix. Instead of having a post-credit sequence, have a pre-credit one that catches you up. ‘Previously, in the MCU…’

  • debeuliou-av says:

    Hawkeye would totally work better as a show if they follow the excellent recent comic. And everything is pointing to it, so yeah, I’m very excited about this. A lot more than a movie that’d probably be a generic james bondy type of spy shit, but with arrows…

  • chuckrich81-av says:

    Calm down, folks. He didn’t say the movies would be incomprehensible without watching the shows. He just said you won’t understand everything.It’s most likely going to be similar to what they did a couple times with Agents of SHIELD. People who didn’t watch it might have wondered how Fury shows up with a helicarrier at the end of Age of Ultron after they were all blown up in Winter Soldier but most people didn’t even give it a second thought. People who watched AoS saw where it came from.

  • recognitions-av says:

    So Disney’s still going ahead with a Hawkeye show despite Jeremy Renner being an abusive piece of shit? Family-friendly.

  • homerbert1-av says:

    I’ve seen a lot of backlash over this and I think people are being a bit overdramatoc. Firstly, I’m sure there’s corporate pressure on launch week to say that Disney+ is essential. Secondly, he hedges it, saying its only if you want to fully understand everything. It’ll probably operate on a similar way to the previous movies. If you watched Endgame without Ant Man 2 you got he’d been in quantum realm. If you watched Captain Marvel without the first Avengers movie, Coulson won’t mean as much to you. It’s not like they’ll be incomprehensible, they’ll just have slightly more context if you’ve watched the TV shows.

  • rellengibbons-av says:

    Netflix’s Marvel shows started out really good – the first seasons of Daredevil and Jessica Jones – and then quickly dropped to mediocre (Daredevil season 2, Luke Cage), before collapsing into dog shit (Iron Fist, Punisher). I have very little hope that Disney will do better considering showrunners will have even more – and worse – creative limitations.

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