9 of the Most Exciting Announcements to Come out of the Marvel Studios Hall H Panel

Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios shook Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con last night with their announcement of Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Those announcements spanned both theatrical releases and series headed to Disney+, giving us a schedule for the next 2+ years that is loaded with Marvel content.

Sure, we now know when we can expect to see the return of some of our favorite heroes, but the real excitement is in the details. Let’s take a closer look at some of the most exciting details we learned during that Phase 4 announcement.

1. Monica Rambeau

When discussing details about WandaVision, one of those new series coming to Disney+, it was announced that the series will include an adult Monica Rambeau. The young girl featured in Captain Marvel will be all grown up and potentially ready to take on her comic book superhero monicker of Photon.

2. Female Thor

Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson and Taika Waititi are all returning to make Thor: Love and Thunder. As if that’s not exciting enough, it was announced that another will wield the power of Mjolnir in this film. Waititi explained that he was inspired by the 2015 “Mighty Thor” comic series, which features a female Thor. The group was then joined by Natalie Portman, who will reprise her role as Jane Foster and become the MCU’s female Thor. Who else is excited for Natalie Thor-tman?

3. The “Real” Mandarin

Iron Man 3 took one of the most popular villains of Marvel Comics and, let’s say they went in a very different direction. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will fix that. The “real” Mandarin will be featured in this new movie, finally giving us the villain and his powerful ten rings.

4. Taskmaster and Yelena Belova

Speaking of great villains, Black Widow will bring Taskmaster to the MCU. The masterful hand-to-hand combatant learns the skills and tendencies of his opponent, making him a formidable foe for any of our heroes in the MCU, even the Black Widow. We also learned of the presence of Yelena Belova, the second Black Widow. Perhaps the MCU won’t be going forward without a master spy afterall.

5. Kate Bishop

And while we’re on the topic of second versions of our heroes, Kate Bishop was revealed to appear in the Hawkeye series coming to Disney+. The young female archer could be the start of the second wave of Avengers. Her presence could also allow Clint Barton to continue to use the Ronin persona.

6. Multiverse

Just because Quentin Beck lied about it, doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Looks like we’ll be getting the Multiverse in the MCU after all. This opens up all kinds of doors, including different versions of our favorite heroes (i.e. Miles Morales as Spider-Man) and the popular Secret Wars story arc. My only question is, does this mean it’s now the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse?

7. Baron Zemo

Yet another great villain is getting his due. This time, it’s one we’ve already seen. Daniel Bruhl will reprise his role from Captain America: Civil War as Baron Zemo, only now it appears he’ll be a more formidable foe when he appears in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier on Disney+. Footage was revealed showing him putting on the mask he wears in the comics. Zemo is a big player in the comics and could be a key piece in the MCU moving forward.

8. Blade

We were already aware of just about all the movies and series that were announced in Hall H, but Feige and company just couldn’t leave without giving us at least one surprise. Luke Cage star Mahershala Ali took the stage before being revealed to play the fan-favorite vampire killer. No date was given for Blade but once he is brought into the MCU, things could get a whole lot darker.

9. Fantastic Four and Mutants

We knew it was coming, but it was still exciting to hear Kevin Feige confirm that the Fantastic Four and Mutants will be coming to the MCU. We weren’t given any further details regarding when we can expect to see them, or what movies we can expect to see, but now at least we know they’re coming.

We can likely expect to learn more about the Marvel schedule, more movies (including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Captain Marvel 2, and Black Panther 2) as well as the Fantastic Four and Mutants at the D23 Expo 2019.

Based on the original film release schedule Disney announced back in May and the Marvel slate announced in Hall H, there are still three slots open in 2022.

Perhaps we’ll learn what movies will fill those slots next month.

What Marvel Studios announcement are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below.